…as beneficiaries laud VC, DRILP for promoting university ideals
As part of the painstaking efforts to ensure meaningful progress and a continued culture of academic excellence in the upwardly mobile Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), two astute scholars, Professor Joshua Olalekan Ogunwole and Professor Sylvia Uzochukwu , have taught a good number of the academic staff on the meaning, impact, effects and how best to carry out mentoring in a University environment like FUOYE with the aim of achieving academic excellence, progress, enabling learning and teaching environment as well as maintaining and sustaining a healthy working relationship.
Themed: “Towards Research Productivity & Career Achievement in a University: Understanding the Mentors’& Mentees’
Roles”, the duo of Professors Ogunwole and Uzochukwu dished out helpful tips, hints, and life experiences which have made them exemplary scholars with excellent track records in the University environment. They stated that these highlights were needed for young and advanced University workers and lecturers to excel and give their lvory Tower an outstanding academic environment with global reckoning. The Webinar which on July 20, 2024 at 4pm and ran for two hours, was well attended by the members of the University community comprising mainly the academic staff who testified that it was a highly rewarding and enlightening exercise. They also appreciated the Vice-Chancellor , Prof. Abayomi Sunday Fasina and his team in the Directorate of Research Innovation and Linkage Programme (DRILP) headed by Prof, Olayide Lawal, for regularly churning out progressive ideas for the career advancement of scholars in the University.
Prof. Ogunwole began his lecture on a note of defining the concept of a University from several scholars’ perspectives, he said“The University is an engine of modernization and change in any society and an enormous force for progress. Its social and political roles are as important as its scientific and technological ones.”…..Ismail Serageldin (2008).
“In the Words of Cardinal John Henry Newman – (Founder of University College, Dublin): University“… the high protecting power of all knowledge and Science, of facts & principles, of inquiry and discovery, of experiment and speculation.”
‘A society of scholars all of whom are learning, but the more senior scholars, spend part of their time teaching the junior scholars and they also increase their own knowledge by adding to their store of human knowledge. This they do by research.’
“A place where those that hate ignorance may strive to know, where those who perceive truth strive to make other see; where seekers and learners alike, banded together in the search for knowledge will honour thoughts in all its fine ways, will welcome thinkers in distress or in exile, will uphold ever the dignity of thought of learning and will exact standard in these things”. The University should be a Place of:
In summary, a University is a place where
minds are cultivated to solve societal problems.”
He also spoke on the ideals of a University, saying it is based on :“ The need to generate knowledge, not just for its own sake, but also for the sake of spurring innovation & applying portion of it for societal need.
Freedom – to enquire, to challenge, to think, to imagine the unimaginable.
Science & innovation can catalyze development. Performance is the key here…. institutions of higher education are con- ducted for the common good and not to further the interest of either the individual teacher or the institution as a whole. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free exposition”.
Speaking about the values that power Higher Education, he listed such values as Merit, which he described as “The highest canon of our faith”, saying: “In an ideal setting, scholars have the time & resources to search for truths within their fields. To sacrifice the sense of truth, intellectual, probity and loyalty to the laws & methods of the spirit to any other interest is treachery.
Our calling is to think 2) Strongly related to the quest for truth. The claim of academic freedom is based on the high & serious calling of the academic profession. That calling is to think: Embrace for Creativity & Innovation;Search for Truth; Respect for Knowledge and Expertise; Expert Knowledge is valued & respected by both students & faculty. Few would question that a deep respect for the ‘humbling immensity of what was known and thought is at the core of University and must be preserved. Today’s ideal University embraces creativity and innovation as much as it respects a grounding in past understanding. Ideas that are popular or unpopular, familiar or novel, probable or improbable. Freedom to Pursue all Ideas..”
Prof. Ogunwole further quoted Valian and Steward (2018) on The Six University Ideals
Promoting the pursuit of Research and opined that : “It is important to promote the “values of science”that effectively allow the pursuit of research to flourish. These include rationality, the search for truth, adherence to codes of behavior and a certain constructive subversiveness .”
The erudite academic, also said: Promoting the Pursuit of Research is an ideal of a University and added that : “According to Ismail Serageldin (Former World Bank Vice President, TWAS Fellow 2001 & Director of Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Alexandra, Egypt) in 2008: Science requires tolerant engagement with the contrarian view, accepting to arbitrate disputes by the rules of evidence and rationality. The content of the scientific work is what is discussed, not the person who produced it, regardless of the color of their skin or the god they choose to worship or the ethnic group they were born into or their gender.”
“Let me comment while passing by, that research proposals emanating from any University where University-, TETFUND- funded or third party funded deserve internal expert review and evaluation based on its technical merits and its potential benefits to society. This will also help the University to monitor all research emanating from her stable and track all publication emanating from FUOYE.”
Delving into mentoring and its roles, nature , principles and kinds etc, he said: “Mentoring is a relationship in which an experienced & knowledgeable individual (usually, a master – learner/ senior colleague/mentor) supports a goal-driven colleague (usually, a junior colleague/postgraduate student/mentee) by providing professional knowledge, experiences, and utilizing key skills & personal attributes, to enable that colleague to achieve his/her goals (career achievement/successful thesis completion, etc) The relationship is focused on enabling mentees to: Develop
- Facilitate their personal and professional development such that mentees, Progress
their skills, Knowledge and
capability are able in to fulfill their professional potentials life and
career.
“Mentoring is not giving advice, it is not telling the mentees to ‘do it the way I did it,’ its about the mentees and goals. Mentoring aims at helping the mentees find ways of resolving their issues or reaching their goals, while understanding and respecting that, mentee differently to the mentor.
motivating to empowering
and identify their own issues may
do things. Even Socrates has this to say:
Mentoring therefore, is the commitment by a mentor to advance the career of the mentee through an engagement that facilitates providing guidance, experience & expertise.
“A Conventional/Traditional Mentor : Mentor has extensive experience in a specific field & can facilitate transfer of specific knowledge that mentees can navigate their career development & enable professional development; Career Mentor: Provides guidance & advise on career advancement, motivating mentees to make informed decisions & developing strategies for professional growth & success. Such mentors are experienced in a field or specific industry; Peer department) as their mentees. Here, they provide support, share knowledge & offer advise based on their own experiences. Focus here is on collaboration and mutual growth; Reverse Mentor: A younger or less experienced individual mentors a more senior or experienced colleague, often in ‘specialized’ skills and knowledge such as technology, social media and current trends: These are individuals at similar academic level or career (could be within or outside.
Life self discovery, confidence building & life management skills to overcome personal barriers to success. This is provided through motivation, guidance & emotional support.
Coach: A life coach is a mentor that holistic approach to personal growth & development. Aiding in Roles: The Mentor – a role model
A mentor is a role – model to keeping, upholding and defending the ideals and values of a University as earlier enumerated.
(For value is what lingers on in the mentee after s/he has been served. It is what the students remember many after they have left school. It is what any other that comes through the university remembers of the gate- keepers and Registry. The mentor must understand must position
trustworthy– is S/He one the trust
is trust advice be attract provides mentee To betray to will mentor sanction guidance,
holding of support. The S/He is must and experience driven
and knowledge.”
On her part, Prof. Uzochukwu, brought up practical and simple steps, strategies and plans to be deployed in ensuring a symbiotic, healthy and fruitful mentoring in a University environment, defining who a mentor is , she opined that: “A Mentor is a person who shares knowledge, skills, information and perspective, to foster the professional growth of someone else: In principle therefore, mentoring is a learning process as well as a teaching process; You can eventually succeed in life, in your career without a Mentor; But it would be after a lot of difficulties, battles, and scars, having missed your way many times. You arrive at the point of success angry, bitter , frustrated
•And you may even never make it at all
•Those with mentors arrive at success faster and with minimal bruises. They use the short cuts and they arrive refreshed happy and cheerful. If you are still young and you don’t have a mentor or mentors, get one today.”
She also delved into the functions of mentoring and it’s nature, saying :” Mentoring provides new faculty with an explicit connection to more senior faculty members to provide guidance, advice, and socialization to the new department and institution; Mentoring offers role models for new faculty, who learn by simply watching the behavior of the more senior faculty.
•Mentoring offers information transmission, wherein senior faculty share tricks of the trade and strategies for success with new faculty; Mentoring establishes informal relationships that may offer opportunities to collaborate, network, and feel more comfortable in and satisfied with the home unit; Mentoring creates opportunities for junior faculty to realize their own potential.
•Mentoring relationships can be arranged in pairs (new faculty member with senior faculty member) or in groups (new faculty member with several senior faculty members).”
Giving practical tips, Prof. The Lrofessor of Food Science and Technology who is also national President of her professional association in Nigeria, said: “A group mentoring format may allow for more flexibility of mentors’ schedules and will allow for certain individuals to focus on particular areas of strength (teaching, research, service, university politics, etc.),
•Search committee chairs can also be enlisted to assist in matching mentors with new faculty, given their familiarity with the new faculty member. Provide one senior faculty mentor within the department and one outside of it – this arrangement may assist in better understanding promotion expectations both within the unit and in the larger Faculty
“•Provide additional mentoring relationship opportunities for faculty with particular interests (e.g., grant writing, community partnerships) or with particular backgrounds (e.g., international faculty, faculty of color);
•However, gender of the mentor does not appear to make a difference in mentoring outcomes (Posey, Reimers, & Andronicos, 2007) but a woman should always have a woman in her mentorship team
•Implement peer-mentoring networks where “newer” faculty members (e.g., those hired in last 6 years) may assist each other and provide support and advice\
“Additionally, Departments may mentor
•To best determine new faculty members’ needs, a questionnaire can be provided:
◦Please describe in a few sentences your research interests.
◦Please describe in a few sentences the kinds of teaching you do or expect to do (i.e., lectures, seminars, labs, graduate advising, etc.); Please state 3 areas where you feel a mentor could help you.
◦Please state any preferences you might have regarding your potential mentor (i.e., gender, race, emeritus vs. current faculty, etc.); Do you desire a mentor inside or outside your department? Interdisciplinary mentors?
As an expert on gender studies also and doubling as the Director of the University’s Directorate of Gender Studies, Prof. Uzochukwu gave helpful tips on mentoring the female gender, saying: “Females should always have a hand in choosing who mentors them, and their mentorship relationships quickly dissolved without any questions once she expresses a desire for a dissolution.
•They should be allowed to choose their mentors from any part of the university.
•Sexual harassment of Juniour colleagues by seniour ones is a very real problem in Universities as in some places.
•Many senior male colleagues insist on sexual favours before a junior colleague is graduated for PhD or MSc, as is rampant with some male lecturers with female students.•Unfortunately, it is really bad with the humanities. The female lecturer is particularly vulnerable in this respect and needs strong mentors to navigate her through the treacherous waters of the male dominated university community”
She cited samples of what areas the female staff could be mentioned adding that Mentors for female colleagues should : “ identify germane areas. She gave the tips as: “ Please describe in a few sentences your research interests; Please describe in a few sentences the kinds of teaching you do (i.e., lectures, seminars, labs, graduate advising, etc.): Please describe your particular strengths as a mentor (e.g., teaching techniques, time management, networking with other faculty, etc.).•How available can you be to your protégé? Mentors too can fill a questionnaire; Mentors and protégés should be expected to meet on a regular basis; There should be regular evaluation by HOD or Dean: and such questions as •How do I upload grades; How do I deal with an incidence of plagiarism? •How do I achieve promotion?; How do I articulate my research agenda?; How do I achieve work-life balance? and others should be asked.
Speaking further , she opined that :” Many mentoring relationships will focus largely on the promotion process; Mentors should provide a copy of the promotion guidelines and teach the Mentee how it works. Mentors can provide sample assessments from past successful annual reviews to guide the new scholar. Focus is on both short and long term issues: Mentors can meet once a month with the new faculty member to discuss his/her CV and provide feedback in relation to the promotion expectations of the Department or Faculty; •Mentors should also consider the more “implicit” expectations of the promotion process – i.e. those not generally expressed in writing – e.g., is there expectation that the faculty member should be in his/her office every day?; Is there an expectation that new faculty attend certain conferences or publish in certain places?
Harping on regular interviews as part mentoring roles, she said: “Monthly meetings can be arranged around specific topics such as, Department/unit organization (divisions, committees), Decision-making in the unit and what role junior faculty play in the process, Support staff in the unit and what are expected of them, Conferences: What travel funding and support is available?
; How many papers should be presented annually? How do you make the most of networking at professional meetings and conferences?
“Other questions may arise on publishing, grants, among others, on these , she said a mentor should focus on Where should new faculty publish?; What should they publish? How much/how often?; How do different kinds of publications count (i.e., articles, book chapters, conference proceedings, etc.)?Is collaborative work encouraged or discouraged?; Interdisciplinary work?as well as Authorship etiquette: What is expected of junior faculty related to authorship? What about graduate student authors?
Grants: What are the grant expectations for junior faculty?
•What resources are available for finding grants, managing budgets?
•What are unit expectations for percent of grants to be given University as administrative charge, and to researcher if any?
- What are different expectations for research faculty versus traditional support staff
. Teaching: What should a teaching philosophy statement look like?
•How is the teaching schedule managed?
•Should new faculty consider developing new courses? - How much time should be spent on course preparations?
•Are there teaching Assistants? Will new faculty receive teaching assistants? What are the expectations of TAs?
•What are unit standards for grading?
•How much freedom in developing course content?
•How is teaching evaluated?
•Can the mentor observe teaching?
•What are some additional forms of evaluation that can be used?
•What documentation of teaching should be kept?
•Advising: How much time is expected for advising undergraduate and graduate students?
•How many is too many? - What qualities should a new faculty member look for in a new graduate student?
•How do you identify a problem graduate student? - When can you become graduate faculty?
- What are the expectations for serving as chair or Project supervisor, on committees, etc.?
•How do you write good recommendations?
•How do you hire post-docs and supervise them?
•Service: How much service is expected?
•How much is too much?
•Which committees are the best to serve on and which should be avoided? - How important is professional service?
•Which kinds are valued more?
•How do you say “no”?
•Annual Review: Schedule of annual reviews?
•What documentation is needed?
•How is the third-year review different?
•How do you address inaccuracies in review decisions?
Personal issues: What are the policies for family and personal leave – Maternity and paternity leaves?
•What support is available for the birth or adoption of a child?
•What childcare options are available?
•Is it acceptable to work at home?
•Where do you go for help if involved in a controversy or dispute?
•Mentors should be aware that not all new faculty will be comfortable asking for help – even if they need it.
•Being aware of and anticipating issues at particular times of the year may assist mentors in reaching out to faculty.
•For example:
◦ Beginning of year: Ordering books and reagents, using on-line teaching facilities,
◦Syllabus format and university policies required on syllabi
◦Mid-term: mid-term assessment
◦End of semester: Dealing with plagiarism in student seminars and project reports
◦The significance of student evaluations
•Every Department should have a written mentoring plan given to all new faculty.
•Sample Mentoring Plan
•Department XYZ at the Federal University Oye-Ekiti, recognizes the importance of mentoring relationships between new faculty and their more senior colleagues. New faculty members will be provided with a brief questionnaire in advance of their first semester asking for areas of interest and expertise. Senior faculty members who wish to serve as mentors will be provided with a similar questionnaire to best match new faculty and mentor areas of interest and expertise. The department head/director will be tasked with matching new faculty members with a mentor (in the department, outside of the department) and/or will be provided with a mentoring committee of senior faculty. Mentors and their protégés will be expected to meet at least monthly to discuss areas of professional development, expectations for promotion, and to provide insight into the department’s organization and functioning. Topics for these meetings may include, but are not limited to: teaching, research, publication, external funding, advising, service, professional association memberships and networking, promotion and annual review criteria, and work-life balance. The Chair of Department XYZ will send confidential evaluations of the mentoring relationship at the end of each semester in the first two years of the new faculty member’s appointment. These evaluations will allow for the Chair to provide additional mentoring or resources to both the new faculty member and the mentor or to provide alternate mentoring should the relationship not prove fruitful. Should a mentoring relationship require dissolution, another senior faculty member will be matched with the new faculty member using the questionnaire process described above.
Presented by Prof. Sylvia Uzochukwu at a Webinar for the FUOYE Directorate of Research, Innovation and Linkage. 20th July 2024
Departmental Mentoring Plan
•Guidance and counseling services and programs can promote the personal, social, educational, and career development of all staff.
•Ideally guidance and counseling is to help promote the efficient and happy lives of both staff and students by helping them adjust to social realities
•However, in practice, Counseling tends to take place only after some damage has been done
•Mentoring seeks to ensure the damage never happens in the first place
Presented by Prof. Sylvia Uzochukwu at a Webinar for the FUOYE Directorate of Research, Innovation and Linkage. 20th July 2024
Guidance and Counseling vs Mentoring
•Coach/Advisor
•Source of encouragement/support
•Resource Person
•Champion
•Devil’s Advocate
•Networking contact
•Coach/Advisor
•Source of encouragement/support
•Resource Person
•Champion
•Devil’s Advocate
•Networking contact.
In summary, A mentor should be:
Coach/Advisor•Give advice and guidance, share ideas, and provide feedback
•Share information on “unwritten rules for success” in the university
Source of encouragement/support
•Acts as secondary board of ideas/concern about school/career choices; provide insight in to possible opportunities
•Provide support on personal issues if appropriate – boy friends, pregnancy, victimization, harassment …
As a Mentor, you should be a Resource Person who Identifies resources to help mentee enhance personal development and career growth; Expands the mentee’s network of contacts and a Champion who
serves as advocate for mentee whenever opportunity presents itself; and seeks opportunity for increased visibility for mentee. A Mentor should also be a Devil’s Advocate; When appropriate, play devil’s advocate to help mentee think through important decisions and strategies.
Networking contact –
•An experienced mentor will have accrued and collected a number of professional contacts in the field which soon becomes your professional networking contacts!
•Navigate politics and bureaucracy – job titles tell you who has authority at any given organization, but a mentor can tell you who has the power. Politics is a part of any organization, and misstep can be costly. A mentor can also help promote you within the organization to key players who can help advance your career.
She also enlightened the audience on the rewards that come with mentoring, saying:”Mentoring rewards mentors in an abundance of ways: Your students will keep you abreast of new knowledge and techniques and inform you of promising avenues for research; A faculty member’s reputation rests in part on the work of his or her former students; sending successful new scholars into the field increases your professional stature; Your networks are enriched. Helping students make the professional and personal connections they need to succeed will greatly extend your own circle of colleagues.
;Good students will be attracted to you. Word gets around about who the best mentors are, so they are usually the most likely to recruit – and retain –outstanding students.
•It’s personally satisfying. Seeing your students succeed can be as rewarding as a major publication or big grant.
•Post graduate Schools of Nigerian Universities should have mentoring guides for graduate faculty and for graduate students.
