Ten Ideas from a Review of a University Mentoring Program

In theory, mentoring is easy. A good mentoring program would match new faculty with experienced faculty. Social learning, modeling, and sound advice help junior faculty to thrive in a new environment. But in practice, mentoring programs provide uneven, even negative, results. I was fortunate to participate in a review of mentoring program in 2005 at my university. I had a successful mentoring experience in my department of agricultural education when I arrived at Iowa State University in 1999, but I had heard that other assistant professors were not as lucky. Participation on Mentoring Task Force widened my perspective on what makes good Below are lessons I learned from review of our program, which had been operational for over ten years. The full Mentoring Task Force report is available at http:// www.provost.iastate.edu/reports/mentoringreport.pdf . These lessons are likely transferable to K-12, community college, and four-year institution mentoring programs. 1. A good match between mentor and mentee is crucial. This is a truism that few would argue against, and neither did Task Force. However, as you will see below, there is more to mentoring than the match. 2. Special situations may require a secondary mentor. Women and faculty from under-represented racial and ethnic groups are main minorities at Iowa State, which is predominantly White and male. Junior faculty from under-represented groups frequently benefited from a secondary mentor that would assist them to manage in new environment. The secondary mentor was sometimes from outside their field. The secondary mentor complemented, rather than substituted for, a primary mentor within mentee's discipline. Programs may wish to formalize selection of a secondary mentor. 3. Group events may enhance value of individual and private mentoring. One-on-one mentoring was crucial to success, but getting mentees and mentors together for topical meetings broadened networks and permitted both to gain a perspective on duties and obligations of individualized relationship. 4. Provide a formal process for identifying mismatches early in program. It happens: mentor and mentee may work poorly together. Because mentee is in a position of less power with respect to both institution and mentor, it would be important to provide a formal, confidential process that identified mismatches early in program and provided a low-risk procedure for changing mentors. 5. Mentoring is about more than retention. The very best mentors and mentees felt that their experiences were about more than retention. Mentoring at its best was also about developing persons and professionals broadly-no matter where mentor was employed into future. 6. Relationship is key. Of all goals for mentoring (upgrading skills, becoming comfortable with departmental cultures), highest-rated benefit of a mentoring program was personal relationship that developed in successful pairs. The mentor and mentee should not make mistake of overly-focusing on how to get tenure or how to teach a good lesson to detriment of collegia! …