INDIVIDUAL FACULTY DEVELOPMENT PLAN
Rationale:
The Dean of the Faculty鈥檚 Office is firmly committed to the holistic development of our faculty. This includes the provision of resources and opportunities to enhance scholarly and creative endeavors, promote effective leadership and service, and nurture pedagogical competencies that result in high quality teaching and a first-rate educational experience for which Skidmore is known.
The deployment of faculty development resources is most effective and efficient when opportunities are driven by well-elucidated goals and objectives of individual faculty members in the context of institutional and departmental priorities. As faculty progress through their academic careers and the professorial ranks, development of an individual faculty professional development plan can assist in focusing one鈥檚 work, illuminating needs for targeted faculty development resources, providing a specific context for evaluation, and meeting institutional priorities. Therefore, as part of a multi-faceted approach to faculty development and evaluation, the DOF Office proposes that faculty collaboratively engage in an individual faculty development planning process that will function as a guide for professional growth and development in teaching, scholarship/creative work, and service.
While the implementation of such a collaborative planning process can be beneficial for all faculty regardless or rank or tenure status, it can be especially valuable for pre-tenure faculty. In terms of teaching, newer faculty can better plan for new course preps and deploy specific and tailored strategies such as peer observation to enhance their classroom performance. Such a plan could facilitate a successful tenure process through helping faculty clarify their scholarship/creative goals in the context of departmental and institutional tenure expectations and illuminate what resources may be needed to support scholarship and creative work as one progresses toward assembling the tenure file. In terms of service, faculty can think about where their talents are best utilized in the governance and service system and target their efforts in those areas. Such mindful planning across the three areas of performance may allow for synergy in which teaching, scholarship/creative work, and service complement and energize each other allowing for better work/life balance and increased job satisfaction.
Finally, the development of individual faculty development plans can provide a context for more targeted and meaningful feedback and evaluation. The plan, developed by the individual faculty member in consultation with the department chair(s)/program director(s) (or designees), could provide a benchmark for feedback in annual letters, at third-year reappointment, and at tenure. The plan would be developed collaboratively in the context of the department clarifying expectations for pre-tenure faculty and those charged with shepherding these faculty through personnel processes. The plans could also allow for continuity in expectations under probable departmental leadership changes.
Such plans may be helpful for Associate Professors working towards promotion, as well as faculty in non-tenure track positions trying to advance in rank. These plans are not contracts, but are documents to help faculty focus their work within departmental and institutional priorities. Fulfilling such plans does not guarantee tenure or promotion, and not completing all aspects of a plan does not necessarily mean one will not be granted tenure. Again, they are planning documents only.
Individual Faculty Development Plan (IFDP): Timing And Structure
In consultation with the faculty member鈥檚 Department Chair(s)/Program Director(s)/Program Personnel Committee Chair (C/PD/PPCCs), pre-tenure faculty can develop an IFDP by the end of their first academic year that will cover years 2 and 3, and upon reappointment, years 4-6. The candidate can keep a copy of the most current plan and share it with C/PD/PPCCs. Faculty in other ranks are also encouraged to develop an IFDP to guide professional development and assist in evaluation. To the extent that plans include needed faculty development resources, faculty and C/PD/PPCCs will communicate these resource needs to a representative from the Dean of the Faculty Office (CLTL Director or ADOF). Any changes to the plan would be discussed with C/PD/PPCCs. Plans can include but are not limited to the following components:
- Teaching
- What courses will likely be offered by the faculty member over the time of the plan? (It is understood that departmental needs may result in a change to the plan due to staffing or enrollment pattern changes, etc.)
- What is the plan for developmental peer observation that meets the needs of the faculty member vis-脿-vis their current skills and competencies as teachers? (This should be as specific as possible.)
- What is the plan for evaluative peer observation? (This could be in accordance with the College鈥檚 Peer Observation Guidelines.)
- What are faculty development needs (mentoring, pedagogical workshops, course development, etc.) related to teaching? What resources are needed to meet these needs? What is the plan for obtaining these resources?
- Scholarship/Creative Work
- What are the faculty member鈥檚 scholarship/creative work goals for this period? (These goals should be reasonable, attainable, and help move the candidate toward successful reappointment, tenure and/or promotion.)
- What conferences or other professional development opportunities will the faculty member engage?
- Will the faculty member seek internal or external funding to support scholarship/creative work? What is the plan to apply for these funds?
- What sorts of support/mentoring (both internal/external to the institution) does the
faculty member need to help realize these goals? What is the plan to obtain this support?
- Service
- When does the faculty member plan to complete their governance cycle? When does this service best fit with the other components of the plan?
- What sorts of service complements the faculty member鈥檚 teaching and scholarship/creative work goals?
- What leadership opportunities exist and what leadership aspirations do the faculty member have? If applicable, what kind of leadership training would be useful to the faculty member to help meet these goals?