The Office of Faculty Development (“OFD”) supports faculty in their roles as scholars, teachers, and members of the University and wider community. Its mission is to assist new and underrepresented faculty develop and advance their careers, particularly as they work toward tenure and promotion, while supporting activities that showcase the experience and expertise of faculty at every career stage – early, mid-career, and senior.

Since its inception in 2006, the Office of Faculty Development has developed several campus-wide programs and services that bring together faculty across career stages and disciplines to address key career competencies. These programs include: new faculty orientation, faculty writing programs, the Faculty Writing place (co-sponsored with the UMass Amherst Libraries), preparing for tenure seminars, and time management programs.  Frequent partners and co-sponsors of the OFD’s programs include the Office of the Provost, the UMass Amherst Libraries, the Center for Teaching, and the Offices of the Vice Provost for Research.

In 2007, the OFD established two new faculty grant programs and a Five Colleges professional network to encourage the development of projects and resources that support early career and underrepresented faculty through mentoring. These programs are part of UMass Amherst’s ambitious new Mellon Mutual Mentoring Initiative, which was funded by a three-year, $400,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Please see the Program Guide for additional information and application materials.