Coaching & Mentoring Groups
Coaching and mentoring groups for faculty members and associate deans provide safe forums to address your goals and challenges and to learn with and from the coach and your colleagues while building community and connection.
Professors Coaching Group
Foundations of a Successful Academic Career
Foundations of a Successful Academic Career is a dynamic ten-week virtual coaching and mentoring group for professors that is based on Rena’s book, The Coach’s Guide for Women Professors, with an overall focus on productivity and balance.
The Foundations group is a small cohort of about 8-10 faculty members at all career stages and from a variety of disciplines that meets via Zoom videoconference. A nice aspect of the group is that it allows Rena to cover material more systematically than in one-on-one meetings and there is also great sharing that occurs between members of the group. The format includes presentations, interactive exercises, and group discussions.
Attendees learn to:
- Gain control of your time
- Increase your writing productivity
- Identify unwritten expectations for promotion
- Fit in time to recharge
- Strengthen your professional networks
- Negotiate like a pro
- Speak with authority
- Navigate challenges related to gender, race, and culture
Benefits of participating in the group include:
- Greater writing and research productivity
- Reduced stress
- A more robust professional network
- Increased confidence
The next cohort will meet starting in January 2024, with the day of the week to be determined by the schedules of those who express early interest. This will be the thirteenth cohort going through the group, and past attendees have been enthusiastic about the experience. The cost for the group is $1695 or $1495 with early registration.
To enroll, please email rena@leaderacademic.com with a sentence about your career stage and institutional affiliation. We will then follow-up with additional information.
Please let Rena know if you would like to join us for this empowering group!
Associate Deans Roundtable
Those “leading from the middle” must have a special knack for diplomacy, and in contrast to the hierarchical models found in most non-academic settings, the associate dean’s task of guiding a group of independent-minded faculty members to a common goal is frequently compared to herding cats. All of this is additionally complicated when leading in times of cultural divides. In the midst of this, leaders are rightly being called upon to take a hard look at how racism may continue to be expressed in their organization’s culture and practices and to take sustainable actions to build more equitable and inclusive institutions.
The Associate Dean’s Roundtable offers a community of practice for a small group of associate deans from top research universities. Roundtable members come together once a month in an expertly facilitated conversation to address personal and organizational goals and challenges, provide mutual support, and exchange ideas, strategies, and best practices.
Program Details
When: We meet for 1.5 hours once a month at a mutually convenient time over the academic year and meetings are conducted on Zoom.
To register for the 2024/2025 academic year: Email Rena@LeaderAcademic.com.
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What They’re Saying
“I negotiated this morning and I was able to secure much more support than the program head had originally agreed to. I felt capable of doing this because of this group. Thank you all!”
– Assistant Professor at a public university
“I’ve accomplished so much in just a few months. I’ve submitted a completed book chapter, have a third RnR and a new RnR at top journals…. and I’ve also been able to devote much, much more attention to my personal life. Thank you for your wisdom, insight, and everything else that you offered our group! My family thanks you too!”
– Professor Hettie Richardson, Texas Christian University
“Each chapter speaks directly to my experience. This week everything hit home in a profound way. This is the first time I read in print what are the factual challenges of chronic illness and otherness in academic life, I have experienced for years. Thanks so much for addressing these issues, as well as the many other interrelated ones in each chapter.”
– Associate Professor at a leading private university
“Thank you for the care you take in creating a safe space for us to share, learn and support each other. I was honestly surprised by my tears today and I realized it was because after a long few days, I knew I was in a place where I was safe to express how I am feeling. Everyone in the Roundtable plays a role in that, but I want to especially thank you for your leadership in creating and stewarding this wonderfully supportive space. I feel really grateful and privileged to be a part of it”
– Associate Dean at a large state university