Teaching at Notre Dame Series

Initiated in 2024–25 by Notre Dame Learning’s Kaneb Center for Teaching Excellence, Teaching at Notre Dame is a workshop series for early career faculty at the University as they embark on their teaching careers.

The series convenes in six monthly sessions, for 75 minutes each, throughout the academic year. The topics of each session are coordinated with the pedagogical challenges and opportunities that arise during the rhythm of a typical academic year (see schedule for details).

Sessions are led by Kaneb Center Director Kristi Rudenga and Jim Lang, a professor of the practice at the Kaneb Center and co-director of the University Seminar Program. As a whole, the series offers guidance for the practical challenges of classroom teaching, discussions in which participants can process their ongoing teaching experiences, space and time to connect with other new faculty, and opportunities to engage with members of the student body, the Kaneb Center, and the administration.

In end-of-program surveys following the first Teaching at Notre Dame, 100 percent of participants reported that they would recommend the series to their colleagues, and that they were better equipped to design and teach courses and succeed in their teaching careers.

Learning opportunities for early career faculty extend beyond the time spent in the monthly workshops, as well. A series Canvas site, individual observations and consultations, interactions with trained student pedagogy partners, and brief written reflections round out the experience.

Participants who attend at least four sessions, take part in the observations and consultations, and submit their reflections will get a letter documenting their efforts. Their participation will also be shared with their chair and dean in a letter from Vice President and Associate Provost Ron Metoyer. A celebration event is held at the end of the academic year.

Sign Up for Teaching at Notre Dame

Questions? Contact kaneb@nd.edu.

2026–27 Schedule

The cohort will meet once a month starting in September. Two identical 75-minute sessions—one on a Tuesday, and one on a Friday—will be available to enable all new junior faculty to attend (i.e., participants only attend one of the following):

• Tuesday, 3:30–4:45 p.m.
• Friday, 9:00–10:15 a.m.

Fall

• Interactive Learning (September 8 or 11)
• Assignment Alignment (October 6 or 9)
• Student Voices: A Panel (November 3 or 6)

In addition, each participant will be observed by a member of the Kaneb Center faculty, with a follow-up consultation, during the fall semester.

Spring

• Canvas and Other Teaching Technologies (January 12 or 15)
• Reaching Every Student (February 9 or 12)
• Evaluation of Teaching and Looking Ahead (March 16 or 19)

In addition, each participant will submit brief reflections on their first year of teaching and their teaching goals for subsequent years.