Over the years, the two most frequently asked questions at the end of my workshops are: how can I find a community like the one I've experienced today? and can YOU be my mentor?! 

Unfortunately, I can't be everyone's mentor or create a loving community of support on everyone's individual campus but I have created a way for a small number of faculty to work with me each semester in order to implement the strategies I teach in my book and workshops. I'm calling this program the "Faculty Success Program" and I'm going to work with my first cohort starting in January 2010. I have been designing this program for the past year based on the feedback I've received from many of you. I think it's really special and unlike any faculty development opportunity you've ever experienced because it's built around the three things that you've told me are missing in your professional lives: COMMUNITY, SUPPORT AND ACCOUNTABILITY.

You may have participated in faculty development workshops on your campus in the past where you heard lots of great ideas and success stories. Then you went back to your office, closed the door, and kept doing exactly what you were doing before (even if that behavior left you feeling miserable, exhausted and/or unproductive). Or maybe you swore you would try writing every day, did so for a few days, and then went back to your regular procrastination mode. Maybe you started a writing group and it worked for a few weeks, but then people got busy and stopped attending. Maybe you are on fellowship this year, and despite promising yourself that you would write for hours on end each day, you've only produced a handful of new pages. Maybe you received a critical third-year review and honestly don't know how to move forward in a completely new way that will double your productivity. Maybe you recently pulled an all-nighter to finish a project and realized afterwards, "I don't want to live this way." Or maybe you just completed your first semester of your first academic job and -- while you manged to teach your classes and complete your service assignments -- you didn't get any writing done and know things have to change. If any of those scenarios sound familiar, congratulations! You are a typical new faculty member!

Having worked with over 2000 faculty and graduate students in the past six years, I have observed that a very small number of people learn about productivity tips and implement them immediately with great success. Instead, the vast majority of academics need two important things to improve their productivity: 1) support for changing their current unproductive behavior and 2) accountability to ensure the changes are sustained over time. While there are plenty of online writing clubs, support groups, and faculty forums, electronic support just doesn't work for everyone. Some of us need human contact, structure, weekly accountability, somebody who really believes we can succeed, and a safe space where we can honestly communicate our needs. If you're one of the people who have tried everything else, but need more support, then you're the person I've designed this course to serve. In other words, if you suspect that you're not really living your full potential, that your work would shake up your entire discipline if only you could find time to complete your book, that there must be some way to be a faculty member and work less than 80 hours per week, or that you just want to start enjoying the faculty position you've worked so long to obtain, then I want to invite you to join me for one intense semester where you will have a team of committed supporters and I will be 100% dedicated to your success.

For those of you who have tried to make changes on your own, but know you need the kind of help the Faculty Success Program provides, you're in for an exciting and transformative experience. Here's what your semester will look like as a participant:

1. You will create a semester plan that outlines your writing and research goals for the semester.
2. Every week, you will participate in a small accountability group (with 3 other people just like you, led by Kerry Ann) to report your progress from the previous week and plan the next week's activities.
3. Every week, you will call into a larger group call (15 people, led by Kerry Ann) to process the unexpected, learn from each other's mistakes, share difficulties and celebrate successes.
4. At the end of each month, you will have an individual assessment with Kerry Ann, and
5. You will have access to a private online forum for daily support

Working for one semester in this supportive community, you will develop a consistent daily writing routine, you will increase your productivity, you will align your time with your priorities, you will increase your job satisfaction, and you will pro-actively develop a local network of mentors for future success.