The goals of the First Year @ Furman program are:

To support Furman’s newest faculty colleagues via just-in-time professional development opportunities related to effective teaching and research, student learning, and designing/navigating your academic career.
To create collegial, interdisciplinary networks for social support and future teaching, research, outreach, administrative, and service collaborations.
To co-create community that facilitates mutual support and advocacy for one another.

The First Year @ Furman program is designed for our newest faculty colleagues and encompasses three central elements:

1) First Year Discovery Series

Description: A set of regular learning opportunities to discover core aspects of our community, faculty roles and responsibilities, and professional support. All seminars will involve a short overview of topical information provided by guest facilitators, active exploration of specific ideas, and opportunities for questions and conversation. Occasionally, a pre-session resource is provided for review. Select sessions are open to the Furman community (noted with *).

When: 12:35- 1:25 p.m. (Common Hour) on select dates throughout the semester.

Where: All events for AY 2024-2025 will be held in the Trustees Dining Room (Daniel Dining Hall) unless otherwise noted. Lunch is provided, so please arrive a few minutes early to make your meal selections. An option to join virtually will be available for anyone who is not able to join in person (zoom room here).

2) Peer Mentor Circles

Description: Four (2 per semester) guided yet informal collegial conversations to share experiences, build connections, and foster mutual support. Over your career, you will develop rich relationships with colleagues who will serve as mentors for your teaching, scholarship, and personal life. At Furman, instead of assigning each new faculty member one institutional mentor, we believe in a collective approach.

When: 12:35- 1:25 p.m. (Common Hour) on select Wednesdays throughout the semester.

Where: All events for AY 2024-2025 will be held in the Faculty Dining Hall (Daniel Dining Hall) unless otherwise noted. Lunch is provided, so please arrive a few minutes early to make your meal selections.

3) Peer Teaching Observations

Once per semester, we encourage each FY@F member to partner with another member to engage in a teaching observation process that involves a classroom observation and pre- and post-observation chat. A set of prompts to support this process is available here. You may also be interested in working with one of the FDC’s trained peer observation coaches. Contact the FDC (fdc@furman.edu) or complete this online form if you would like us to help facilitate this process.

For a full (downloadable) list of all 24-25 Discovery Series and Peer Mentor Circle Connection Sessions, please see here.

24-25 FY@F Handout

First Year @ Furman Programming Dates for 2024-25

Wednesday, September 4th – Campus Support Resources for Students*

Facilitators: Stephanie Boyd and Tracy Carner

With your first week of classes nearly in the books, the names and faces of your students are probably starting to look familiar. But what happens when one of your students stops showing up for class or you notice behavior that could indicate underlying physical or emotional challenges? What campus resources exist for students who may benefit from additional support and what systems are in place to ensure these resources are leveraged? In this session, we will review the wide variety of student support services available on campus, and highlight one particular resource available to you to facilitate connections between students and relevant campus support called Success @ Furman.

Monday, September 16th – Resource and Opportunity Meet and Greet

Guests: Nancy Georgiev, Claire Whitlinger, Victoria Turgeon, Michelle Speitz, James Engelhardt, John Harris

In this open meet and greet, several representatives from various university programs and initiatives will be on hand to share more about their programs and answer your questions about involvement. This is your chance to learn about potential programs and initiatives of interest, network with program representatives, and discuss shared interests, available resources, and potential collaborations.

Wednesday, October 16th – Furman Curriculum & The Furman Advantage (TFA)

Facilitators: Michelle Horhota and John Wheeler

As an institution steeped in the liberal arts tradition, much of our curricular and co-curricular programming is designed around intellectual curiosity and exploration, integrative and interdisciplinary exchanges, and profound experiential learning opportunities. What is the value of our unique curricular experience? Why is our curriculum structured and scaffolded as it is? How does the Furman Advantage distinguish us from other institutions? Most importantly, how can you contribute to our unique brand of learning and engagement?

Monday, October 28th – Supporting Academic Integrity & Understanding Academic Policies*

Facilitator: Associate Academic Dean Jason Jones

All first-year students are required to attend an academic integrity workshop in their first semester. In this session, we will briefly review an aspect of the student integrity workshop in order to discuss what to expect of students in the classroom, institutional policies around integrity and academic engagement, and the issues students have considered in their training. Our conversation will evaluate some of the pressures our students are facing and how to better help them avoid integrity violations in the first place.

Wednesday, November 13th – Research with Undergraduate Students

Facilitators: Erik Ching, Danielle Vinson, George Shields

A hallmark of the Furman Advantage, Furman’s nationally awarded undergraduate research program allows students to invest in meaningful collaborative research and creative activities with Furman faculty. Our deliberate and structured Summer Research Fellows program ensures that students play an active role in the research experience and equips faculty with the tools needed to mentor students in a focused and reflective manner. In this session, we will discuss how you might get involved in the undergraduate research program and some of the strategies that support successful projects.

TBD – University Leadership Reception

Event will take place from 3:30:5:00pm in the Herring Center Foyer & Crabtree Room

Guests:

As your first semester at Furman concludes, we invite you to join with University leaders for an informal reception and conversation about their goals for the institution, important initiatives and challenges ahead, and reasons to celebrate our achievements as a community. Prior to this event, you will be invited to submit questions for our guests.

Wednesday, January 17th – Student Feedback and Evaluations*

Facilitator: Diane Boyd

By now, you have likely received your first formal summative course evaluations of your teaching (Student Opinions of Instruction – SOI) from the previous semester. In this session, we will review the SOI survey—how to make sense of your data, how to incorporate results as feedback for better teaching, and how not to get overwhelmed or distracted by uninstructive comments. As a part of our discussion, we will consider bias in the course evaluation process, review ways to reduce that bias among your students, and highlight when and how to solicit more formative teaching feedback throughout the semester.

Wednesday, February 12th – Evaluation, Promotion, & Tenure

Facilitators:

Although hard to believe, you will soon be taking stock of your first year at Furman as you prepare to complete your annual evaluation form at the end of the academic year. In this session, we will review Furman’s annual evaluation form in detail to make clear what Furman values so you can have a successful and meaningful career here. The chair of the Faculty Status Committee and faculty who have recently moved through the tenure and/or promotion process will be with us to facilitate discussion and answer your questions.

Wednesday, February 26th – Faculty Governance, Service, & Advocacy

Facilitators:

Since Furman first opened its doors, faculty have shared responsibility with a Board of Trustees and University officials for governing the campus. At Furman and many other institutions of higher education, today’s system of representative “shared governance” has evolved over time and involves policy-making, administrative advising and accountability, planning and decision-making, and the shared distributed service of our community of faculty members. What is the structure of faculty governance at Furman? How does it work and what does it mean? In what ways might you invest? Additionally, what role does the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) play in this process? For this chat, current members of Faculty Council and AAUP representatives will share their experience and perspective about Furman’s faculty governance system.

Wednesday, March 19th – Bring Your Own Topic (BYOT)

Facilitator: Ben Haywood

Got a burning question, a fascinating fact to share, or just want to chat with colleagues in your cohort? Grab your lunch and join us for a free-flowing conversation on any topic you bring! This is your chance to connect with colleagues, spark new ideas, and enjoy an open discussion. No agenda, just good conversation!

Monday, April 7th – Research and Teaching Funding Opportunities*

Facilitators:

Navigating the maize of potential funding opportunities can be daunting when much of your attention in the first year is dedicated to establishing your teaching practice. What internal and external funding is available and when should you think about applying for it? Where have Furman faculty had success obtaining grants in the past? Should you consider applying for teaching awards, residencies, and fellowship programs? Joined by colleagues from the Grants and Research Administration office, panelists in this session will share both opportunities and experiences seeking, applying for, and managing funding support for research and creative projects.

Friday, May 2nd – End of First Year Happy Hour

Event will take place from 3:30-4:30pm at the Furman Paddock

As you wrap up your first full academic year as a member of the Furman community, please join us to celebrate the year, reflect on your experiences and growth, and look towards the summer ahead.

Please join PMC Connection Sessions in each of four designated weeks below for informal networking, discussion, and reflection on FY@F themes and conversations.

Wednesday, September 5th – PMC Connection Session 1

Key themes include campus support for students, the value of liberal arts education, Furman academic policies, time management, and teaching and professional goals and priorities.

Wednesday, October 23rd – PMC Connection Session 2

Key themes include academic integrity, challenging teaching situations, scholarly goals and priorities, research with undergraduate students, institutional and academic culture, and mentoring support and opportunities.

Wednesday, March 12th – PMC Connection Session 3

Key themes include student feedback and evaluations, performance evaluation and career progression, faculty service & governance, and professional development interests.

Wednesday, April 16th – PMC Connection Session 4

Key themes include supporting diverse learners and inclusive pedagogy, research and teaching funding opportunities, and maintaining balance and wellbeing.