A colleague advisor is selected to inform, advise, and assist the tenure track faculty member with his or her career development in the School of Education. This assistance may properly take many forms, depending on the relationship that is established. Examples include advice and guidance concerning the development of an academic career (dealing with journals, editors, publishing companies, program chairs, etc.), cooperative research projects, peer mentoring and review of teaching, assistance with balance between the many demands placed on faculty, and the like. The colleague advisor is expected to help the faculty member achieve the potential envisioned when he or she was hired and to insure that the faculty member is able to demonstrate the contributions he or she makes to the School's mission. The colleague advisor may also be called upon to help protect the faculty member from demands not consistent with his or her professional development.

The faculty member is expected to select a colleague advisor during his or her first year of service with the School of Education. He or she should consult with the department chair about the role of the colleague advisor, possible individuals available, and what the colleague advisor might be able to contribute to the development of that faculty member. Ideally, the colleague advisor should be someone with research interests compatible with those of the faculty member, an experienced full professor, and located on the same campus as the faculty member. In some cases, the faculty member may chose two colleague advisors in order to maximize these qualities. The faculty member may change advisors as his or her interests and concerns change. The department chair will contact the faculty member at least once a year to assess the mentoring relationship.

To insure that the mentoring relationship is and remains an active and constructive one, the colleague advisor should take the opportunity to meet with the faculty member at least once each semester to discuss his or her professional development and progress in all key areas. In turn, the faculty member should provide the colleague advisor with a copy of his or her annual Faculty Summary Report when ready. Alternatively, the faculty member may request that the department chair provide the colleague with a copy of the report.

On the basis of this report and informal discussions with the faculty member, the colleague advisor is expected annually to provide the faculty member with written commentary on his or her accomplishments, with particular attention to progress toward promotion and tenure and to building a sound professional career. However, such comments are for the private benefit of the person being mentored and should NOT be shared with the Dean's Office. Of course, the faculty member may choose to include these commentaries in the dossier he or she prepares for the third year review and for the tenure review. The colleague advisor will receive an invitation, the same as all other School faculty, to write a colleague letter on behalf of the faculty member on those occasions, but will not be required to do so and will not be identified as a colleague advisory by the Dean's Office when invited to write such a letter.