Teaching and Learning Lab:
Faculty Development and Mentoring

Directed by the Dean of Faculty, and staffed by our SEI and Teaching and Learning Lab Fellows, the Teaching and Learning Lab is committed to supporting the pedagogical, curricular, and professional development of all our faculty.  To that end, we offer:

  • confidential one-on-one consultations on any aspect of pedagogical, curricular, or professional development.  Please contact Alice Geoffrey (ageoffre@risd.edu) to schedule a consultation with the Associate Provost for Social Equity and Inclusion, the Dean of Faculty, or one of our Fellows.
  • classroom observations. Please contact Alice Geoffrey (ageoffre@risd.edu) to schedule a classroom observation with the Dean of Faculty.

Faculty Development Resources

Internal Funding


Internal funding snapshot and deadlines
Internal Funding Proposals: brief Guidelines

Guidelines for Professional Development Documentation/Correspondence

Teaching Philosophy:


Teaching Philosophy: brief guidelines and best practices

For a full range of excellent resources related to writing a teaching philosophy statement please see the following page on the University of Michigan’s Center for Research on Learning and Teaching website: The Teaching Philosophy and Statement.

Some excellent articles on writing a teaching philosophy from the Chronicle of Higher Education:

Sample Teaching Philosophies (Frazier Award Winners) – UNDER DEVELOPMENT

Sabbatical Reports:


Sabbatical Reports: Suggested Best Practices

Evaluation and Review

Department Head and Dean: Roles, Responsibilities, and Guidelines for the Evaluation Process

Dossier Preparation

Teaching Observation and Feedback form for Department Heads and Deans


Quick Tips for Dossier Preparation

Guidelines for requesting external reference letters (for faculty, Department Heads, and Deans)