ACS hosts new faculty workshop

More than 70 first-, second-, and third-year faculty from 58 institutions gathered at the American Chemical Society’s headquarters building in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 4–6 for the Cottrell Scholars Collaborative New Faculty Workshop.

During the workshop, faculty facilitators provided guidance on teaching, running a research lab, and managing the many responsibilities required of new faculty. Now in its fifth year, the workshop builds a cohort of young faculty who will continue to interact through monthly webinars supported by the ACS Education Division. This year, the program expanded to include faculty from both research-intensive and primarily undergraduate institutions.

“Starting a new faculty position is a stressful time for most people. It entails a lot of new responsibilities and a number of tasks for which we simply are not trained in graduate school,” says Andrew Feig, cofounder of the workshop and a chemistry professor at Wayne State University. “The CSC New Faculty Workshop tries to help individuals to successfully make that transition.”

Although the workshop focuses largely on adoption of evidence-based teaching methods, additional sessions address issues such as mentoring students, diversity and inclusion, laboratory safety, and time management. The program receives funding from the Research Corporation for Science Advancement and the ACS Education Division.