Mentoring is a relationship where everyone brings something to the table and each has responsibilities for fostering a productive relationship.  For example, mentors should ensure that there are mutually agreed upon expectations and goals and should work with the protégé to create an individualized professional development plan.  Protégés should acknowledge that they have the primary responsibility for the development of their own career. In this seminar, the Graduate Program Chair and Coordinator (Dr. Adams and Loretta McKinniss) will (1) take students and faculty on a treasure hunt through the graduate program website to help mentors and protégés know where to find information about the program, and (2) continue an ongoing open conversation on mentoring best practices and challenges.  

Robin S. Adams is an Associate Professor in the School of Engineering Education at Purdue University.  She led the Institute for Scholarship on Engineering Education (ISEE) as part of the Center for the Advancement of Engineering Education (CAEE).  Prior to Purdue, Dr. Adams was the Assistant Director for Research at the Center for Engineering Learning and Teaching (CELT) and a Sr. Design Engineer in the semiconductor packaging industry and helped develop new uses of thin film technology.  Dr. Adams received her PhD in Education, Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of Washington, an MS in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Washington, and a BS in Mechanical Engineering from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.  Dr. Adams’ research includes:  cross-disciplinary thinking, acting, and being; design cognition and learning; views on the nature of engineering knowledge; and theories of change in linking engineering education research and practice.