Research camp helps new faculty prepare for tenure

The Research Boot Camp for new faculty, sponsored by the Center for Teaching and Learning, is in its second year at Marshall University.

Sherri Smith, executive director of the Center for Teaching and Learning, said the boot camp is a semester-long program designed to help new faculty with their research. The boot camp is for professors who are in their first or second year at Marshall.

The faculty work on their teaching in the Teaching Boot Camp during the fall semester and work on their research in the Research Boot Camp during the spring semester, Smith said. The program helps the faculty with research they will need when applying to be tenured.

"The program is designed to give new faculty a chunk of time, motivation and accountability with other people to work with their research," Smith said.

For the first 15 minutes of each session, the faculty give reports on what they've done that week. During the last two hours and 15 minutes, the faculty work on research in the boot camp.

Smith said new faculty have a lot to think about when applying to be tenured.

"It's a juggling act to figure out how to manage your time, how to allot a certain amount of time for teaching, a certain amount of time for committees and a certain amount of time for research," Smith said. "Usually the thing that gets pushed to the side the fastest is the research."

The faculty are required to map out a work plan for the semester, Smith said. They write their goals for each week and set aside time each week to accomplish it.

Derrick Kolling, assistant professor in the chemistry department, said the program has already helped him a lot.

"One of the things with writing is that it's very easy to put it off," Kolling said. "In a lot of ways professors are just like students, and they tend to procrastinate and put things off.

"I've implemented a lot of the ideas of Research Boot Camp into my research already.  I have time set aside during the week that I close my door. I don't meet with students, other faculty members or anyone. I just focus on my writing and getting that together."

Smith said her own experience with applying to be tenured helped influence her decision to start the boot camp.

"As the mission of the Center for Teaching and Learning has grown and the faculty development end of things has grown, it struck me that it was as important for the center to support faculty in their research as well as support them in their teaching," she said.

"I think it's a great opportunity," Kolling said. "I find it to be tremendously useful, especially with your first year. You've got a lot of stuff going on, and it helps you focus on important things.

"Education is obviously key, but we also have to do quiet a bit of research to better ourselves, our departments and the university as a whole. This sets the ground work and allows us to do that."

Laura Hatfield can be contacted at hatfield120@marshall.edu.