Upcoming development opportunities for newer faculty at Ohio University

The Office of the Provost invites faculty who have been at Ohio University for five years or less to participate in two cohort-based development and support opportunities specifically for newer faculty. 

Building Bobcats: New-to-OU Community Learning Program

The Building Bobcats: New-to-OU Community Learning Program is a faculty-led experience designed to help newer faculty build meaningful connections across the OHIO and Athens communities.

The Building Bobcats program provides a semester of experiences helping faculty to:

• Build meaningful relationships across campus 
• Explore the Athens community and Appalachian Ohio
• Learn from local and university leaders

For fall 2026, sessions will be held in-person on select Tuesdays from 1-2:20 p.m. in Alden Library, Room 319.

• You can find additional program information here.

The program kicks off with a welcome session on Tuesday, Sept. 8. Participants are asked to register here before the first session.

Building Bobcats is led by Dr. Rebecca Dingus, O’Bleness Professor of Marketing (dingusr@ohio.edu), and Kristin Hepworth, Muck Assistant Professor of Instruction in Accounting (hepworthk@ohio.edu).

Faculty Mentoring Program 

The Faculty Mentoring Program (FMP) is designed to help tenure track, instructional and clinical faculty from varied backgrounds acclimate to OHIO, develop mentoring networks and access professional support.

The program will be offered in-person on the Athens campus of Ohio University. Participants will gather one Wednesday per month from 4:15-5:30 p.m. in the Patton Hall Demonstration Kitchen, Room 120. 

• You can find more information here.

The deadline to sign up for the 2026 – 2027 FMP program is Friday, Sept. 11, at 5 p.m.

The 2026–2027 program will be led by Dr. Dwan Robinson, professor of educational studies, and Dr. Uzoma Miller, associate professor of instruction, Department of African American Studies, and affiliate faculty in Department of History and the School of International Studies and Languages.