links august 02

What is Preparing Future Faculty?

Preparing Future Faculty is a joint initiative by American Association of Colleges and Universities and the Council of Graduate Schools to improve the preparation of graduate students for faculty roles. A key feature is forming partnerships with non-doctoral institutions, so that students learn about the ways in which faculty responsibilities are affected by institutional contexts, and increase doctoral students' awareness of diversity issues. Our program is funded by American Psychological Association.

Professional development series

March 29, Robin Bartlett, partner faculty member from NKU, presented talks on “Children’s eyewitness testimony,” “Children and marital conflict,” and “New faculty experiences.”

April 5, an administrators panel consisting of Richard Nault, Assoc. VP for Student Affairs/Dean of Students, MU-Oxford; Gary Wheeler, Asst. Executive Director, MU-Middletown; and Lee Knisely Sanders, Asst. Executive Director, MU-Hamilton presented:

"Academic Administrators: their career paths and professional goals." The focus of the panel was on how people come to be academic administrators, what they are trying to accomplish in their careers and in leading their campus, what are the joys and sorrows of those positions, and how faculty can best understand and work with their administrative leadership.

APA-PFF doctoral students participate in enrichment activities

Melissa Lea and Cecilia Shore traveled to University of New Hampshire in June for the first class session of “Preparing to Teach a Psychology Course” taught by Jim Korn and Victor Benassi. Melissa and 4 other students from PFF programs around the country completed the course via distance learning. Melissa says, “The course included syllabus construction, module/unit construction, test construction, and various ways to evaluate and improve my teaching skills. I gained the tools that I need to walk into the classroom feeling well prepared. Most importantly, the first and last assignments were to create my teaching philosophy statement. This document’s evolution provides a strong foundation for me to constantly evaluate my values and goals for the teaching of psychology.”

Jessica Donn will attend the Third Annual Developing Teachers of Psychology workshop, a pre-conference workshop sponsored by the APA Education Directorate on preparing for faculty roles.

Zak Birchmeier attended the Ohio Learning Networks conference in Columbus, and says that it “ was an excellent opportunity to mingle with a diverse group of Ohio teachers and to hear their thoughts on and experiences with integrating technology into their classrooms. Instructors presented research on topics including the effects of different modes of instruction on learning outcomes and student satisfaction, as well as the interaction of students' individual learning styles with media use. Additional sessions provided practical tips on budgeting and implementing new technologies, allowing attendees to benefit from the historical trials of more advanced instructors.”

Plans for this year

Our third year will be marked by progress toward institutionalization.

· APA PFF Scholars will receive graduate credit for PFF activities via PSY 687-688.

· Miami will launch a PFF learning community open to doctoral students from all over Miami University. We are working out a complementary balance between departmental and university programs.

· We will have 2 presentations at MACTOP (MidAmerica Conference on Teaching of Psychology): “Developing a Sense of Identity and Authority as a Beginning Teacher” by Jennifer Naylor, Zachary Birchmeier, & Cecilia Shore; and “Surviving and Thriving in Grad School” by Zachary Birchmeier, Jennifer Naylor, & Cecilia Shore.

Reflections from Beth Uhler & Cecilia Shore, PFF coordinators

Beth: The most significant rewards came from my activities as a partner faculty member of PFF. First, two PFF Scholars visited the Middletown Campus. Sandy Neumann lectured on social psychology in my Introduction to Psychology class. Students reported that they enjoyed Sandy's lecture. Zak Birchmeier attended a Teaching and Learning with Technology Roundtable (a committee which I Chair) meeting. There, he reported on his experiences at the Ohio Learning Conference, which we both attended. Second, Cathy Bishop-Clark & I gave a PFF Brown Bag at "The Mount" about the use of technology in teaching and learning. I find all of my experiences in the PFF program to be stimulating and rewarding and look forward to next years' program.

Cecilia: This year I have again been struck by how everyone wins in PFF programs. Students benefit by learning about faculty roles on partner campuses; partner undergraduates benefit from participating in our Tri-State Symposium; our department has benefited in terms of placement and recruitment of grad students. We are grateful for the enthusiastic participation of our grad students; for the willingness of partner faculty to mentor our students; and for the support from APA and our administrators, which have made this progress possible

Tentative Calendar

All members of the cluster--doctoral faculty, grad students, partner faculty and students--are all welcome at all events not specifically marked for APA PFF Scholars.

Aug 26	Scholars	Orientation meeting for APA PFF Scholars
Sept. 5 6:30 –8:30 132 Benton	Milt Cox, Director of Teaching Effectiveness	Teaching Portfolios (CELT PFF series)
October	Scholars	Planning meeting for MACTOP presentation
October	Scholars	Planning meeting for TriState Symposium
October 11-12		APA PFF Scholars will present at MidAmerica Conference on Teaching of Psychology
Oct. 31 6:30 –8:30 132 Benton	Mark McBride, Director of Faculty Development	Technology in Teaching (CELT PFF series)
Nov. 14 6:30 –8:30 132 Benton	Sara McInerney Assistant to the CAS Dean	Career advising for undergraduate students in liberal arts programs (CELT PFF series)
November 20-24		Lilly Conference (free to Miami faculty and staff)
December 5	Scholars	Progress report on placements, projects and reflections notebooks
January 31		Tri-State Symposium

For more info about Preparing Future Faculty: http://www.preparing-faculty.org/

Website for our program:

http://www.users.muohio.edu/shorec/apapff/apapff.htm

Newsletter edited by Cecilia Shore, mailto:shorec@muohio.edu

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American Psychological Association-Preparing Future Faculty program

Earlham College

Jessica Donn will attend the Third Annual Developing Teachers of Psychology workshop, a pre-conference workshop sponsored by the APA Education Directorate on preparing for faculty roles.

Plans for this year