Do you enjoy supporting colleagues in their teaching—sharing ideas, asking good questions, and helping others think through challenges?
We’re looking for faculty to serve as cohort facilitators for a new initiative focused on classroom-based inquiry into teaching and learning. In this role, you’ll guide a small group of peers in exploring questions about their teaching, reflecting on student learning, and experimenting with new approaches. You’ll also help shape how this work grows on campus.
Two Faculty Cohort Facilitators will be selected to join a small design team working in partnership with the Stearns Center to develop faculty cohorts launching in the 2026–2027 academic year. These cohorts are intended to serve as a foundational component of a broader effort to expand the role of scholarly inquiry into teaching and learning across the institution.
Role of Faculty Cohort Facilitators
Faculty Cohort Facilitators will serve as co-designers of an institutional model and future co-facilitators of faculty cohorts. During Summer 2026, Cohort Facilitators will collaborate closely with the Stearns Center to:
- Design a year-long cohort model (goals, outcomes, timeline)
- Develop session structures, materials, and inquiry frameworks
- Create pathways for faculty to design and implement Classroom-Based Inquiry projects
- Define participant expectations and scholarly outputs
- Recruit participants
During the 2026–2027 academic year, Cohort Facilitators will be expected to co-facilitate the cohort they helped design.
Selection Criteria
This is a competitive selection process. Two Cohort Facilitators will be chosen based on:
- Demonstrated interest in connecting with and supporting peers
- Ability to think critically about teaching and learning within a disciplinary context
- Willingness to engage in collaborative design work
- Potential to contribute to and influence conversations about teaching within their unit
- Capacity to help shape a model with potential for institution-wide impact
Prior experience with SoTL is welcome but not required.
Compensation
- $2,000 summer stipend
- academic year stipend TBD
Timeline
- Priority application deadline: May 1
- Final application deadline: May 12, 2026
- Selection notification: By May 15, 2026
- Summer design work: May 18–August 31, 2026
- Cohort Facilitation: Sept 1-May 14
- Summer wrap-up/assessment: May 17-May 31
Application Process
When you apply, you will be asked to submit your CV and respond to the following questions:
- What draws you to this cohort facilitator role at this point in your work?
- Tell us about a time you supported a colleague’s teaching (formally or informally). What did you do, and what was the impact?
- How would you approach creating a space where faculty feel comfortable sharing challenges and trying new approaches?
- This role involves recruiting and engaging a cohort of peers. Who might you invite, and how would you encourage them to participate?
- Why would colleagues choose to participate in a cohort that you are facilitating?