Teaching Professors Network - Community of Practice

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Purpose and Goals of TPN CoP

Our Community of Practice brings together tenured and tenure track teaching-focused faculty from across disciplines to discuss career advancement, share innovative pedagogical strategies, discuss unique career milestones, and collaborate on undergraduate education initiatives. Our goals include:

• Professional Advocacy: Support for navigating the specialized review, merit, and promotion processes unique to the Teaching Professor series at UCSB.
• Peer Mentorship: Connecting seasoned educators with newer faculty to foster a supportive teaching culture on campus.
• Pedagogical sharing: Creating a dedicated space to discuss evidence-based teaching and pedagogical innovations.

Leadership

The TPN is a faculty-led group with an executive committee of dedicated Teaching Professors.

A Message from the New Leadership Board 

Welcome to a new chapter for the UCSB Teaching Professors Network.

As the incoming leadership board, we are excited to build upon the strong community that Teaching Professors have created at UCSB. Teaching Professors play essential roles as educators, scholars, mentors, innovators, and campus leaders. Our goal is to ensure that members of our community have opportunities to connect with one another, share their expertise, receive support throughout their careers, and contribute collectively to the future of undergraduate education at UCSB.

During the coming year, we hope to strengthen peer mentorship, provide meaningful guidance related to merit and promotion, highlight the accomplishments of Teaching Professors, support collaborative projects, and advocate for the needs and contributions of our series.

We invite all UCSB Teaching Professors to participate, propose ideas, and help shape the direction of the network. We look forward to learning from one another and working together.

—The UCSB Teaching Professors Network Leadership Board

News & Events

Featured Event

2026 UC Teaching Professor Network Conference

The 2026 UC STEM Teaching Professor Network Conference will be held at UC Riverside on June 26–27, 2026. The two-day conference will include a keynote address, research presentations, posters, panels, workshops, and opportunities for discussion and collaboration among Teaching Professors from across the UC system.

Conference website:
2026 UC STEM TPN Conference at UC Riverside

UC Teaching Professor Network website:
The UC Teaching Professor Network

Upcoming UCSB Events 

TPN community meetings
Workshops and professional-development sessions
Informal social gatherings
Teaching presentations
New Teaching Professor welcome events
Systemwide UC TPN opportunities

If you have an event you would like to promote, please send an email to [ ]

News and Announcements 

Teaching Professor awards and recognitions
Promotions and career milestones
New Teaching Professor appointments
Calls for project participation
Funding opportunities
Publications and major accomplishments by members
Updates on campus or UC-wide policies

If you have news you would like to share with the network, please send an email to [ ]

Meetings

Upcoming TPN Community Meetings

Dates and locations: TBD
Date and time
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Meeting theme
Agenda
Registration or RSVP information
Accessibility information

Past Meetings 

Fall Quarter Meeting — Date
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[Agenda] | [Slides] | [Meeting Summary]

Winter Quarter Meeting — Date
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[Agenda] | [Slides] | [Meeting Summary]

Spring Quarter Meeting — Date
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[Agenda] | [Slides] | [Meeting Summary]

Projects

Current Projects

• Project title
• Purpose
• Project leaders
• Participating members
• Current activities
• Expected outcomes
• Opportunities to participate
• Related resources or products

Possible initial project categories include:

Peer Mentoring
Developing mentorship opportunities for new and recently appointed Teaching Professors and faculty preparing for major career milestones.

Merit and Promotion Resources
Creating guidance, examples, workshops, and peer-support structures for merit reviews, promotion to Associate Teaching Professor, and advancement to Full Teaching Professor.

Teaching and Mentoring Excellence
Highlighting effective teaching practices, faculty mentoring, curricular innovation, and evidence-based approaches to undergraduate education.

Communications and Advocacy
Increasing campus awareness of the responsibilities, accomplishments, and institutional contributions of Teaching Professors.

Teaching Professor Accomplishments
Creating a mechanism to document and celebrate publications, awards, leadership roles, educational innovations, grants, and other accomplishments.

Campus Partnerships
Developing collaborations with the Office of Teaching and Learning, Academic Personnel, the Academic Senate, departments, colleges, and other campus organizations.

Propose a project

“Do you have an idea for a project that would benefit UCSB Teaching Professors or undergraduate education? Contact the TPN leadership board to discuss how the network can support or help develop your idea.”

Resources

Career Advancement

• Merit and promotion guidance
• Relevant Academic Personnel Manual policies
• UCSB review procedures
• Career milestone workshops
• Examples and frequently asked questions

Teaching and Pedagogy

• Evidence-based teaching resources
• Inclusive teaching practices
• Assessment resources
• Mentoring resources
• Teaching Professor presentations and publications

New Teaching Professor Resources

• UCSB orientation information
• Mentorship opportunities
• Campus contacts
• Explanation of the Teaching Professor series
• Suggested first-year resources

UC-Wide Resources

• UC Teaching Professor Network
• Systemwide mentorship opportunities
• Annual UC TPN meetings
• Research and publications about Teaching Professors
• UC policy and advocacy resources