Faculty Mentoring Program FAQs

Who can serve as a college-wide mentor?
Any full-time tenured teaching faculty member can serve as a college-wide mentor to a new faculty member from a different department.

Why should I become a mentor?
College-wide mentors help new faculty to acculturate to the college. It’s a great way to meet new faculty and to network with other departments. You will also have the opportunity to enhance your listening skills, transmit institutional values and help strengthen the entire college.

How much work is involved and what’s the nature of the work?
The length of service is from start to finish of the academic year. The amount of work depends on the level of interaction between the new faculty member and the mentor and this can vary widely from relationship to relationship. Since this program, by design, is unstructured it is difficult to predict how much work is involved.

The two broad categories that fall under faculty mentoring are career development and psycho-social support. The nature of the work is highly interpersonal requiring soft skills as well as institutional knowledge. Much of what happens is one-on-one, unstructured, collegial support of our new faculty. There is no fixed agenda. Confidentiality is the hallmark of this program. Therefore a college-wide mentor holds a position of special trust.

Is mentoring effective? How do you know?
Many people have reported that their mentoring experience was very positive. Additionally, the core of current mentors were mentored themselves under the program. Because of the confidential nature of mentoring relationships, we don’t formally evaluate the program.

What do I do if I can't answer a new faculty member’s question?
It is not necessary for you to have all the answers. You may need to refer the new faculty to someone else who can help. Try to find the right person/place to answer the question. Keep in mind that no relationship can fulfill all the needs of the parties involved.

My new faculty member has more teaching experience than I do. Can I still benefit that person as a college-wide mentor?
Absolutely you can! You were chosen because you have specific full-time experience at MCC that a new faculty member may lack. Teaching experience is not the only measure of your value as a mentor. New faculty members need to learn the culture of the college, and as a mentor you can guide them in their first year. Also, even the most experienced new faculty can be encouraged to stretch themselves in new ways.

Can I mentor more than one faculty member at the same time?
Usually volunteers mentor only one new faculty member per year. On the rare occasion that a mentor had more than one person to mentor, it was voluntary.

Can I mentor a new faculty member I already know?
Yes, as long as you meet the mentor qualifications.

Can I renew my service as a mentor a second, third and fourth time?
Yes, yes, and yes. In fact, there are mentors who have served much longer than four years in the program. You may mentor one new faculty member per year for any number of years. You may also take a break for a year or more after mentoring a new faculty member. You may then choose to renew your service in succeeding years.

I have not been able to reach the new faculty member I agreed to mentor after several attempts. What should I do?
Keep trying to contact the new faculty member; however, if you have not been able to reach them by October 1, please contact the program coordinator.

Keep in mind that many new faculty members sometimes feel overwhelmed by their new responsibilities and may not make mentoring a priority. There are many expectations that new faculty strive to meet. While mentoring is an important part of faculty development, it is understandably not one of the mandatory responsibilities that new faculty feel obligated to meet. Mentors are encouraged to make themselves available for the new faculty whom they mentor, but not intrusively so. Gentle and occasional outreach is the best policy when trying to establish the new relationship.

How will I know who will be my mentor?
If you are interested in participating in the program, please contact Kara Tierney, program coordinator, to set up a time to chat (in-person or by phone) about your interests and needs. Based on the information provided in this conversation, the program coordinator will select an appropriate mentor for you and provide you with their contact information. Often, mentors and new faculty members are paired during the summer months and begin their working relationship once school is in session for the fall semester.

I have a mentor in my department. Do I need a college-wide mentor?
The college-wide mentor relationship is, by design, more removed from your department, since concerns may arise that you may not want to discuss with someone from your department. A college-wide mentor is also an easy starting point for networking outside of your department.

Is my mentor relationship confidential?
Yes. Confidentiality is the hallmark of this program. Mentors never evaluate new faculty members for hiring, retention, promotion or tenure. Confidentiality allows new faculty to relate to mentors openly with the reassurance that privileged knowledge of the relationship will not be revealed to others.

What do I do if my mentor can't answer my question?
There are lots of resources at the college and your mentor should be able to point you in the right direction.

How do first year teaching faculty know that they are “doing enough” to be considered for tenure in the future and what is the mentor’s role here?
Your college-wide mentor can help you to understand the expectations, behaviors, and attitudes needed to achieve the goal of tenure. There are written documents such as the Contractual Agreement between the Faculty Association and the Board of Trustees that you may want to examine as well as memos of understanding that have been used as historic reference points.

In addition, if you have a departmental mentor, that person can act to help you gauge expectations set by the department’s tenure committee. Each department has unique expectations regarding the tenure process.

What happens if a mentor/new faculty relationship doesn't work?
If there is a concern, please contact the program coordinator. The sooner you act on any concern, the sooner the coordinator can help you.

What’s the history and purpose of the program?
The College-wide Mentoring Program for New Faculty was established by Dr. Ken Huggins at Monroe Community College in 1993 to assist new faculty members in their orientation and transition to the College. In addition to maintaining the continuity of the culture and shared values, the program aims to familiarize new faculty members with the challenges and rewards of teaching at MCC. As the program grew, a brochure and web page were added to improve communication.

What is the timeline of events that occurs each year?
Mentors and mentees are paired up at the beginning of the academic year, usually within a month of the start of the classes.  During the academic year, the frequency of communications and/or meetings between the mentor and mentee is dependent on the mentee’s needs.

Towards the end of the spring semester, the program coordinator seeks out volunteers to serve as mentors the following academic year. Persons interested in serving as mentors can notify the coordinator at any time.

At the end of the academic year, the mentor relationship officially ends. Mentors and new faculty members often remain in contact beyond this date. The mentors receive a thank you letter for their year of service and are welcome to renew their volunteer service in subsequent years.

Is there release time or a stipend paid to the coordinator or to mentors?
No. The entire program is an all-volunteer effort and we are grateful for the time volunteered by all participants.