Bringing it all together Agenda

Session Outcomes:

• To reflect on your pod experience together with your group over the past year
• To brainstorm future directions or initiatives for departmental work pertaining to faculty affairs, faculty development, wellness, and diversity, equity and inclusion
• To grow relationships with the individuals that make up this group

This meeting marks our 6^th and final Incubator Pod session.  This provides a good opportunity for reflection. 

To review, your group has completed the following curriculum over the past year:

• Session 1:  Wellness/Wellbeing
• Session 2: Goals and Legacy
• Session 3: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)
• Session 4: Learning from Failures
• Session 5: Outside Activities

We propose that you use today’s time together to reflect on your experience as a group and to brainstorm/incubate a new idea aimed to further the connectedness and/or missions of the department.  This idea can be inspired by any of the themes discussed in prior sessions, although it doesn’t have to be, and is meant to be a fun process to put your great ideas down on paper and potentially into action.  We request that you take notes and contribute your best idea/s to your Faculty Affairs/DEI team.

Choose one group member to facilitate today’s discussion (preferably someone who did not lead a previous session).  Choose another group member to serve as a timekeeper, to make sure that everyone has an opportunity to share/contribute during the session.  Choose a third group member to take notes on ideas that develop during the group brainstorm activity. 

10 minutes:                
Icebreaker.  Share one insight that you gained from participating in the Incubator Pod project that you believe will have beneficial consequences beyond this experience.

45 minutes:                
Group brainstorm.  As mentioned above, please take this time to brainstorm, or generate, new ideas to further professional development and/or DEI efforts within the department.  Feel free to take this exploration in any promising direction your group sees fit and take notes on the flow of ideas to share them with your Faculty Affairs/DEI team. Here are some ideas to get your conversation started:

• Are there any topics that were discussed in your Pod sessions that you feel warrant further development or exploration?
• Are there topics that were NOT included in the Pod curriculum that you feel would be helpful to explore further?
• Do you have any ideas on how to further foster relationships and collaborations within our department?
• What do you feel are the biggest unmet needs in our department and what ideas do you have that might address these needs?

Final 5 minutes:         
Wrap up.  Offer gratitude to the group for coming together and sharing their time and stories over the past year. 

Please send your ideas to Michelle Lifto (cc Anne Suskind) via email.  Your Academic Affairs/DEI Team is excited to hear and learn from you and will use your input to plan future programs/initiatives for the department.