Welcome to SPARK
The Office of Student Engagement in collaboration with the Doctoral Success Committee has launched SPARK: The Doctoral Success Program to provide support to doctoral scholars who are approaching or already in the post-coursework phase of their graduate journey. We began our program with a 4-part summer workshop series. Each workshop correlated with one of the core curricula skill videos from the National Center for Faculty Development & Diversity (NCFDD), for which CGU is an institutional member. This academic year, we invite our doctoral scholars nearing the completion of coursework or already in the post-coursework phase to join us during our monthly workshops, make use of our academic affirming community space, and utilize the National Center for Faculty Development & Diversity to advance in your doctoral milestones.
Provide Feedback
As we continue to plan and develop sessions for SPARK, we ask that you share your feedback with our committee. Please click the button below to share any suggested sessions, workshops, or topics that you would like to see incorporated in our 2022-2023 academic year programming. Our goal remains to help doctoral students make progress towards degree milestones and feel successful as they advance towards degree completion.
Academic Affirming Community
Integral to SPARK is building community and establishing accountability with peers. We invite doctoral scholars to join our academic affirming community space via Microsoft Yammer, where doctoral students can engage with each other regardless of location. We will be facilitating weekly discussion questions and polls, but invite you all to connect and share your research, ask questions, ask for support, and build community with other CGU scholars. We encourage you to review our Yammer Community Guidelines as you look to engage with your peers.
Fall 2022 SPARK Workshops
Watch the recording HERE and access the slide deck HERE
CLICK HERE to Access and download the toolkit
Wednesday, November 16 | Creating ceremony and community to disrupt your writing roadblocks | 6:00 – 7:30 PM | REGISTER HERE
Are you feeling stuck in the writing process? Are you experiencing challenges that are hindering your writing progress? Join our session to learn how to identify and combat your internal and external writing challenges and find joy in the process. Members of the Office of Student Engagement will discuss the importance of sharing your work with your peers, finding accountability partners, and receiving helpful feedback.
During this in-person session, students will have the ability to create a ceremony pack to signify the importance of implementing ceremonial practices that relieve the anxiety and pressure around the writing process. Our asynchronous component will be the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity (NCFDD) core skill video #5: Moving from Resistance to Writing.
Thursday, December 8 | managing expectations and honoring your committment to self | 6:00 – 7:00 PM | REGISTER HERE
As a graduate student, you wear many hats: scholar, working professional, parent or guardian, and many more. It can sometimes be difficult to balance all of the expectations placed on you in these various roles. At times, you may find yourself pushing your goals, projects, and tasks aside in order to show up for others. In this session, we will discuss strategies for you to manage these expectations while honoring your commitment to have a healthier work-life balance. Our asynchronous component will include the National Center for Faculty Development & Diversity (NCFDD) core skill video # 6: The Art of Saying No.
Session Toolkit