Faculty Formation at Bellarmine University

“A teacher's vocational vitality, or capacity to be vital, present, and deeply connected to his or her students, is not a fixed, indelible condition, but a state that ebbs and flows with the context and challenges of the teaching life. In light of this, an emerging form of professional development programming explicitly devoted to nourishing the inner life or core dimensions of teachers is increasingly important for today's educators.” – Sam Intrator and Robert Kunzman (2006)

We have witnessed how effective professional development can be when it offers time and space for individual reflection and an invitation to thoughtful conversation in community.  We have discovered that formation work renews and sustains us and that it enriches our campus environment in the way we connect with our colleagues and our students.

As a result of generous funding from the C.E.& S Foundation and the Jones Family, Bellarmine University offered the Courage To Teach experience from 1998 through 2005.  In this program based on the work of Parker Palmer, faculty and staff participants explored “the heart of teaching” in seasonal off-campus retreats.  In individual, small, and large group settings, participants were challenged to reflect and listen on the deepest levels, and invited to share personal and professional insights.  Along the way, they carefully, intentionally, and sometimes courageously, fashioned a respectful and supportive community that fostered renewal and reconnection. 

Although the grant ended in 2005, our belief in formation work has not.  Bellarmine University remains committed to professional development activities that strengthen respectful connection with colleagues and help us renew personal and professional passion, commitment, and energy.  The Academic Affairs office, the Faculty Development Center, the Faculty Development Committee, and many alumni of the Courage to Teach program are working together to plan a program that builds on our rich history and offers meaningful faculty development opportunities.