Developing a robust culture of mentoring
A robust mentoring culture embraces a range of options that can be pefromed formally or informally in traditional one-on-one, group and peer-to-peer relationships. No single mentoring approach can meet the professional and personal aspirations or developmental needs. A healthy mentoring culture should encompass mutiple forms of guidance to provide a holistic approach to professional and personal development.
One-on-one and Group Mentoring: commonly employed in the academy with either a paired mentor-mentee or a multidisciplinary panel of mentors to a mentee. These forms of mentoring often focus on career and professional development and social-psychological support.
Benefits include improved work satisfaction, productivity, and overall career success.
Peer-to-peer Mentoring: is an innovative mentoring design predicated upon intentional one-on-one or group relationships between colleagues at a similar professional level. The peers in colloboration with a more senior facilitator learn from each other on how to navigate the academic life from professional and/or personal persepectives. The group can be design with a formal development plan or informally addressing issues and needs as they arise.
Benefits include reduced feelings of isolation and increased sense of belonging, a demystification of different disciplinary cultures, increased self and cultural awareness, an enhanced sense of community, enhanced clarity, agency, and self-efficacy to guide and pursue one’s career aspirations, and higher job satisfaction.
The LIFT program leverages the campus benefits from the practical wisdom and technical expertise of colleagues with backgrounds in various forms of mentoring and coaching.
LIFT Advisory Group Members:
- Keith Avin, School of Health and Human Sciences
- Heather Coates, IU Indianapolis University Library
- Debra Burns, School of Engineering and Technology
- Margie Ferguson, Office of Academic Affairs
- Kathy Grove, Office for Women
- Katharine Head, School of Liberal Arts
- Marjorie Hovde, School of Engineering and Technology
- Etta Ward, Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, Office of Academic Affairs
- Marianne Wokeck, The Senior Academy
- Aimee Zoeller, IU Columbus Division of Liberal Arts and IU Indianapolis Forum Fellow