Spring 2020--About this Issue

The Spring 2020 issue of the Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence presents articles relative to the mission of the land grant institution, including a review of Gavazzi, Gee, and McGrath\u27s (2018) book, Land Grant Universities for the Future, followed by an article by Gavazzi arguing for greater emphasis on teaching in land-grant institutions. Additional contributions include articles on creating content for online courses, a literature review on faculty-undergraduate mentoring, a pilot study on open-access textbooks, and principles for discussion-based learning

About This Issue

The Spring 2019 issue of the Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence features articles that emphasize the use of meta-analysis to improve teaching in higher education

Full Issue: Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence, Volume 3, Issue 1

The full Spring 2019 issue (Volume 3, Issue 1) of the Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence, Spring 201

Student Success: A Literature Review of Faculty to Student Mentoring

This review summarizes the literature on university faculty to student mentoring programs. There has been a proliferation of mentoring programs because of the perceived benefit to student persistence and retention. While mentoring programs have become common, the research on these programs has not kept pace. Shortcomings identified thirty years ago such as lack of theoretical guidance, lack of operational definition of mentoring, and poor design continue to plague mentoring research. Recommendations to address these shortcomings and improve internal and external validity are examined. As universities continue to have increasingly constrained resources, and pressure to demonstrate strategies to help students be successful, evidence-based research will be increasingly desired. If shortcomings in mentoring research can be addressed, mentoring programs hold the potential to be part of a university’s strategic plan to help students be successful

Chapter 18- Case Study of the Statewide Faculty-to-Student Mentoring Program at Utah State University

The purpose of this article is to examine an undergraduate mentorship program through Utah State University (USU). The creation of the Faculty-to-Student Mentorship Program originated in an attempt to increase both retention and graduation rates throughout the statewide system. In the first year, a steering committee was formed, and the mentorship program was piloted on one statewide campus—Uintah Basin. During the next year, the program was expanded to all eight statewide campuses. The steering committee examined available literature regarding existing mentorship programs and identified three shortcomings: lack of theoretical framework, operational definition, and methodological rigor. This article discusses the program design for the mentorship program in addressing these shortcomings while providing a step-by-step approach to mentorship. This includes purpose, funding, recruitment, mentoring objectives, and description of measurement instruments. The article concludes with a discussion of lessons learned and recommendations for future mentoring programs

Chapter 2- Recognizing Mentoring Program Identity and Applying Theoretical Frameworks for Design, Support, and Research

Mentoring programs in academic settings take multiple forms depending on the population being served, the context in which they develop, and the purpose and outcomes to be achieved. This chapter identifies critical variables in choosing a solid theoretical foundation for designing effective mentoring programs and interventions in academia. This chapter specifically addresses four clusters of theoretical frameworks that include psychosocial supports for mentoring, mentoring as a learning partnership, mentoring as career support, and developmental network theories that can be applied to careers. This chapter is broken into four distinct sections. The first section outlines the process of identifying key components and variables of an individual mentoring program. In the second section, we present two broad categories of frameworks to assist readers in customizing the appropriate theoretical framework that will align their program’s needs and goals with their program’s local mentoring identity. Section three explains and gives examples of the process for connecting the customized frameworks to the practice of a mentoring program. Finally, section four will share our thoughts on updating, rearticulating, and creating new frameworks to develop a research design to increase stakeholder support of individual programs and contribute to the important body of knowledge regarding university mentoring programs

Chapter 9- Defining Recruitment, Selection, and Matching Strategies

Chapter 9, “Defining Recruitment, Selection, and Matching Strategies” guides the program coordinator in recruiting mentors and mentees, selecting who will be in the mentoring program, and matching participants. The section on recruitment begins by emphasizing how the needs assessment, university vision, and program goals and objectives should align to create a clear vision and purpose for the mentoring program. It also describes how communication practices in various university ecosystems, rewards and incentives, and activities enhance enrollment. The section on selection delineates mentors’ positive and negative characteristics, exploring in-depth critical mentor communication skills and the characteristics of successful mentees. Finally, the last section helps the program coordinator consider the multiple alternatives in the matching process

Atelectasis Induced by Thoracotomy Causes Lung Injury during Mechanical Ventilation in Endotoxemic Rats

Atelectasis can impair arterial oxygenation and decrease lung compliance. However, the effects of atelectasis on endotoxemic lungs during ventilation have not been well studied. We hypothesized that ventilation at low volumes below functional residual capacity (FRC) would accentuate lung injury in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-pretreated rats. LPS-pretreated rats were ventilated with room air at 85 breaths/min for 2 hr at a tidal volume of 10 mL/kg with or without thoracotomy. Positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) was applied to restore FRC in the thoracotomy group. While LPS or thoracotomy alone did not cause significant injury, the combination of endotoxemia and thoracotomy caused significant hypoxemia and hypercapnia. The injury was observed along with a marked accumulation of inflammatory cells in the interstitium of the lungs, predominantly comprising neutrophils and mononuclear cells. Immunohistochemistry showed increased inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expression in mononuclear cells accumulated in the interstitium in the injury group. Pretreatment with PEEP or an iNOS inhibitor (1400 W) attenuated hypoxemia, hypercapnia, and the accumulation of inflammatory cells in the lung. In conclusion, the data suggest that atelectasis induced by thoracotomy causes lung injury during mechanical ventilation in endotoxemic rats through iNOS expression

Designing and Implementing a Land-Grant Faculty-to-Student Mentoring Program: Addressing Shortcomings in Academic Mentoring

Mentoring programs at universities have become common because of the perceived benefit to student persistence and retention. Evaluation of the effectiveness of these programs has not kept pace, primarily due to the following three problematic issues: (1) lack of theoretical guidance, (2) lack of an operational definition of mentoring, and (3) lack of methodological rigor. This article describes the evolution of a regional Faculty-to-Student Mentoring program into a statewide program, and how it addressed each of these three problematic issues. Using logic modeling, the intimate connections between theory, operational definitions, and sound methodology are made explicit, thereby addressing many of the shortcomings of previous mentoring programs. By addressing these shortcomings, universities can better evaluate if mentoring programs should be part of the overall strategic plan to help students be successful