Abstract:

The Center for Teaching and Learning at Denison University offers professional development opportunities to junior faculty to assist them in adjusting to the university. Previously, this was a teaching-focused reading group open to all first-year tenure and non-tenure track faculty. However, the program had inconsistent results, with many tenure-track faculty leaving the program.

In the fall of 2020, we introduced the Denison Teaching Seminar (DTS), a community of practice for junior tenure-track faculty in their first three years. The program is modeled after the Teaching Seminar for Incoming Faculty at Connecticut College. The seminar has a more intentional approach than the reading group. First, the DTS bolsters the existing departmental mentoring programs and provides a unique peer-mentoring structure between faculty cohorts. Second, participants interact with five years of faculty colleagues (two ahead and two behind), building a rich sense of community and shared purpose. Finally, the program addresses the challenges of faculty teaching at a small college. To assess these new approaches, we surveyed current and past participants on their sense of belonging before and after the seminars to gauge the development of a community.

During this presentation, we will examine the DTS's structure, assess its success in fostering community among junior faculty based on survey findings, and explore how it can be replicated at other institutions. No previous knowledge or experience is necessary to attend.

Keywords:

Faculty development, community of practice.