Mentoring Our Own (MOO)
Program in Region VI
 

Who Should Participate?

The Mentoring Our Own (MOO) program is open to anyone who would like to enhance their leadership skills within the realm of Research Administration (mentees), as well as those who wish to share their experience and leadership skills with others (mentors). The goal of the program is to provide mentees with the knowledge and confidence they need to implement change within their own system and to actively contribute to growth across the field of Research Administration. Mentees and mentors should be active members of NCURA at the time of application and throughout the cohort year.
 
Mentees

Mentees are typically early in their career in RA (1-5 years), but participants might also include those who wish to develop their leaderships skills and vision. Most importantly, participants are those who wish to promote positive practice, growth, and change, wherever they are located within an organization.
 
Mentors

Mentors are typically those who have five or more years of experience in Research Administration and wish to take an active role in mentoring others to succeed in the field. Mentors understand the importance of sharing their own knowledge and experiences to help others advance and become tomorrow’s leaders.
 
How Does the Program Work?

The program pairs mentors and mentees based on areas of common interest and expertise. It involves a commitment of one year, during which the mentor guides the mentee through a course of leadership development skills.

A monthly call between a mentor and mentee allows the pair to focus on the mentee's specific learning needs. There are also large group calls once a month between September and April focused on leadership development topics. Brene’ Brown’s Daring to Lead book provides the basis for early discussions. Later discussions focus on developing a capstone project. The mentee selects a capstone project that demonstrates what he/she has learned through the program and works on the project with guidance from the mentor, as needed. The project can be a new process that will be proposed and/or implemented at his/her institution, a training presentation at his/her institution for peers and/or constituents, or any other creative project that demonstrates leadership skills. Ideally, the mentee would also attend the NCURA Region IV regional meeting and present a concurrent, spark, or poster session on his/her project (March-April).