Mentoring graduate students and postdoctoral fellows is a privilege, is an important part of our role as PIs, and takes ongoing training to learn the best ways to mentor trainees who have many different styles of work. The School of Medicine Basic Sciences offers opportunities for faculty to participate in workshops on various topics throughout the year.
CIMER Workshops
The Center for the Improvement of Mentored Experience in Research (CIMER) provides materials for facilitated discussions regarding best practices in mentoring. In these sessions, you will “learn how to improve these relationships at all career stages and promote cultural change that values excellence in research mentoring as a critical aspect of diversifying the research workforce”. More information about CIMER can be found here.
Five of our faculty members have undergone training with CIMER to be “Entering Mentoring” facilitators. Past and future CIMER training session are listed below. Registration is required. Please contact Tracy O’Brien (tracy.obrien.1@vanderbilt.edu) if you have any questions or trouble registering.
CIMER Workshop Instructors
Lourdes Estrada, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Biochemistry
Maureen Gannon, Ph.D.
Professor of Medicine
Associate Dean for Faculty Development
Kathleen Gould, Ph.D.
Louise B. McGavock Professor
Department of Cell and Developmental Biology
Michelle Southard-Smith
Professor of Medicine
Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Digna Velez-Edwards, Ph.D.
Professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology
Todd Edwards, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Associate Director Vanderbilt Genetics Institute Division of Epidemiology, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt Genetics Institute, Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Henrique Serezani, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine, Infectious Disease
Associate Professor of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology
Associate Professor of Pharmacology
Mentoring Statement Workshops
As a part of the new expectations for NIGMS training grants, faculty are required to include a mentoring/diversity statement. We have developed a number of individual sessions to discuss these issues and write individual statements as a part of the overall activity. Included in the 90-minute session is a discussion on 5 different areas of mentoring and an opportunity to write your Mentor Statement for the Personal Statement part of your Biosketch to be used for training grant applications.
Mentoring Statement Workshop Events
Aligning Expectations
When: 1:00 - 3:00 p.m., Tuesday, August 20, 2024
Where: U-1202 MRB III
Facilitators: Todd Edwards and Lourdes Estrada
Register for this workshop.
Maintaining Effective Communication
When: 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m., Tuesday, September 3, 2024
Where: U-1202 MRB III
Facilitators: Maureen Gannon and Henrique Serezani
Register for this workshop.
Fostering Independence
When: 1:00 - 3:00 p.m., Monday, November 11, 2024
Where: U-1202 MRB III
Facilitators: Digna Velez-Edwards and Michelle Southard-Smith
Register for this workshop