Mid-career Faculty

CATL provides support for faculty across the career span. In 2016, we started a program targeted to post-review faculty, which encourages strategic and meaningful career planning and growth at mid-career.

In the program, a small faculty cohort focuses on intentional planning through goal-setting, targeted professional development, and mutual mentoring. Participants conduct an inventory of professional goals, identify a specific area of focus related to those goals (which might include teaching, scholarship, service, or the balance and integration of those) and develop a plan for achieving those goals.

Selection process

Who is eligible: Full-time faculty who are post-review (tenure, promotion, or continuation) and have worked at Elon at least 8 years. The program is best suited for people planning for the next decade of their faculty careers. Preference will go to those who attended a CATL mid-career workshop or a workshop focused on intentional professional development. Other selection criteria include the expression of interest and goals, common career stages or areas of focus among applicants, and/or diversity within the cohort (fields, gender, etc.).

Deadline: Self-nominations and applications are due electronically in late March and decisions will be made in early April.

Program Components 

  1. Day-long retreat in May, after Commencement. During the retreat, program participants:
    1. Reflect and reconnect to an individual sense of purpose, interests, passions, and skills;
    2. Identify challenges or obstacles to meeting one’s professional goals;
    3. Set individual goals for summer and fall, and set a summer schedule.
  2. Over the summer, participants work individually and during group meetings to:
    1. Assess the information, steps, and resources needed to meet professional goals;
    2. Meet with Elon colleagues to discover available information and resources;
    3. Plan steps toward meeting goals and set deadlines to accomplish those as a group;
    4. Identify a mentor network for mid-career.
  3. During the Fall, Mutual Mentoring Group(s) meet monthly to sustain progress toward professional goals.

Benefits for Participants

  • Getting energized by reflecting upon and reconnecting to academic passions
  • Building community with others who understand one’s goals and serve as a mutual mentoring (and accountability) group
  • Connecting with an individual mentoring network for mid-career
  • Creating a professional development plan and identifying resources to implement it
  • Faculty who complete the program receive a $1000 stipend at the end of August.

Please direct questions to catl@elon.edu.