Peer Faculty Mentoring, Experts, and Teaching Observations
Peer Faculty Mentoring Program
New incoming full-time faculty, and full-time second-year faculty, who are not limited term have the unique opportunity to participate in a university-wide Peer Faculty Mentoring Program coordinated by CELT. Seasoned faculty at VSU can share what they learned and get to know new faculty by mentoring them.
Specifically, we pair new and second-year faculty with mid-career and advanced career faculty from different departments at VSU by using best practices in faculty mentoring. The mentors and mentees exchange e-mails in July after matches are announced, gather for the first time in person for a CELT mentoring luncheon and workshop during new faculty orientation in early August, and meet one-on-one throughout the academic year. They are also required to attend an additional relevant workshop or training sponsored by CELT or the Office of Employee and Organizational Development at VSU and invited to special social gatherings just for new faculty and their mentors. Sample workshop and training topics include tips for effective mentoring, mentor mapping, and research and strategies for addressing the needs of early career faculty.
Objectives of the program:
- Ensure that new and second-year faculty who are not limited term have a point person (a mid-or-advanced career faculty member) outside their department whom they can go to with questions during their first couple years at VSU
- Increase the competence, confidence, and sense of belonging for new and second-year faculty to better retain and prepare them to succeed during their first couple years as well as through promotion (and tenure, if relevant to their position) at VSU
- Enhance support for diverse faculty at VSU
- Articulate and apply best practices in mentoring and career development for faculty
- Build relationships, community, and a peer faculty mentoring network that bridges ranks, disciplines, departments, and colleges at VSU
To volunteer to be a mentor, or for a new or second-year faculty to request a mentor, see instructions and deadlines below to fill out questionnaires. Mentoring matches are made by the Director of CELT in consultation with representatives from the Department Head Council, Provost's Office, Office of Employee and Organizational Development, Human Resources, and the Center for eLearning.
CELT's Peer Faculty Mentoring Program supplements any informal or formal mentoring that occurs within departments and disciplines. Research on mentoring recommends that faculty have multiple mentors for different purposes.
Questions? Contact the Director of CELT, Dr. Jamie Landau (jlandau@valdosta.edu, 229-333-6032).
Are you tenured or a promoted lecturer who would like to share the lessons that you have learned working at VSU with new faculty? Maybe you had a great mentor earlier in your career and want to give back now? Mentoring goes both ways, so it is common for seasoned faculty to be energized by new colleagues even as they support them.
Participation in CELT’s Peer Faculty Mentoring Program is a unique opportunity but voluntary. As a result, tenured faculty or lecturers who have received promotion must volunteer to be a mentor by filling out this Volunteer to be a Mentor brief questionnaire that asks a few questions about professional and personal areas in which you could support new faculty, and upload your CV. This information will be used to create effective mentoring pairs.
Check back for future dates of this program.
NEW FACULTY REQUEST FOR A MENTOR
Are you a new incoming full-time faculty or returning full-time second-year faculty at VSU (whether tenured, tenure-track, or a lecturer) who is not limited term? Research shows that formal mentoring programs for junior faculty like you increase your potential for success and happiness during the first couple years on the job, and in your years ahead through promotion. Mentored faculty feel more “at home” at an institution, have higher job satisfaction, and are more productive in their scholarly activity and teaching.
Participation in CELT’s Peer Faculty Mentoring Program is a unique opportunity but voluntary. As a result, new incoming full-time faculty and second-year full-time faculty who are not limited term must request a mentor by filling out this New Faculty Request for a Mentor brief questionnaire that asks a few questions about your professional and personal needs, and upload your CV. This information will be used to create effective mentoring pairs.
Check back for future dates of this program.
Ask the Expert and Teaching Observations
Faculty at VSU have a lot of experience and expertise as teachers. However, too often we are unaware of the excellent work that our colleagues do in the classroom and, in turn, we miss out on learning from each other. Did you know, for instance, that VSU faculty have won awards and published research about teaching online? Perhaps you want to talk to a fellow faculty who has integrated high-impact practices (HIPs) into their courses to find out about the barriers and benefits? Or you could request an expert to conduct a Teaching Observation of your face-to-face courses, or for a hybrid, hy-flex, or fully-online course that you teach? Click the hyperlinks above to download CELT-eLearning's recommendations for conducting peer teaching observations. For another resource, see this VSU Guidebook for Peer Evaluation of Teaching.
The Ask the Expert list below is for VSU faculty to easily see who to contact for peer support with particular pedagogy. All of the faculty listed graciously agreed to be a resource for colleagues on campus, such as they could conduct a teaching observation. Many of them partner with CELT to facilitate faculty learning communities (FLCs), too, so consider joining an ongoing, active group of faculty who are working together to explore new pedagogy and share teaching tips.
If you would like to be added to this list of experts, contact CELT Administrative Coordinator Jennifer Pifer (jpifer@valdosta.edu, 229-253-4079).
College: Education and Human Services
Department: MLIS
Title: Assistant Professor
Email: ndalemanne@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.245.3742
Areas of Knowledge:
- Team-based or peer-led learning
- Small teaching
- Online teaching
College: Education and Human Services
Department: Psychology, Counseling, and Family Therapy
Title: Assistant Professor
Email: mcarastia@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.249.2777
Areas of Knowledge: Service-Learning, Flipped Classroom, Online Teaching, and Kahoot
College: Education and Human Services
Department: Teacher Education
Title: Associate Dept. Head
Email: efasola@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.7148
Areas of Knowledge:
- Inclusive or dialogic pedagogies
- Team-based or peer-led learning
- Small teaching
- Online teaching
- HyFlex
- Kaltura
- Blackboard Collaborate Ultra
- Kahoot
- VoiceThread
College: Education and Human Services
Department: Teacher Education
Title: Assistant Professor
Email: jsbeal@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.219.1317
Areas of Knowledge: Experiential learning
College: Humanities and Social Sciences
Department: Modern and Classical Languages
Title: Senior Lecturer
Email: mchakir@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.7373
Areas of Knowledge: Experiential learning
College: Humanities and Social Sciences
Department: English
Title: Professor
Email: lchen@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.7346
Areas of Knowledge: Student centered learning, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
College: The Arts
Department: Communication Arts
Title: Associate Professor
Email: nbcox@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.259.5520
Areas of Knowledge: HIPs: Undergraduate Research, Inclusive Pedagogy, Online Teaching, and Small Teaching
College: Business
Department: Accounting
Title: Assistant Professor
Email: cocrews@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.245.3808
Areas of Knowledge: Online Teaching, Educational Technology: D2L, Blackboard Collaborate, iPad, Educreations, Screencast-O-Matic, Powtoon, Google Hangouts, YouTube Live, Proctor U
College: Arts
Department: Communication Arts (Mass Media)
Title: Assistant Professor
Email: wjculverhouse@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.259.2015
Areas of Knowledge: Experiential learning
College: Humanities and Social Sciences
Department: Modern and Classical Languages
Title: Associate Professor
Email: kfdavidson@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.7415
Areas of Knowledge: Online teaching and language education
College: Education & Human Services
Department: Curriculum, Leadership, and Technology
Title: Interim Dept. Head & Professor
Email: sedowney@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.5633
Areas of Knowledge: Online Teaching
College: Nursing and Health Sciences
Department: Nursing
Title: Assistant Professor
Email: hcgonzalez@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.253.2930
Areas of Knowledge: Experiential Learning
College: Humanities and Social Sciences
Department: English
Title: Associate Professor
Email: algreenfield@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.5946
Areas of Knowledge: Online Teaching
College: Science and Mathematics
Department: Physics, Astronomy, and Geosciences
Title: Associate Professor
Email: msgroszos@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.5664
Areas of Knowledge: Hard rock geology (petrology, structure, metamorphic geology, igneous geology & mineralogy), Geology of Georgia, microscopy, economic geology, field geology, organizing and running field trips, curating rock and mineral collections
College: Business
Department: Accounting
Title: Professor of Accounting
Email: sgupta@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.293.6061
Areas of Knowledge: Management Accounting, Retirement Planning, Ethics, Pedagogy
College: Humanties and Social Sciences
Department: History
Title: Professor
Email: drhaggard@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.5947
Areas of Knowledge: Flipped Classrooms
College: Arts
Department: Art and Design
Title: Associate Professor
Email: awheuss@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.5834
Areas of Knowledge: Teaching observations, mentoring new faculty
College: Humanities and Social Sciences
Department: Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice
Title: Associate Professor
Email: trhochschild@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.5483
Areas of Knowledge: Efficient lectures utilizing various electronic techniques, Engaging discussions focused on student experiences and perspectives, Service-Learning, Experiential Learning, Group Projects and Presentations, Co-Curricular Activities, Extra-Curricular Activities
College: Education & Human Services
Department: Curriculum, Leadership, and Technology
Title: Professor
Email: ehsiao@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.5633
Areas of Knowledge:
- Team-based or peer-led learning
- Online teaching
- Educational technology:
> Blackboard Collaborate Ultra
> Photoshop
> Dreamweaver
> Camtasia
> Audacity
College: Science and Mathematics
Department: Biology
Title: Associate Professor
Email: lesliesj@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.219.1337
Areas of Knowledge: Hybrid Pedagogy
College: Education & Human Services
Department: Curriculum, Leadership, and Technology
Title: Assistant Professor
Email: jijung@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.5633
Areas of Knowledge:
- High-Impact Practices (HIPs) such as undergraduate research, service-learning, ePortfolios, writing-intensive assignments, internships, and capstone projects
- Universal design
- Flipped classroom
- Online teaching
- Educational technology:
> Blackboard Collaborate Ultra
> Kahoot
College: Humanities and Social Sciences
Department: English
Title: Associate Professor
Email: ukatawal@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.219.3193
Areas of Knowledge: Online Teaching, Flipped Classroom, Team-Teaching
College: Education and Human Services
Department: Communication Sciences and Disorders
Title: Assistant Professor
Email: kalamb@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.219.1306
Areas of Knowledge: Microsoft Teams
College: The Arts
Department: Communication Arts
Title: Associate Professor
Email: jlandau@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.6032
Areas of Knowledge: Inclusive Pedagogy, Teaching for Growth, Small Teaching, Teaching Writing, Peer-Led Learning, Pause Teaching Strategies for Lectures, HIPs: Service-Learning, Undergraduate Research, Capstone Courses
College: Science and Mathematics
Department: Computer Science
Title: Professor
Email: cliu@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.5781
Areas of Knowledge: Online Teaching and Resources
College: Science and Math
Department: Physics
Title: Assistant Professor
Email: smubin@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.253.2994
Areas of Knowledge: Experiential Learning
College: Humanities and Social Sciences
Department: Modern and Classical Languages
Title: Associate Professor
Email: maocasio@valdosta.edu (preferred method of communication)
Contact Number: 229.249.2653
Areas of Knowledge: Online Teaching, Gather.Town, Second Life, VoiceThread, office hours with Virtual Reality (Immersed, Workrooms)
College: Humanities and Social Sciences
Department: Modern and Classical Languages
Title: Professor
Email: ehparra@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.7372
Areas of Knowledge: Inclusive pedagogy (value-creating pedagogy), Voice Thread in GoVIEW/BlazeVIEW, Screencast-O-Matic, Powtonn, GRASP-Project Base Learning, under/graduate research, teaching language, and literature online.
College: Arts
Department: Communication Arts
Title: Assistant Professor
Email: mppihos@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.5828
Areas of Knowledge: Experiential Learning
College: Arts
Department: Art and Design
Title: Lecturer
Email: rebreynolds@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.249.4873
Areas of Knowledge: Discussion Based Teaching, Undergraduate Research, Small Teaching Practices, Microsoft Teams
College: Nursing and Health Sciences
Department: Graduate Nursing Director
Title: Associate Professor
Email: mewingbre@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.249.2652
Areas of Knowledge: Online Teaching, Small Teaching Practices
College: Science and Mathematics
Department: Biology
Title: Assistant Professor
Email: erose@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.219.3437
Areas of Knowledge: Experiential learning
College: Humanities and Social Sciences
Department: Modern and Classical Languages
Title: Associate Professor
Email: varussell@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.7357
Areas of Knowledge: HIPs: Undergraduate Research, Service-Learning, ePortfolios, Writing-Intensive Assignments, Internships, and Capstone Projects (Study Abroad), Online Teaching, Flipped Learning
College: Arts
Department: Art and Design
Title: Associate Professor
Email: gmswan@valdosta.edu (preferred method of communication)
Contact Number: 229.333.7406
Areas of Knowledge: Ancient Greek and Roman culture, employing images within pedagogical contexts
College: Honors & Exploratory Studies
Department: Advising
Title: Director
Email: cgtillma@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.245.4378
Areas of Knowledge: HIPs, Flipped Classroom, Peer Mentors, Online Teaching
College: Nursing and Health Sciences
Department: Health Sciences
Title: Lecturer
Email: bmwilliams1@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.253.2884
Areas of Knowledge: Experiential Learning
College: Science and Mathematics
Department: Computer Science
Title: Professor
Email: zxu@valdosta.edu
Contact Number: 229.333.5783
Areas of Knowledge: Experiential Learning
Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching
-
102 Georgia Avenue
Valdosta, Georgia 31698
Email Address
celt@valdosta.edu -
Mailing Address
1500 N. Patterson St.
Valdosta, GA 31698 - Phone: 229.253.4079