Empower Through Inclusivity: Developing Pathways to Success

As part of an NSF ADVANCE Adaptation award, a STEM university in the Midwest established new opportunities for faculty communication in the form of an Advocates and Allies program and facilitated peer mentor circles. These programs were designed to empower faculty to communicate with one another, and with the administration, to facilitate policy and procedure changes related to faculty development as well as the promotion and tenure process. Due to the timeline of promotion and tenure, any long-term impacts on retention and campus climate will take time to come to fruition. Here, we present an overview of these programs, successes and challenges, and how these programs were integrated into the main functions of the university for continued support and program sustainability after the ADVANCE funding period.