Faculty, staff, graduate students can access free virtual mentoring, career development

Faculty, staff and graduate students now have free access to online career development and virtual mentoring resources through the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity (NCFDD).

Christine Rener, director of the Pew FTLC and vice provost for Instructional Development and Innovation, pursued a two-year university membership after a small cohort of faculty members were pleased with their NCFDD experience in a pilot program. 

NCFDD offers resources focused on honing writing and research skills, and what Dana Munk, Inclusive Excellence faculty fellow and professor of sport management, called "inclusive mentoring."

Munk said NCFDD can be beneficial to faculty and staff members at all career stages, and especially for new faculty, or people who are the only woman or person of color in their department, to find mentors. 

Along with the FTLC, support for the NCFDD membership comes from the Division of Inclusion and Equity and the Center for Scholarly and Creative Excellence.

Robert Smart, executive director of CSCE and vice provost for Research Administration, said faculty members who have participated in NCFDD's core curriculum and writing challenges have gained confidence as independent scholars.

"NCFDD’s coaching and small peer group experiences provide our faculty with the tools necessary to establish a successful plan for their research at Grand Valley," Smart said.

Members of the campus community interested in learning more about NCFDD can visit facultydiversity.org/join, choose GVSU under "Select Your Institution," then activate a membership. A registration form will be sent to university email addresses to complete the process.

More information is online at gvsu.edu/ftlc.