The Faculty Mentoring Partnership is a program of informal, relatively long-term mentoring requiring the mentor to be available as needed to discuss problems, listen, and share knowledge.
During the student's freshman year, students and faculty mutually select a mentoring relationship. Faculty mentors support the process of defining and clarifying goals and establishing priorities and focus.
Presidential Scholars maintain the mentoring relationship throughout their 4-year undergraduate career.
Resources for Students
Definition of Faculty Mentoring
The mentoring relationship is a developmental process that involves mutual caring, sharing, and helping.
Goal of Faculty Mentoring
The faculty mentor offers knowledge, insight, perspective, and wisdom that will enhance a student's university experience.
Some of the Many Benefits of Faculty Mentoring
* Learn about the University culture from the people who know it best.
* Discover behaviors that promote college success and decrease mistakes.
* Benefit from the experience and learning of highly respected faculty.
* Examine personal ideas, skills, and private aspirations in a non-threatening and supportive environment.
Tips for establishing an effective mentoring relationship
* Be willing to reflect on your feelings/needs and vocalize them.
* Listen openly and contemplate advice. Ask questions.
* Relax and enjoy the relationship. Be respectful, but not fearful.
* Be willing to take risks. Be considerate of the professional demands on faculty. Express your appreciation as appropriate.
* Students who are experiencing hesitation or difficulty with the mentoring relationship are encouraged to contact Dr. Bonnie Irwin.
The book:
Making the Most of Being Mentored: How to Grow from a Mentoring Partnership (Fifty-Minute Series.) by Gordon F.Shea (Paperback - June 1999) is on reserve at Booth Library for students who wish additional information.
Link to Student Personal Profile Form (PDF) (Word )
Resources for Faculty
Program Description
* Biographical information is collected from faculty and Presidential Scholars during the spring and summer months preceding fall freshmen enrollment.
* Materials are reviewed and mentoring matches made in HON 1191 - Honors First-Year Seminar during weeks 2-4 of the class. Matches will be made by HON 1191 instructors: Dr. Bonnie Irwin (English) and Dr. Bud Fischer (Biological Sciences).
* Matches will be based on biographical information and presumed compatibility of talent, interest and/or background.
* Adjustments may be made if mentoring relationships are not mutually compatible.
* The program will strive over time to match all interested faculty to students. Biographical information of faculty will be kept on file for possible assignment unless the Honors College Office is notified that the faculty member is no longer able to mentor.
Resources
* Faculty who are experiencing frustration and/or difficulty with the mentoring match are encouraged to contact Dean Irwin at the Honors College Office (581-2017). Inquiries are strictly confidential.
* The following books have been placed on reserve in Booth Library as resources for Faculty Mentors. These books may be checked out for a short period:
~ Mentoring: How to Develop Successful Mentor Behaviors (Crisp 50-Minute Book) by Gordon F. Shea (Paperback - November 2001)
~ The Everything Coaching and Mentoring Book: How to Increase Productivity, Foster Talent, and Encourage Success by Nicholas Nigro (Paperback - November 2002)
~ The Elements of Mentoring by W. Brad Johnson & Charles R. Ridley
~ The Mentoring Organization by Gordon F. Shea (Paperback-2003)
Faculty who wish to make comments or suggestions are encouraged to contact Dr. Bonnie Irwin , or call
581-2017 to speak with the people who know it best.
Faculty Mentors 2005 - 2006
Dr. Tim Engles, English
Dr. Melanie Burns, FCS
Dr. Rosemary Buck, English
Dr. Peter Andrews, Math
Dr. Peter Loewen, Music
Dr. Rodney Marshall, Communication Studies
Dr. David Raybin, English
Dr. Tom Nelson, Biology
Dr. Bob Augustine, Graduate School
"I am energized by the opportunity to serve as a mentor to a Presidential Scholar. The program offers an opportunity to contribute to the success of an outstanding Eastern student while simultaneously seeing Eastern through the experiences and views of someone who is sampling our courses and services for the very first time. I feel very honored to serve in this
role and have personally gained new appreciation for the Honors Program and the students that it attracts."
Dr. Andrew McNitt, Political Science
Dr. Bonnie Irwin, Honors College/English
Dr. Jyoti Panjwani, English
Dr. Carol Stevens, English
Dr. Morton Heller, Psychology
Dr. Jan Marquardt, Art
"You meet the nicest students as an honors mentor!"
Ms Terri Johnson, Journalism
Dr. Carlos Amaya, Foreign Language
Mr. John Oertling, Theatre
Dr. Bud Fischer, Biology
"Honors prepares the students for the real world, where significant issues are
discussed with diverse people who haven't had the same college major."
Dr. Angela Vietto, English
Dr. Gordon Tucker, Biology
Faculty Mentors 2004 - 2005
Dr. Andy Methven, Biological Sciences
Dr. Jean Wolski, Theatre Arts
Dr. Jeff Stowell, Psychology
"I enjoy participating in the mentoring program because I get to see students develop
academically and personally. I also feel that it shows the students that the faculty at
EIU really care."
Mr. David McGrady, School of Business
Dr. Fern Kory, English
"I have really enjoyed my mentoring experience. My mentee and I meet at the campus
coffee shop every couple weeks or so just to talk (and to see if they've fixed the part of
the machine that dispenses decaf espresso).
She is an awfully interesting young woman and it's fun to see what she is up to. It's also very nice to
have a relationship with a student that has nothing to do with grades."
Dr. Bud Fischer, Biological Sciences
Dr. David Radavich, English
Dr. Belayet Khan, Geology/Geography
Dr. Ann Boswell, English
Dr. Teresa Britton, Philosophy
Dr. Kipp McGilliard, Biological Sciences
Dr. John Stimac, Geology/Geography
Dr. Frank McCormick, English
"I am a professor in the English Department, where I teach general education courses
(including freshman English) as well as upper division courses for English majors in
18th-century British literature and Literary History and Bibliography. I am the author
of two books on the 18th-century British architect and playwright Sir John Vanbrugh.
Because I know that vegetables are good for me, I hold my nose and eat a bag of raw broccoli,
carrots, and an apples every day for lunch. I play racquetball three times a week,
and on alternate days my wife and I enjoy working out in the company of students
in the Recreational Center. It has been an honor to participate this past year
as a faculty mentor in the Honors College's Presidential Scholar program. Getting
to know my Presidential Scholar mentee has been a real treat. She is thriving
in Eastern's Honors Program."
Mr. Ken Baker, Sports and Recreation
"I have had the opportunity to experience the Honors College as a parent of an Honors College student, an instructor of Honors classes, and
as a member of the Honors Council. Now, as a Mentor, my role resembles a combination of my parent and instructor responsibilities. It is beneficial to advise, but very important to listen. These are wonderful young people,
and it is extremely rewarding to watch them mature academically and personally."
Dr. Ruth Hoberman, English
Dr. Bill Addison, Psychology
Dr. Olga Abella, English
Dr. Donald Pakey, Physics
Dr. Julie Campbell, English
:: Honors College :: Eastern Illinois University :: Booth House 600 Lincoln Avenue :: Charleston, IL 61920-3099 :: :: Telephone 217-581-2017 :: Fax 217-581-7222 :: Toll-Free 1-888-440-4664 ::
