Michigan State University (MSU) will establish a Center for Academic and Future Faculty Excellence (CAFFE). The purpose of the Center is to coordinate and integrate existing programmatic activities to train and prepare a U. S. workforce of future faculty for academic excellence and success in the tenure streams of colleges and universities. The approach of this I3 proposal aims to coordinate the efforts of multiple offices and programs at Michigan State University to optimize the development, in graduate and undergraduate students, post-doctoral scientists and junior faculty, of skills, attitudes, values and behaviors essential for smooth transitions across critical educational stages, and for success in an academic careers. There are new and rapidly changing demands and expectations for new faculty. These demands and expectations include, among others, effective pedagogy, skills in the managing and supervision of technical personnel and support staff, grant writing, and the responsible conduct of research. The establishment of the CAFFE would be a landmark step in providing a venue for the preparation of young scholars in a fashion complementary to their disciplinary professional development and aligned with what they will face as they join the academic workforce. Our plan for the delivering of the curriculum of CAFFE is guided by the appreciation that at all stages considered here, professional development takes place in an intimate disciplinary environment. Thus our approach, in contrast to a central or universal prescription of workshops and other activities, will involve a collaboration of the leadership of CAFFE with those responsible for the mentoring and education of developing scholars. Our goal is for an integration of what CAFFE offers with individualized professional and disciplinary development plans. Our approach also acknowledges that the need for particular skills and information often arises at different stages of professional development and that many activities of CAFFE would include concurrent participation of students, post-docs and faculty; we see this feature as an opportunity to enhance the flow of information across different cohorts and as the foundation for inter-generational mentoring.
Center for Academic and Future Faculty Exchange (CAFFE) brings together NSF/EHR awards from the ADVANCE and AGEP programs, as well as other work, around the I3 integrative themes for broadening participation and critical educational junctures.
