New Investigator Workshop (NIW) Faculty Roles and Timeline

 

Faculty Role/Responsibilities

All faculty:

  • Assist with the review and scoring of trainee applications (mandatory)

    • Applications and scoring sheets will be provided by late October/early November 2026

    • Deadline for completion will likely fall in mid- to late November 2026

  • Prepare for and attend all three virtual sessions for your assigned group (mandatory)

    • Advanced preparations include reviewing materials and the questions/interests of trainees ahead of their virtual session

  • Provide written Bio and contact information to the Chair/Vice Chair for distribution to all NIW participants to support follow-up/further networking (will be formally requested of confirmed NIW faculty)

  • Attend the in-person NIW networking session at the Annual Meeting if at all possible (strongly encouraged—specific timing TBD).

  • Attend talks/visit posters presented by NIW trainees during the annual meeting, to the extent feasible.

    • A compiled list will be provided at/ahead of the Annual Meeting

Lead faculty:

(Role available to returning NIW faculty only)

  • Schedule virtual meeting sessions once assigned your group (early to mid-December)
    • Do *not* pass this along to one of the trainees!
    • Collect initial availability parameters (dates/times of week to black out, e.g.) and, if desired, work with ASPO office to generate a scheduling poll for your group that *you* will then implement to collect group members’ availability (or create a poll yourself if preferred)
    • Aim to have virtual sessions scheduled by mid-January 2027
    • Report scheduled virtual session dates to Chair and Vice Chair (mandatory)
  • Ahead of 1st session, ensure that all faculty in your virtual session group understand their roles and how the sessions are intended to flow
    • Chair and Vice Chair will provide instructions/guidelines and hold a virtual “orientation” meeting for faculty in early 2027
    • Collect slides and input questions from trainees in your virtual session group ahead of their session and share with remaining group members (recommended: at least 2-3 days ahead of the scheduled session if not up to a week before)

  • Facilitate the flow and manage the time of each virtual session for your group

Timeline and Key Dates:

(Individuals with primary responsibility in parentheses)

  • September 2026 (Chair and Vice Chair tasks)
    • Prepare Call for Applications
    • Recruit and confirm faculty members
  • October 2026
    • Applications due from potential participants
  • November 2026
    • Review Applications (Chair, Vice Chair, NIW faculty)
    • Make selections for NIW participants (Chair, Vice Chair based on application reviews)
  • December 2026
    • Send confirmation messages to selected NIW participants (ASPO Office)
    • Form groups of faculty and trainees for virtual sessions (Chair, Vice Chair)
    • Begin scheduling virtual sessions (to be done by lead faculty, not by a trainee)
  • January-March 2027
    • Complete scheduling of virtual sessions if needed (target: mid-January)
    • Attend January “orientation” session for NIW faculty (led by Chair, Vice Chair)
    • Request presentation materials from NIW participants (info on Annual meeting posters/talks) and Bios from NIW faculty (Chair, Vice Chair)
    • Request trainee slide presentations and input questions ahead of their virtual session presentation (virtual session group-specific lead faculty)
    • Review presentation materials obtained from NIW participants (all NIW faculty)
    • Compile list of Annual meeting presentations (oral or poster) by NIW trainees for circulation to all trainees and NIW faculty before the annual meeting (Chair, Vice Chair)
    • Conduct virtual presentations/feedback sessions (all NIW participants)
  • April 2027 (Annual Meeting)
    • In-person networking session at Annual Meeting (all NIW participants)
    • As much as feasible, visit talks or posters presented by NIW trainees at the annual meeting