Dear Faculty Relations -听How can I meet other faculty across campus? I feel alone sometimes and would like to engage with other faculty outside my unit, but I'm not sure how. Can you help? - Alone in Atlas听
Thank you for writing, Alone in Atlas -听The same feelings of isolation and loneliness that confront students when they arrive on a campus this large happen to faculty members, too. This is a common experience, and it can be challenging to know how to overcome the silos that our fields, departments, and teaching demands create. 听
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Luckily, the Office of Faculty Affairs (OFA) has many events and programs designed to help faculty across campus connect with one another and foster a sense of community! Faculty SPACE events are a once-a-month, non-agenda time simply to say "hello," have casual conversations and build friendships. This month, there is a happy hour on , 4:30-6 at the Fiske Planetarium! OFA is also hosting a social hour for women+ faculty tomorrow, , 10:30-11:30, which is another fantastic way for women (including non-binary and genderqueer) faculty to connect. International faculty can also feel that sense of isolation, and OFA also sponsors events for international faculty looking for support and community. The first event of the year is an afternoon social for international faculty on October 10, 3-4. Finally, there are events just for teaching and clinical faculty, including a community of practice on , 4-5. 听
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We can all feel lonely at times as faculty. But when we find spaces on campus where we can foster a genuine sense of caring, we can change that culture of isolation on campus. We can share stories about our own experiences that can also help others going through similar journeys, or we can thoughtfully listen so that people feel authentically cared for. It's all about finding a positive and productive environment on campus, for faculty as well as students. Know that you aren't alone!听听
Written by Sam Boyd, Ph.D., Faculty Fellow for Faculty SPACE, Office of Faculty Affairs; Associate Professor, Religious Studies and Program in Jewish Studies, University of Colorado Boulder, October 2023听