PURPOSE
Efforts to promote excellence in teaching through professional development
are necessary as faculty likely did not receive pedagogical training when
completing their terminal degrees. Participation in faculty development can
be a challenge due to clinical and research schedules and lack of protected
time. This abstract describes how we reimagined our teaching certificate
program to align with diverse faculty needs.
METHODS
In 2019, a certificate program was created to provide faculty with
foundational knowledge about teaching in academic medicine. This voluntary
program consisted of a half-day workshop, four 1-hour electives, a peer
observation, and an educational project plan. Participation in the program
and completion of components have been tracked for 5 years, with the data and
facilitator reflections being used to inform programmatic improvements.
RESULTS
Since its inception, we have made many adjustments to the program. In 2023,
we identified an opportunity to improve faculty engagement and shifted
requirements, allowing faculty to complete electives through either attending
synchronous virtual sessions or watching asynchronous recordings. In 2024, we
updated the curriculum for the half-day workshop. In 2025, we designed an
asynchronous core workshop, refined our outreach efforts to support faculty
who appear stuck in the program, and refreshed program components to better
support a variety of faculty needs.
CONCLUSIONS
Teaching certificate programs in medical schools vary in format and
offerings. Our efforts highlight the value of program evaluation, through
both data collection and reflective practices, to improve our certificate
program. Being flexible and agile allows for the reimagination of programming
to best align with faculty needs. Our experience can serve as a case study to
guide focus session participants through a process of brainstorming or
revising teaching certificate programs for their schools.