Faculty TipSheets
Faculty Affairs in the Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor offers this series of TipSheets to disseminate helpful tips for teaching, service, and managing work-life balance. Have an idea for a TipSheet topic? Email your suggestion to executivevcoffice@unl.edu.
How to be a Better Negotiator
Do not be afraid of negotiation
Negotiation is a problem-solving exercise. Before starting, ask yourself: What do I want? What do I think the other party wants? Do I or the other party have any leverage? What are the circumstances surrounding the negotiation?
Leading and Teaching with Compassion
Help your students feel supported
Compassion is understood to mean active sympathy or a willingness to bear the pain of others without becoming engulfed or overwhelmed with the pain or suffering.
Instructional Continuity
Planning for the unexpected
While there are times during inclement weather that it may be unsafe to come to campus, the university aims to continue functioning whenever possible.
Preventing Workplace Bullying
Taking a strong position against workplace bullying
"Bullying" is characterized as negative, unwelcome behavior that is repeated and/or severe enough that a reasonable person would find it marked by intolerance, hostility, harassment, and/or intimidation.
How to be a Successful Mentor
Create a successful mentoring relationship
As faculty, we now mentor students, junior peers, and even those who are in equal rank. Being a mentor is a great responsibility. It can take a lot of time and effort on your part to do it well.
How to be a Successful Mentee
Get the guidance, support, advocacy, and expertise you need
Being mentored as a student is very different from being mentored by a colleague, especially when that colleague may vote on your tenure or promotion. We want to forge the best relationship possible.
Navigating Difficult Conversations
Engage in active listening and show that you care
Healthy work and learning environments are created when people are respectful and communicate that they care about each other. However, there are times when people are not respectful, kind, nor considerate and it is during these times that navigating difficult conversations can be tricky.
Remote Working
Lessons Learned from the Pandemic
As we have become adept at using Zoom, Microsoft Teams, WebEx, and other online platforms, these technologies have re-structured our workday, making managing the logistics of remote working tricky. Here are some tips gleaned from a year of remote working to carry forward into the future.
External Awards and Recognition
Set and keep your career on an award trajectory
Faculty honorific awards amplify the visibility and recognition of your scholarly activity, increase networking and collaboration opportunities, and enhance the national and international profile of your department, college, and the entire university.
Creating Gender-inclusive Educational Environments
Every person and every interaction matters
Using chosen names and pronouns is an important way to demonstrate awareness and acceptance of all students, particularly transgender and gender diverse students. As a leader in classrooms and labs, faculty have the responsibility and the opportunity to create a more inclusive environment.
Thriving and Surviving Through the Pandemic
Leaning into change
Many faculty have been working from home in some capacity since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Using extended time spent indoors as an opportunity to recharge, develop new courses, and focus on research and writing can help provide a sense of purpose, productivity, and personal growth.
Encouraging Academic Integrity
Promoting honesty in the classroom
If students cheat in their educational experiences, they cheat themselves, but they also diminish our university’s reputation. Academic integrity gives employers and the community confidence in student knowledge and skills. Honest students are honest citizens.
Academic Misconduct
What to do if you Suspect a Student has Engaged in Academic Dishonesty
Despite the hope that all students demonstrate academic integrity, one of the most challenging classroom issues is academic dishonesty. Instructors are often put in the difficult position of trying to figure out what happened and how best to proceed.
Facilitating Safe and Civil Discourse
Balancing academic freedom with safe and civil behavior on our campus
Teaching and learning are our most important academic endeavors, and in a climate where faculty are reporting unprecedented levels of incivility in their classrooms, we must balance academic freedom with safe and civil behavior on our campus.
Updated December 2020
Resilience
Learn how to bounce back from adversity
Resilient people seem to roll with the punches and recover quickly from setbacks and disappointments. We are living in turbulent times and the stress associated with our jobs often leaves us feeling less than resilient.
Inclusive Meetings
Shared leadership is a mutual responsibility
We have all been in meetings where someone monopolizes the discussion, someone is brusque and argumentative, or someone has great ideas but does not speak up. Facilitating and managing inclusive meetings takes skill and practice.
Student Mental Health and Resources
How to support students' mental health
Stress, depression, anxiety, alcohol abuse, eating disorders, and other mental health challenges affect at least 1 in 5 college students. Faculty can be an important source of support for UNL students.
Updated April 2021
Recruiting Diverse Faculty
Considerations to keep in mind when creating diverse and supportive communities
Diverse perspectives within a field of study support and maintain stronger and richer scholarship and research. It is crucial that we prioritize diversity and inclusion in all our searches.
Teaching Large Classes
Tools for active engagement
Teaching large classes can be challenging. Here are some tips for teaching and managing these classes.
Updated December 2020