Mentoring Teams for Excellence

Sam Houston State University (SHSU) values effective teaching and faculty engagement in scholarly activity. Mentoring Teams for Excellence (MTE) provides formal and informal mentoring to aid untenured faculty in the areas of teaching, research and scholarship, and service. The specific aims for MTE are as follows:  

  1. Educate faculty regarding the College of Health Sciences (COHS) policies in academic affairs
  2. Educate faculty about annual faculty evaluation system (FES) and the tenure and promotion process
  3. Create community and collegiality across COHS
  4. Provide resources and support for establishing a research agenda
  5. Improve faculty retention and career advancement

MTE Personnel

Mentoring teams are formed across the three departments and one school in the COHS, with approximately four mentees and two mentors (numbers will vary by faculty needs and academic year) per team. These teams allow for mentees to have more than one senior faculty mentor and encourage peer mentoring across disciplines. This approach ensures that faculty receive information from an array of colleagues that vary in their approaches to teaching, service, and scholarly work. Mentoring teams also foster collaboration and multiple perspectives, respect for others’ areas of expertise, and a collegial working environment. Team members are encouraged to reach out to one another between meetings as needed.

Mentees will be untenured faculty (e.g., tenure-track faculty, lecturers, clinical assistant professors) with or without experience at SHSU.

  • Benefits of being a mentee:
    • Improved confidence and self-awareness
    • Expand professional and personal networks
    • Achievement of goals and objectives
    • Increased institutional knowledge
    • Develop and enhance job-specific skillsets
  • Service credit will be awarded to mentees for active participation in the MTE program

Mentors will be senior faculty (e.g., professors, associate professors, clinical professors), and serve as facilitators within the group.

  • Benefits of being a mentor
    • New relationships with new colleagues
    • New knowledge of research opportunities and interprofessional educational opportunities
    • The ability to shape and grow COHS and your department
    • A sense of purpose through training the next generation of academic leadership
  • All mentors need to complete online mentor training.
  • Service credit will be awarded to mentors for active participation in the MTE program

MTE Meetings

Team meetings will have a pre-determined topic for discussion or a scheduled workshop. in Topics will center on specific areas needed for promotion and tenure. Academic affairs policies, and SHSU culture will be threaded throughout all meetings, as appropriate.


For questions about this program, please contact Dr. Jennifer Bunn (jab229@shsu.edu), Dr. Emily Roper (ear007@shsu.edu) or Dr. Ryan Zapalac (rkz001@shsu.edu).