Pilot Mentorship Program Launched

ANNOUNCING EPSCoR’S NEW PILOT MENTORSHIP PROGRAM

Oklahoma NSF EPSCoR is accepting applications for a pilot mentorship program to launch beginning January 2024 and conclude with an in-person gathering on May 3, 2024. There will be bi-weekly Zoom meetings On Fridays over the lunch hour (12:00 – 1:00 p.m.) with different technical and professional development topics related to water research and education. These meetings will commence on January 19, 2024. All participants will be assigned a role as either mentor or mentee and paired or matched into small groups. On alternating weeks, mentor and mentee pairs/groups will meet to complete follow-up activities related to the previous week’s meeting topic and complete an online update form. The pilot program is limited to individuals at any career stage interested in or engaged in water-related research. We seek participants at the mentee level (e.g., students who have not been involved in research previously) and mentor level (e.g., students, postdocs, or faculty engaged in research projects at any level in Oklahoma). Participants must be Oklahoma residents for the duration of the program (January – May 2024).

People interested in participating (as a mentee or a mentor) should complete the online application (links below) by December 19th. In December, applications will be reviewed with formal acceptances. Pairings will be released by the end of the month. This pilot program is limited in the total number of participants, but those not selected for the pilot program will have priority for involvement in subsequent offerings. As space is limited, participants are expected to commit to completing the entire program (1 semester long, 1-2h/wk virtual activities, and a half-day in-person event in May). Participation is voluntary, but any participant who completes all program activities will be eligible for program-sponsored scholarships.

Applications for Spring 2024 are now closed. 

If you have any questions about this pilot program, you may reach out to program coordinators Mary Foltz (mary.foltz@okstate.edu), Jaime Schussler (jaime.schussler@okstate.edu), or Valerie Phillips (vphillips@okepscor.org). We look forward to reviewing applications and beginning this pilot mentorship program for Oklahoma in January 2024!