AGLS 125 Instruction: First-Year Experience in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

• Receive a $500 bursary per semester that may be used for professional development.
• Have an impact on, and connect with students in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. As an instructor, you will be a consistent presence for your students each week during their first semester, and hopefully during their entire time at Texas A&M. Instructors are integral in connecting students with support and resources during their transition to college.
• Deepen your connections in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Our nearly 40 instructors and 40 peer mentors have opportunities to build their network and to learn from others about how to best serve our students.
• Become a better professional by staying connected to students, developing your teaching and leadership skills, and fulfilling our land-grant mission to serve the needs of our state.

• Commit to serving the entire Fall semester. Each section will host around 25 first-year students and will meet weekly for 50 minutes.
• Prepare for and deliver weekly material, using content developed by the College, or other content that you develop. Note that there are four mandatory content modules provided by the Office for Student Success.
• Develop supportive relationships with new students.
• Communicate accurate and timely information to students about academic and student resources.
• Remain accessible, willing to assist students as they navigate their first year. Instructors should make referrals to appropriate resources for issues beyond their expertise.
• Abide by all curriculum guidelines such as learning outcomes, required content, syllabus requirements, etc..
• Attend required trainings and meetings. Instructor training will consist of:
  • Hullabaloo U All-Instructor Symposium: Wednesday, May 15, 2024, 8:00 AM – 12:00 PM 
  • New Instructors must also complete a New Instructor Workshop, a 5-hour in-person workshop to be offered on several dates in May/July OR online modules to complete at one’s own pace.
• Collaborate with the Peer Mentor assigned to your section, coordinating and planning course activities and components.
• Provide your Peer Mentor with leadership opportunities to achieve their goals as a co-facilitator and co-contributor inside and outside of the classroom. 
• Attend the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Spring kickoff event where instructors will be paired with their assigned peer mentor. That event is Wednesday, May 1 from 3:30-5 on West Campus.

• Hold a Bachelor’s degree (unless otherwise approved)
• Status as a current Texas A&M University employee: full-time faculty, staff, or graduate students who have completed at least 18 hours of graduate coursework
• Worked at Texas A&M for a minimum of one year OR 6 months if previously attended Texas A&M as a student
• Completion of required trainings and workshops
• Approval by the instructor’s supervisor (requested during application routing)
• Ability to teach an in-person class in College Station one day per week (specific day/time assignment is based on instructor and section availability)

• While there is no specific formula for an effective instructor, applicants should have a genuine interest in advising and mentoring new students
• Willingness to involve students in the learning process and integrate students with their classmates and peer mentor
• Able to develop classroom rapport with a diverse group of students, always seeking to make every student feel included
• Commitment to a general education and development of each student as a whole person
• Awareness of campus resources and student-support services

Applications are due on Monday, March 18. We hope to have instructors identified by Friday, March 29. We will notify applicants by the first week of April, and our exciting kickoff event will occur Wednesday, May 1 from 3:30-5pm on West Campus.

Generally between 2-4 hours per week during the teaching semester. Instructors who choose to develop their own content will spend more time than those who “plug-and-play” College content. All instructors teach for 50 minutes a week for 10-14 weeks, and meet periodically with their peer mentor for planning and coordination.

In addition to the 50 minute class, instructors may spend an hour per week on class prep, student follow-up, and one-on-one meetings with students. However, the amount of time spent varies considerably by instructor based on previous teaching experience, lesson planning, grading, and other activities that you incorporate in your section. This is a variable (0-1 hour) credit course, so outside assignments should be minimal.

There are four required Hullabaloo U lessons developed by the Office for Student Success:

• Well‐Being
• Success Strategies & Resources
• Healthy Relationships
• Mental Health

Outside of the 4 required lessons, each instructor may customize their course to match their experience and expertise, and to meet the needs of students in each section. The College offers a fully developed Canvas course in order to support instructors, and instructors may opt-in to have that content pushed into their Canvas shell. More information related to course development will be provided through College communications and gatherings.

The University offers a New Instructor Workshop which includes content to get you started. Throughout the summer, there are optional instructor and course development workshops to equip you with the tools and resources you will need to be successful as an instructor, as well as College onboarding meetings to prepare instructors. 

You can send any questions to [email protected], and someone with the College’s Student Success Team will be in touch soon.