Chapter 10: The ABCs of Faculty Wellbeing

Investments in faculty development have been shown to lead to robust improvements in research innovation, faculty quality of life, and discussion and dialogue across disciplines. Traditional faculty development usually takes a university-centered approach, focusing on one-size-fits-all and large-group structures such as webinars and workshops. This chapter suggests that attending to faculty wellbeing might be improved through a coaching program for individual faculty that meets the needs of faculty where they are and helps them to make progress in their work, including tailoring supports to specific university cultures as well as creating a space for encouraging cohort coaching in order to provide support across faculty. This chapter introduces processes needed for the development of one’s academic identity – agency, belonging, and competencies (ABC). This ABC framework is derived from empirical research examining the developmental processes of becoming a change agent and serves as the foundation for achieving wellbeing and fulfillment for a faculty member.