Network-based mentorship includes some structured, intentional, and sustained relationships that guide and support an individual’s professional growth. The science of mentorship demonstrates the transformative nature of mentoring networks and relationships, leading to better academic performance, productivity, and professional reputation. High-quality mentoring is an especially powerful mechanism to support faculty from historically marginalized communities through validation of their experiences and affirming their developing professional competencies. Mentoring contributes to the success of individuals throughout their careers but is especially important at moments of transition.
The Office of the Provost offers programs to support faculty at transitional moments in their career. These programs provided tangible knowledge and support, and assist faculty in developing the needed mentorship networks. These programs are designed to complement local programs in the department, division, school or college.
Associate Professors Peer Mentorship Program
Being an associate professor is an important and unique moment in your career. Questions arise during this mid-career moment. Should I begin a new line of scholarship? How should I prioritize and manage the increase in service and leadership requests? What new teaching methods might I explore? What is required to successfully be promoted to full professor? Our peer mentorship program has been designed to support faculty at this important moment in your career.
We will meet once per month, and each 1.5-hour meeting will begin with 45 minutes with a guest to dive into tangible information such as mentoring best practices, promotion to full expectations, aligning your service with your values, mid-career scholarship reset, how the university works, Five Paths to Leadership, and topics in teaching. The remainder of the 1.5-hour meeting will include semi-structured conversations with your peers to integrate the topic more personally.
Participants will leave the year with a community of faculty colleagues, a mentorship network map, and increased knowledge the topics discussed.
We will meet Mondays from 10:30am-12:00pm on Oct. 13, Nov. 3, Dec. 1, Jan. 12, Feb. 9, March 2, April 6 and May 4.
Applications for the Associate Professor Peer Mentorship Program are due Oct. 2, 2025. If you are interested in joining the program midway through the year, please email OtP@uoregon.edu.
As a participant, you will:
- Develop a community of peers from units across campus.
- Experience the professional fulfillment and personal satisfaction that comes with helping a peer.
- Experience responsive and reciprocal mentorship.
- Engage in open dialogue about key issues and experiences in the academy.
- Connect with resources to support your ability to thrive mid-career.
- Engage different approaches and tools for leading and mentoring others.
- Experience a mentoring network that augments what may, or may not, be available in your local unit.
- Build out a mentoring network map to support your current goals.
- Learn to work through existing obstacles and overcome challenges/barriers.
- Gain new perspectives and ways of thinking through a coaching mindset.
- Enhance active listening and communicating skills, and avoid the “advice trap”.
Career Faculty Peer Mentorship Program
Our Career Faculty peer mentorship program has been designed to build support and community across campus for career faculty. The intended audience includes associate teaching professors, associate clinical professors, associate research professors, associate librarians and professors of practice - in other words, mid-career non-tenure related faculty who have advanced at least one promotional step and who are looking for peer mentorship and community.
We will meet in person once a month, and each 1.5-hour meeting will begin with 45 minutes with a guest to dive into tangible information such as mentoring best practices, expectations for promotion to full, aligning your service with your values, Five Paths to Leadership, how the university works, and topics in teaching. The remainder of the 1.5-hour meeting will include semi-structured conversations with your peers to integrate the topic more personally.
Participants will leave the year with a community of faculty colleagues, a mentoring network map, and increased knowledge of the topics the group chooses to focus on.
We will meet Mondays from 1:00-2:30pm on Oct. 13, Nov. 3, Dec. 1, Jan. 12, Feb. 9, March 2, April 6 and May 4.
Applications for the Career Faculty Peer Mentorship Program are due Oct. 2, 2025. If you are interested in joining the program midway through the year, please email OtP@uoregon.edu.
As a participant, you will:
- Develop a community of peers from units across campus.
- Experience the professional fulfillment and personal satisfaction that comes with helping a peer.
- Gain new perspectives and ways of thinking through a coaching mindset.
- Enhance active listening and communicating skills whilst avoiding the “advice trap”.
- Experience responsive and reciprocal mentorship.
- Learn to work through existing obstacles and overcome challenges/barriers.
- Engage different approaches and tools for leading and mentoring others.
- Experience a mentoring network that augments what may, or may not, be available in your local unit.
- Build out a mentoring network map to support your current goals.
- Connect with resources to support your ability to thrive as you transition to a new stage in your academic career
- Engage in open dialogue about key issues and experiences in the academy.
Peer Leadership Coaching Program
This program leverages the talents of the UO Leadership Academy graduates as peer coaches, and pairs them with faculty and staff in various local leadership positions. Coaching pairs will be encouraged to meet every 2-4 weeks, and coaches will be supported across the year.
Peer coaches will leave the year with further development of non-directive leadership and listening skills – important competencies for leading from where you are. Coachees will experience the gift of time that is completely dedicated to yourself and your needs through non-judgmental deep listening.
The Kickoff is Monday Oct. 20, 2025, 1-4pm. Please RSVP via this MyTrack link by Oct. 3.
Coaching pairs will meet during the 2025-26 academic year.
As a participant, you will:
- Join a community of leaders from units across campus.
- Gain new perspectives and ways of thinking through a coaching mindset.
- Enhance active listening and communicating skills, and avoid the “advice trap”.
- Define and experience culturally responsive mentorship and coaching.
As a coachee, you will:
- Develop a community of peers in leadership roles from units across the university.
- Experience a trusting peer leadership coaching partnership.
- Connect with resources to support you.
- Learn to work through existing obstacles and overcome challenges/barriers.
- Experience the gift of being deeply heard, understood and supported by a peer.
As a coach, you will:
- Receive personal satisfaction that comes with helping someone else advance their career.
- Practice and build on the skills developed in the UO Leadership Academy.
- Engage in open dialogue about key issues and experiences in the academy.
- Develop your deep listening skills and engage new approaches for leading and mentoring others.