Fri, 25 Sep 2026 1:15 PM - Fri, 4 Dec 2026 2:45 PM

Center for Faculty Innovation

The Engaged Teacher-Scholar (ETS) program supports faculty interested in examining issues of teaching and learning. This year, the ETS program will focus on the theme of dialogue in the classroom. Dialogue can take many forms: developing students' interpersonal skills, navigating difficult conversations, supporting meaningful discussion, creating connections beyond the classroom, and more.

The ETS program is a year-long commitment. Selected faculty will receive a $500 stipend for their engagement in the ETS program, disbursed in payments of $250 at the completion of the fall and spring semesters.

In the fall semester, a cohort of selected faculty will engage in one face-to-face and three online meetings to explore the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) and the many forms it can take. Participants will generate theme-related ideas about areas of their own teaching that could benefit from a form of SoTL and will engage with resources and each other to reflect on their pedagogical practices in a systematic and scholarly manner.

In the spring semester, participants will engage in monthly face-to-face meetings to develop a SoTL project connected to the theme, write a proposal for that project (including an IRB, if relevant), and identify potential publication and/or presentation outlets. As a learning community, participants will support progress on individual SoTL projects and create an internal to JMU (e.g., May Symposium) or external (e.g., professional conference) collaborative presentation focused on SoTL.

All participants completing the first year of the ETS program will be eligible to continue into the second year of the ETS program. In the fall semester of the second year, participants will conduct their SoTL projects; in the spring semester, they will complete these projects and work toward a written product.  In the fall semester of the second year, participants will have the opportunity to attend monthly face-to-face meetings for mentorship from CFI associates and feedback/support from fellow participants. In the spring of the second year, they will also serve as mentors to ETS participants in their first year of the program. Mentorship will include providing support and feedback to first-year participants on their developing SoTL projects.

Those in the second year of the ETS program will receive a professional development fund of up to $1,000, disbursed at the completion of the fall and spring semesters. Funds will be used to support completion of the SoTL project, which can include conference travel to present the resulting scholarship.

Facilitators

Genre: Faculty Learning Community

Program Outcomes

  • Examining issues of teaching and learning
  • Developing pedagogical understandings and skills
  • Advancing a scholarly project
  • Creating a community with colleague

Application Questions: (Microsoft Forms)

  1. Name
  2. JMU Email
  3. Title
  4. College
  5. Department
  6. Please confirm that you have discussed your potential involvement in the ETS Program for fall 2026 and spring 2027 with your AUH. If your selection is 'No', you must first discuss with your AUH before completing this application.
  7. Briefly explain your interest in the CFI Engaged Teacher-Scholar Program. (approx. 150 words)
  8. What experience (if any) do you have with scholarship focused on issues of teaching and learning? (approx. 150 words)
  9. What issue(s) of the classroom dialogue theme (e.g., developing students’ interpersonal skills, navigating difficult conversations, supporting meaningful discussion, creating connections beyond the classroom) are you interested in exploring through the ETS program? (approx. 150 words)
  10. How might participation in the ETS program support your teaching and/or scholarship? (approx. 150 words)
  11. Please confirm that you will attend all of the fall Friday meetings: September 25, October 9, November 6, and December 4, at 1:15 - 2:45 p.m. Priority will be given to participants who can attend all meetings.
  12. If you cannot attend all of the fall meetings, please indicate which meetings you will miss and, if you are comfortable doing so, the conflict you have on that day.

Apply to ETS

Apply by Thursday, September 10, at 11:59 p.m.

CFI programs will be canceled automatically if JMU is closed for inclement weather.

We want this program to be welcoming, accessible, and inclusive for all of our participants. Please let us know any considerations or accommodations (e.g., dietary, disability, wellness, cultural, etc.) by reaching out to us at cfi@jmu.edu or (540) 568-4846.

 

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