Aspiring Leaders Academy

The Aspiring Leaders Academy is designed for mid-career faculty interested in leadership opportunities who have not yet served in a major leadership position. Participants will receive structured counsel from academic leadership experts.

Participants will learn about core leadership principles and practices through a structured curriculum, and then apply those principles to a leadership project under the guidance of a mentor. Throughout the experience, participants will interact with leaders from across the UT campus, as well as external experts, to develop their personal leadership style and adopt best practices for building and sustaining successful teams. The objectives of this program are to:

  • Reinforce the use of best practices in academic leadership across the UT campus.
  • Create a community in which experts can share their wisdom with aspiring leaders.
  • Provide meaningful mentorship relationships for aspiring leaders.
  • Support faculty participants in designing an action plan for a leadership project.
  • Establish a community of aspiring leaders who can support and learn from each other.
  • Enhance UT’s reputation as a global research university and a great place to work, grow, and develop.

Participants will be paired with existing university leaders to work together on new or existing initiatives. For example, a previous participant developed a proposal to clarify the professional-track faculty promotion process, while another participant worked towards transforming cancer research through faculty recruitment initiatives.

Through the program, participants will also develop a cohort of peers, who are at a similar career stage and can advise one another during their leadership project and in the future as they take on new leadership roles.

Applicants must be:

  • Tenured associate or full professors, or
  • Professional-track faculty who meet the following criteria:
    • Appointed at UT for at least six academic years with no gap in service of longer than three consecutive academic years;
    • Have a benefits-eligible appointment at UT during the AY 2024–25;
    • Greater than or equal to 50% FTE in each of the fall and spring semesters of the AY 2024–25.

Any eligible faculty member may nominate themselves to be considered for selection to the cohort.

Up to 15 faculty will be selected for participation in AY 2024–25.

Fellows will be selected by a committee of university leaders based on their ability to demonstrate the following in their application materials:

  • Individual has yet to hold a major leadership position.
  • Individual is a recognized leader in their discipline, with a strong record of publication, creative projects, or teaching innovation (based on the standards for their discipline and faculty appointment).
  • Collaborative mindset and ability to work well in a team environment.
  • An articulated vision for their future leadership goals and impact in the communities with which they affiliate and/or the university at large.
  • Willingness to commit to in-person participation in the intensive workshop series for the duration of AY 2024-25.
  • Commitment to advance a leadership project in Spring ’25 (with the option of continuing the project through Summer ’25).

Applications consist of text-box entries and PDF uploads submitted through our application portal. Submit the following materials no later than 5 p.m. on Monday, June 10, 2024:

  1. Please submit the following in the listed order and as a single PDF or Word document:
    • A half-page statement summarizing the applicant’s leadership experiences and accomplishments to date.
    • A half-page statement articulating the applicant’s leadership goals. Please describe to what types of academic leadership the applicant aspires.
    • A one-page statement describing potential leadership projects in which the applicant would like to participate. Applicants do not need to have a specific leadership project lined up in advance of the application or the program start. During the program, we will help match applicants with potential project opportunities. To help with the matching process, please articulate what areas of leadership the applicant is most interested in working. Some leadership areas might be promoting student success, promoting faculty research, scholarship, or creative activities, or pursuing community-engaged leadership projects. The applicant is also welcome to discuss leadership areas beyond these examples. The applicant might also discuss at which level they are most interested in pursuing leadership opportunities, e.g., in their department, in their college, across the university, or in a professional society. Articulating the applicant’s areas of interest will help us understand their overarching goals and how they might be supported and advanced through this program.
    • The applicant’s current Curriculum Vitae (no specific format required).
  2. Please enter this into the online portal:
    • Does the applicant require any accommodation (Y/N)?
Date Event
August 23 Kickoff event
August 30 Session 1
September 13 Session 2
September 27 Session 3
October 11 Session 4
October 25 Session 5
November 8 Session 6
November 22 Session 7
December 6 Session 8

 

Date Event
January 17 Session 9
January 31 Session 10
February 14 Session 11
February 28 Session 12
March 14 Session 13
March 28 Session 14
April 11 Closing Reception

 

Apply Here

Applications are currently closed.

Past Participants

List of previous faculty fellows and their associated departments.

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