Three engineering faculty have been named to the Center for Teaching’s Junior Faculty Teaching Fellows program.
Audrey Bowden, associate professor of biomedical engineering and associate professor of electrical engineering; Justus Ndukaife, assistant professor of electrical engineering and computer science; and Ipek Oguz, assistant professor of computer science and computer engineering; will receive $2,000 each in research funds to be used to enhance their teaching.
The 2019-2020 cohort comprises 8 faculty from the College of Arts and Science, School of Engineering, and Vanderbilt Law School.
“The Junior Faculty Teaching Fellows program is part of the university’s long-term investment in its faculty at critical points in their careers,” Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Susan R. Wente said. “I am excited to celebrate the program’s 10th year with this outstanding cohort, who will join an interdisciplinary community of faculty who have participated in this program and gone on to serve as mentors for other faculty seeking to have a greater impact through their teaching.”
Fellows engage in a structured set of professional development activities—including a seminar on teaching and learning, individual consultations, teaching visits and dinner discussions—designed to help them refine their teaching skills and learn to teach more efficiently. Fellows participate in these activities with past Junior Faculty Teaching Fellows, senior faculty mentors and CFT senior staff.
The program is open to full-time, provost-reporting junior faculty who have been at Vanderbilt between one and six years. Fellows are selected based on identification of clear and achievable goals for program participation and for use of research funds; potential impact at Vanderbilt; support from their chair; and readiness to learn in the program.
“Not only does the program help our junior faculty be more intentional and effective teachers now, it also prepares them to support student learning throughout their careers at Vanderbilt,” Derek Bruff, director of the Center for Teaching, said. “We’ve seen alumni of the program go into a variety of leadership positions at the university, where they draw on lessons about teaching and learning from their experience in the program.”
The other fellows are Daniela D’Eugenio, senior lecturer in Italian; Gautam Hans, assistant clinical professor of law; Allison Leich Hilbun, senior lecturer in biological sciences; Elliott McCarter, senior lecturer in Asian studies; and Denis Zhernokleyev, senior lecturer in Russian.
Contact: Brenda Ellis, (615) 343-6314
Brenda.Ellis@Vanderbilt.edu