Wichita State recently opened a new office dedicated to helping faculty advance professionally: the Office for Faculty Advancement, Retention and Excellence (FARE). 

The office will be directed by Janet Twomey, a professor in the College of Engineering.

FARE will also support programs and services to further help WSU become a Hispanic Serving Institution.

“My focus with FARE … is to help our faculty to be more culturally responsive in how they teach, and being more aware of our students, and the diverse background in which they come from,” said Sara Mata, the executive director of Hispanic Serving Initiatives at WSU.

FARE held an open house in their new office, located in room 112 of Jardine Hall, on Monday to explain the resources they provide, as well as welcome faculty.

“I think it’s just exciting to have some renewed focus on faculty,” Kimberly Engber, dean of the Cohen Honors College, said. “I think they have some fantastic people attached to (the office), too. So I’m excited to see what they pull off.”

FARE has plans for future events, resources and tools. The office is currently working on a website and researching how they can better assist faculty.

“We’re trying to see if we can gain an insight into faculty perspectives on how WSU is doing, how we can uplift faculty and how we can do better,” said McKenzie James, a graduate teaching assistant who works in the office.

The FARE office does not have set hours. Any faculty interested can contact Twomey at [email protected].