Professional Development on a Shoestring

Helpful Hints to Jump-starting Your Program on a Shoestring Budget

Hints for the Administration and Funding of Professional Development
(or Who will run the office for no pay?)

  1. Give the responsibility to the Faculty Association.
  2. Ask for a volunteer faculty member.
  3. Ask for a volunteer faculty committee.
  4. Provide release time (one course or more) to a faculty or staff member.
  5. Provide a stipend to a faculty or staff member.
  6. Assign the responsibility to senior administrators on a rotating basis.
  7. Hold a fundraiser or write a grant proposal.

Hints for Providing the Workshops and Getting the Trainers
(or Who will teach the workshops and what will they be about?)

  1. Inventory faculty, staff and community for their expertise to “share” with your faculty members
  2. Encourage trainers to “volunteer” by providing stipends or free lunch on a regular basis  
  3. Create a “club” and provide recognition for the trainers
  4. Use the North Carolina Network for Excellence in Teaching’s (NC-NET) online array of free resources
  5. Get experts (free) from other colleges—either share or trade
  6. Use free podcasts and webinars from trusted, high-quality sources
  7. Start with a core list of topics and ask faculty to vote on a priority list
  8. Start with two workshops led by local trainers with existing expertise (see #1 above)
  9. Encourage your faculty members to use the Professional Development Planning Tool
  10. Provide a small number of workshops the first year and expand each subsequent year

Communications Channels
(or How will the faculty know what’s going on?)

  1. Develop a website, listserv, or blog for professional development activities
  2. Create an online newsletter or add a section to an existing college publication
  3. Inform faculty at collegewide meetings or through the president's address to faculty and staff
  4. Place reminder notes or flyers in faculty mailboxes
  5. Talk it up at meetings—have deans and chairs do the same