Karen Colley Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs | University Of Illinois At Chicago
The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) has announced the completion of work by its Campus-Wide Mentoring Taskforce. Formed in September 2024, the task force was tasked with developing recommendations for a campus-wide mentor professional development program. This initiative aimed to create a comprehensive inventory of existing mentoring resources, research effective mentor programs, and conduct a needs assessment with key stakeholders.
The task force's goal was to centralize mentoring activities, promote a mentor mindset among faculty, students, and researchers, support workforce development, and foster collaboration across campus. "I am pleased to announce that the task force has masterfully and comprehensively fulfilled its charge," stated the announcement.
Throughout the 2024-25 academic year, the task force conducted meetings and surveys with various stakeholder groups to assess needs and develop an inventory of existing mentoring resources. These resources are now available on the UIC Campus-Wide Mentoring Taskforce webpage. Additionally, a literature review on effective mentor programs is also accessible online.
The culmination of their efforts occurred last month when co-chairs Miquel Gonzalez-Meler, Nancy Freitag, and Lauren Woods met with Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs Mike Stieff and Dean of the Graduate College David Eddington to present their recommendations for a campus mentor professional development program. Some recommendations are already being implemented as an extension of the task force's work, while additional strategic efforts will be needed for others.
"I am deeply grateful both to the members of the task force for their time and energy in service of my charge as well as to all members of the UIC community who participated," expressed in gratitude towards those involved.
Efforts to implement these recommendations will begin this summer and continue through the upcoming academic year in collaboration with relevant offices at UIC.