How do faculty and staff become more effective mentors to their research trainees? One way is by participating in our Advancing Research Mentoring Practice (ARMP) training, which uses the evidence-based Entering Mentoring curriculum.
Facilitators like Beth Meyerand make these trainings possible. All facilitators are experienced mentors who have completed our Entering Mentoring Facilitator Training—and each person brings a unique perspective to the role. We asked Dr. Meyerand about her background and experience as an ARMP facilitator.
Tell us about your role and the work you do at UW–Madison.
I am a professor in the Departments of Medical Physics in the School of Medicine and Public Health and Biomedical Engineering in the College of Engineering. I am also the Vice Provost for Faculty and Staff Affairs. In broad strokes, my Vice Provost role involves doing all I can to help faculty and staff be successful in their careers.
Could you tell us a little about yourself?
I am a native of Rhode Island, and I love being on the water—sailing, swimming, fishing, etc. I am also a veteran of the United States Coast Guard, having served both in the enlisted ranks and as an officer. I have two kids, one of whom just finished his first year at UW–Madison. He had a fantastic experience as a music and community and nonprofit leadership double major. My youngest son just finished his junior year in high school, so we’re in the process of investigating colleges. My husband and I also share our house with two Shetland sheepdogs.
How long have you been facilitating ARMP?
I began my role as a master facilitator in 2014. I found out about the program via a colleague in the Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, Chris Pfund, who had recently developed the Entering Mentoring curriculum with Janet Branchaw and Jo Handelsman. Since that time, I have facilitated sessions for faculty, postdocs, and graduate students. I try to facilitate 3–4 sessions a year.
Tell us about your mentoring successes or a memorable mentoring experience.
I think my most fulfilling mentoring experiences have involved empowering graduate students both to be more effective mentors to undergraduates in their labs and to “mentor up,” creating more effective mentoring relationships with their PIs. I think that a very unique and powerful aspect of ARMP is that it teaches skills that can be bidirectional.
How do you apply the skills and knowledge from ARMP into your mentoring practice?
The skills I learned around aligning expectations and maintaining effective communication are ones I use every day, both in my professional roles and my private life. They are incredibly valuable life skills!
What do you enjoy most about facilitating ARMP?
It is incredibly gratifying to hear from participants that what they learned in ARMP has made a tremendously positive impact in how they mentor—that the concepts they learned were totally new to them and are now indispensable.
What do you consider to be the biggest benefits of participating in ARMP?
I learn something valuable to improve my own mentoring every time I facilitate a class. The conversations around the room are thoughtful and thought-provoking. I am very grateful for the participants who are willing to share their ideas, questions and experiences.
Learn more about ARMP and how you can get involved.