When you hear the phrase professional development, what comes to mind?
Be honest. Do you think of yet another one-size-fits-all session full of theory but short on practice? Do you feel resistance or fatigue at the thought of logging into a mandated training or sitting through a two-day conference that has little relevance to your day-to-day teaching or research?
You’re not alone.
In K–12 settings, professional development often gets a bad rap for being rigid, prescriptive, and disconnected from the actual needs of educators. But even in higher education—where autonomy is a hallmark—faculty development can still feel vague, optional, or misaligned. Despite the differences in structure between K–12 and higher ed, one fact remains the same: when done well, professional development can be transformative.
And here’s the truth we don’t always say out loud: in higher education, professional development may be optional—but growth is not.
The Pain Point: Confusion and Complacency
In many colleges and universities, professional development for faculty is either loosely defined or narrowly focused. It’s often reactive rather than strategic, with a strong emphasis on compliance instead of growth. Institutions may offer sporadic workshops or general sessions that scratch the surface of what academics really need: space to reflect, targeted support, and meaningful, customized learning opportunities.
Add to that the myth that tenure, seniority, or expertise exempts one from growth, and it becomes easy to see why so many academics stagnate professionally without even realizing it.
But here’s what we must all remember: no one should care more about your growth as an academic than you do.
The Solution: Owning Your Development
Whether you’re early in your academic career or well into your professorship, the responsibility to grow and evolve is yours. Yes, your institution may provide some resources—but they are rarely enough. True professional development means identifying what you need to improve and finding the best ways to meet those needs, even if that means stepping outside your department or university.
This is where The Professor’s Week in Review becomes more than a journal—it becomes a professional growth partner.
Included in the Resources and Checklists section of the journal is a powerful activity titled Professional Development—a simple, reflective worksheet that asks you to do something many of us overlook:
- Identify areas in which you’d like to improve
- Explore courses you could take
- List workshops or conferences you could attend
- Consider organizations you could join
This guided exercise is more than a checklist—it’s a prompt for vision, clarity, and intentionality. It encourages faculty to plan rather than react, to pursue rather than passively wait for opportunities.
Reflection Is the First Step Toward Growth
One of the most overlooked tools for faculty development is reflection. Taking time to ask, “What do I need to grow in this season of my career?” is both radical and necessary.
The weekly prompts inside The Professor’s Week in Review create a rhythm for this reflection—encouraging faculty to track wins, assess challenges, revisit goals, and course-correct as needed. The journal doesn’t just ask you what you’re doing; it invites you to think critically about how and why you’re doing it—and what’s next.
If you’re unsure of what growth looks like for you or how to move forward with clarity and purpose, start with reflection.
Start with you.
Your Growth, Your Terms
Professional development is not punishment. It’s a privilege—a chance to become better at what you’ve been called to do. In higher education, we often champion student success without applying the same intentional strategies to our own professional growth. But we owe it to ourselves—and to our students—to be lifelong learners.
Whether you attend a national conference, join a faculty learning community, enroll in an online course, or simply carve out time to reflect each week, know this: your growth matters. And it starts with a choice to own your journey.
The Professor’s Week in Review: A Journal for Weekly Reflections on the Higher Ed Experience
Would you appreciate a simple tool to help you plan your professional development? Download or revisit your copy of The Professor’s Week in Review and turn to the Resources and Checklists section. Meaningful PD might be one reflection activity away.
Choose your journal format:
Write with Me Activity Time #2
I have included the activity session below so that I can guide you in discovering the type of faculty development that will be meaningful to you. Enjoy!