The CFE Vision

From the Director:

It is a true pleasure to introduce (or to reacquaint) you to The Center for Faculty Excellence. Known as the CFE, our mission as the University’s faculty development center is to provide the resources and support needed for faculty at all career stages—and from all areas of the University—to thrive and succeed. You will see that our website highlights resources and programs in the areas of Teaching and Learning, Research, Leadership, and Mentoring. Our resources are also organized by career stage, with guidance for early career, mid-career, and senior faculty in addition to graduate students.

With a history of excellence in providing faculty development in teaching and learning dating back to 1987 as the Center for Teaching and Learning, the Center for Faculty Excellence has grown since its inception in 2010, and provides development not only in Teaching and Learning, but also in areas of Research, Leadership, and Mentoring. As you explore the site, you will see a variety of offerings in each of these areas, as well as information about CFE initiatives that will enable the CFE to nurture faculty development in a holistic way. The CFE’s three primary initiatives: Excellence in Faculty Development and Mentoring, Excellence in Faculty Diversity and Inclusion, and Excellence in Instructional Innovation, are aligned with the Chancellor’s Strategic Framework to enable faculty to thrive at every stage of their careers, and to help all of their learners reach their potential.

The CFE Teaching and Learning Division offers individual consultations, a Peer Visit program to learn from other faculty, Course Design Institutes, and grant programs to promote course redesign and instructional innovation. We also craft workshops to target specific faculty and departmental needs.

The CFE Research Division promotes faculty success via a Summer Writing Group program and grant programs to assist faculty in Research Communication and in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL). With increasing emphasis on SoTL—as well as strong relationships with the UNC Office of Research, its constituents, and others on campus that provide research faculty development—the CFE will use its strengths in Teaching and Learning in creating faculty development resources and programs related to SoTL as a complement to current research-related offerings across campus.

The CFE Leadership Division’s expanded offerings for leadership development target faculty at all career levels, from the early-career skills needed for effective communication, negotiation, time-management, running meetings, and more, to advanced skills needed to enable mid-career and senior faculty to effectively lead larger initiatives, units, and departments. Offerings range from consultations to workshops to cohort programs.

Of special importance to the CFE is individual faculty development and mentoring. In partnerships on campus and outside of UNC such as the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity (NCFDD), the CFE has developed a continuum of resources for faculty at all stages of their careers. The CFE provides specific resources for faculty to chart their paths and gauge their progress using individual development plans, identify and optimize their own network of support and mentoring, and to provide effective mentoring. The CFE also provides resources for senior faculty, Chairs, and administrators in developing effective faculty annual review processes and mentoring programs.

As you will see, partnerships are critical to the success of the CFE. We partner with faculty and units across campus, from the College of Arts and Sciences to the professional schools. ITS Educational Technologies and the College’s OASIS provide staff time to the CFE to strengthen its support for instructional innovation and other programs. Our newest partnership with the Graduate School has enabled our Graduate Student Fellowship Program, providing development for graduate students in an immersion model at the CFE. Our NCFDD partnerships include the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, the College of Arts and Sciences, and the Office of Research Postdoctoral Affairs.

At the heart of the CFE is its relationships with faculty. We truly believe that every faculty member can define their own concept of excellence. And the CFE is here to enable faculty to realize that excellence. We look forward to working with you.

Erin Malloy, MD
Associate Dean, Faculty Development and Success
Director, Center for Faculty Excellence
Professor and Director of Medical Student Education
Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine