Drawing from our experiences facilitating an FYE faculty development program, we highlight how we have practiced elements of trauma-informed pedagogy to work with first-year students and faculty. We discuss how both students and faculty can benefit from a more complex process of cultivating relationships through mindfulness. Practices of…

Faculty development is a critical component to the success of any first-year seminar. This article explains the nationally recognized faculty development model of University 101 Programs at the University of South Carolina, including the philosophy behind why we do what we do, descriptions of the various initiatives, and best practices underlying…

Our faculty development (FD) work applies Dee Fink's (2013) integrated course design model. In this article, we describe the situational factors related to supporting faculty who teach a required, academically-focused First Year Seminar course at a large public university. We then describe how we designed a suite of FD opportunities with goals…

In fall 2018, our university launched revised first-year experience course. The curriculum focused on topics of identity, self-awareness, inclusion, diversity, and community, along with the existing outcomes of socialization, wellness, and university-level skill development necessary to transition successfully through the first semester of…

In response to existing anecdotal evidence on faculty development in first-year experience program, this paper provides both a model and an adaptable heuristic for using assessment data to shape faculty development. The author argues that using a mixed method methods approach to assess FYE students' critical thinking provided unique data on…

Utilizing FYE courses to support retention and college success requires a systematic understanding of, and effective tools to support, historically underserved students. Traditional, short-term faculty development programming is unlikely to support faculty needs when teaching FYE courses, especially for experienced instructors. This article…

This article focuses on techniques used in professional development to strengthen the community of faculty in FYE courses, while aiming at improving the classroom experience for today's learners, specifically those related to providing content, building community, and strengthening understanding. To provide a solid foundation, creating a course…

In 2012, Randy Bass challenged educators to "disrupt" themselves expanding the notion of teaching to include multiple high-impact practices (HIP). First-year seminars are a HIP that, when done successfully, encourages retention and persistence in students. On our campus they function similarly, but they also create opportunities for…

Effective faculty development programs are essential to improving student success and achieving institutional goals. Yet designing and implementing successful faculty development within FYE programs remain a challenge. We examine these challenges and discuss how a redesigned on-campus faculty development effort, connected to an online course on…

The profile of students entering higher education is ever-changing, deeming it critical to understand the impact on institutions and teaching methods that foster student learning across perspectives. This article will highlight the need for advancing first-year student curriculum through teaching socially just seminars. Specifically, the article…

Maximizing the positive impact of first-year experience (FYE) courses on students relies on effective collaboration between academic and student affairs. Professional development activities, especially with faculty, can be difficult to institute as power struggles, discordant goals, and unclear expectations abound. A Learner-centered Professional…

"The Wisconsin Experience Seminar" is an extended-orientation style first-year seminar (FYS) that is intended to support students' transitions to college. The course is held each academic semester at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and is taught by instructors in a variety professional roles at the university. The program is housed…

The paper presents findings from a study that assessed the impact of a faculty development approach designed to improve technology integration specific to a comprehensive FYE program. Partnering with the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning and informed by data gathered annually from faculty and student mentors, FYE leaders created a…

The success of the first-year experience (FYE) course hangs on the effectiveness of the individual faculty members who are given the task of educating first-year students in a particularly important developmental period. This article applies a flipped classroom strategy for kickstarting meaningful classroom discussion in Mathematics Education to…

Faculty training and development for First-Year Seminar (FYS) faculty at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi (TAMUCC) is conducted in the form of training workshops, bi-annual teaching institutes, and various professional development opportunities. Facilitated workshop content is based on student-centered teaching and learning theories.…