Linda Hasunuma, Associate Director of Teaching and Faculty Success
As part of an effort to support faculty and student success at Temple University, the Office of the Provost offered an intensive training for 30 faculty from across disciplines, schools, and colleges to help strengthen mentoring at Temple University.
The training was delivered on January 5-6, 2026 by The Center for the Improvement of Mentored Experiences in Research (CIMER), which specializes in evidence-based mentoring in higher education. Temple’s faculty experienced CIMER’s Entering Mentoring program, a train-the-trainer curriculum that offers practical frameworks, tools, and strategies that can be applied across disciplines.
Evidence compiled by CIMER shows that mentoring plays a critical role in the development, retention, and success of students, postdoctoral scholars, and early career faculty by fostering belonging and self-efficacy. When faculty approach mentoring as a core professional responsibility and practice, they can cultivate supportive research environments that benefit mentees, departments, and Temple University as a whole.
The Entering Mentoring training is designed to enhance three core competencies for faculty as they establish mentoring relationships with fellow faculty and student mentees:
- Maintaining effective communication.
- Aligning expectations,
- Establishing practices of inclusion.
The curriculum contains strategies for providing constructive feedback, practicing active listening, communicating effectively across power differences, and establishing clear goals, expectations, and responsibilities through mentoring compacts. The training also encourages faculty to reflect on how they can cultivate a culture of belonging, identify systemic barriers to inclusive mentoring, and support mentees from diverse backgrounds and disciplinary contexts.
The 30 faculty who completed the training earned their certificates as Level 1 Facilitators and are now prepared to facilitate mentoring conversations or workshops for faculty groups, departments, schools, or colleges that want to strengthen their mentoring culture. The facilitated sessions are interactive and case-based and give participants opportunities to work through real mentoring scenarios and challenging conversations.
To learn more about the CIMER curriculum or request a custom training with a CIMER-certified faculty members, please contact Jen Wood, Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs (woodj@temple.edu).