Topics-Based Resource Mentorship

There will be a mentorship program in each department in which the chair formally assigns at least one mentor to each new full-time faculty member, including lecturers. The assignment should be made after consulting with the mentee and considering any preferences he/she may have. The mentee will have one mentor from within the department and may have an additional mentor from inside or outside the department as appropriate. Chairs will discuss possible outside mentors with the mentee and make arrangements with the appropriate chair and mentor if one is selected. Mentors should normally hold academic rank above the mentee and have been at ODU for at least three years.

Mentors and mentees should meet at least three times per semester. The mentor should help the mentee understand the expectations in the department, college and university and help them navigate the academic landscape.

At a minimum, the Department Chair will enquire informally about the progress of the mentorship arrangement at the midpoint and end of the first semester. Members of the COS Diversity Committee will also check occasionally to make sure that mentors and mentees in their departments are satisfied with the relationship. The Dean will follow up with the chairs to review the effectiveness of the mentoring program at least once per year. If either the mentor or mentee is not satisfied with the way the relationship is developing, either one can request a reassignment from the chair.

Serving as a mentor to one's colleagues is a normal part of academic life and expected of all senior faculty. Given the importance of mentoring to the success of junior colleagues and ultimately to the department, the chair should include mentoring activity in the annual evaluation. The faculty information sheet should be modified to include mentoring. If available, department or college funds will pay for one mentoring lunch per semester in the first two years of a new faculty member's time at ODU. This can be a group event for all mentors and mentees in the college.

One or more faculty within the college will agree to represent a specific topic of concern to new faculty. The faculty representatives along with their respective topics will be posted on a COS webpage devoted to mentoring. Mentees will contact the representatives for assistance with a specific problem. The faculty representative may either meet with the mentee to resolve the issue, or the representative may direct the mentee to a faculty member in the mentee's own department or the college who has expertise with that issue and agrees to help the mentee. The COS Diversity Committee will provide information on each topic (websites, papers, videos, list of appropriate ODU resources) to the representatives as a resource bank. The following topics will be offered for mentorship opportunities.

• Managing hostility and disruption
• Offering emotional support to students
• Teaching while female
• Teaching as a person of color
• Teaching as international faculty
• How to engage in outreach activities
• Publishing research papers/books
• Grant-writing
• How to mentor undergraduate students
• How to mentor graduate students
• Tenure and promotion
• Professional development
• LGBTQ faculty issues
• Time management
• Parenting as a Faculty Member