Dear Educators,

As we step into the new year, many of us are setting intentions and goals that will guide our work, teaching, and personal growth throughout 2025. This year, I’m particularly excited about the faculty development initiatives we have planned to help you refine your skills in feedback, assessment, mentoring, coaching/remediation, and incorporating AI into our teaching practices. Developing new skills requires us to push past our comfort zones to embrace new ways to elevate our teaching and learning environments. Along the way, I encourage all of us to practice self-compassion as we navigate the challenges of work-life integration, building new skills and stepping into unfamiliar spaces.

We also invite all educators, both within and outside of the Academy, to explore the opportunities outlined in this newsletter to learn, lead, mentor, connect, and reflect. Whether you’re considering joining the Academy or are already part of our community, there is something for everyone in 2025. One exciting way to get involved is by attending our inaugural Teachfest Royale didactic teaching competition. Bring at least three colleagues and your boss to cheer on the competitors, learn from their creative teaching strategies, and enjoy a fun, inspiring afternoon of community-building. It’s a fantastic way to support one another while sharpening our own teaching (and Choosing Wisely) skills. Additionally, I’m thrilled to promote the launch of our AoE Feedback and Assessment Hub this spring, in collaboration with the ACGME, which will provide valuable resources for educators looking to deepen their expertise in these critical areas. Our AoE assessment build team is out of this world outstanding!

On the heels of our first ever Academy member renewal process, our members continue to be a testament to our legacy of service, community, and commitment to excellence in education. Here’s to a year of renewed energy, growth, and inspiration in all we do. Thank you for your ongoing dedication to our learners, to each other, and to the continued success of our Academy.

With gratitude,

Abby Spencer, MD, MS, FACP
Director, Academy of Educators

Loves: I love creating things, whether it is a new classroom activity, a new meal from what is left in the refrigerator, or a music instrument in the wood shop

What you love most about teaching/ educating/ mentoring: Regardless of what I am teaching, I love the “Ah ha” or, more often, the “Wait, what?” moment when you make a connection for learners. When mentoring or advising, I always enjoy it when advisees leave a meeting calmer than when they enter. Breaking down a task into understandable, actionable items allows me to tackle large projects, so when I can assist others in the process it is rewarding.

Fun Fact: I love to sing and dance, a fact that my outward demeanor might not make obvious. I have started singing with the Gateway Men’s Chorus thanks to the community I have built at WUSM, and I am extraordinarily grateful to have a musical creative outlet again.

AI for Educators Workshop Series

Location: In-Person (Calendar invites sent with location)
Overview: Are you ready to revolutionize your teaching methods and take your educational expertise to the next level? Join us for the "AI for Educators" workshop series hosted by the Academy of Educators, where you'll explore the latest advancements in artificial intelligence and discover how to effectively integrate these tools. Don't miss this unique opportunity to enhance your teaching toolkit and prepare yourself for the future of education. Reserve your spot today and join us for a journey into the exciting world of AI for Educators!

Join Us for Teachfest Royale: An 8-Minute Didactic Challenge!

Date/ Time: Tuesday, 2.4.25 @ 12:00p
Location: In-Person (Calendar invite sent with location)
Overview: The Academy of Educators is excited to invite you to attend Teachfest Royale: An 8-Minute Didactic Challenge. Each participant has prepared an 8-minute teaching talk on an assigned theme. This year’s theme is “Things We Do for No Reason”. Faculty judges will rate each teaching talk on design, content, delivery and time. 

The participant who earns the highest score will not only gain valuable professional recognition but will also enjoy departmental/ division/ program bragging rights and the honor of showcasing the prestigious competition trophy in their office for a year.

LUNCH PROVIDED!

Ready, Set, Mentor! Interprofessional Speed Mentoring Luncheon

Date/ Time: Tuesday, 2.25.25 @ 12:00p
Location: In-Person (Calendar invite sent with location)
Overview: The Academy of Educators Mentorship Committee is thrilled to host a dynamic speed mentoring event for WUSM educators! This fast-paced forum provides a unique opportunity to network with and learn from accomplished WUSM mentors, focusing on professional development, educational leadership, and healthcare education careers.

Our mentors bring expertise in areas like healthcare education research, leadership, curriculum development, and bedside teaching. Don't miss this chance to have your MedEd career questions answered and to connect with esteemed colleagues.

LUNCH PROVIDED! Space is limited, so register soon. Your participation will be confirmed by the Academy of Educators after registration. Join us for an inspiring and informative experience!

Mind the Mindset: Promoting Our Own Growth Mindset

Date/ Time: Tuesday, 4.1.25 @ 2:00p 
Location: Zoom (Calendar invites sent with registration)
Guest Presenter: Meridale Baggett, MD
Core Educator Faculty, Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital; Associate Editor, Case Records of the MGH, NEJM; Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Overview: Are you ready to elevate your professional journey? Join us for an inspiring online workshop designed to cultivate a growth mindset and drive professional excellence.

By attending this workshop, you’ll gain the tools and knowledge to:

Don't miss this opportunity to cultivate a mindset that propels you forward. 

One piece of advice I have received from several mentors over the years is that not all work requires 100% of my effort. Often times, 70% is good enough. I try to center this on days when I am feeling overwhelmed and prioritize expending my effort on the projects that really need 100%. This has allowed me to do hard, meaningful work while still caring for myself. I think it is also important for trainees to consider as the balance the hard work of learning to be a doctor, clinical practice, and their personal lives.

The Academy of Educators has partnered with the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) to become a regional Hub for the Developing Faculty Competencies & Assessment course, which is an annual 3-day certificate course to be held April 28-30th, 2025. This highly interactive course supports faculty skill development in learner assessment (including direct observation, feedback, and more) and in designing and enhancing assessment programs. It is intended for faculty program leaders and front-line faculty assessors across all WUSM health professions and who work with learners at any developmental stage. Whether you work with students, residents, or fellows, if you’re looking to improve your assessment and feedback skills, this course is for you!

The Academy of Educators in collaboration with the Medical Education Research Unit (MERU) is excited to offer the Qualitative Research Methods for Education Scholarship course. The course will run from March 2025 to May 2025 via Zoom. This is a certificate course that will provide in-depth work in qualitative research methods, including writing research questions, planning sampling and data collection strategies, analyzing qualitative data, and writing qualitative research for publication. Scholars in the course will develop their own qualitative studies, for research, program evaluation, or other education scholarship. Applicants are encouraged to e-mail academyofeducators@wustl.edu  to express interest and discuss course scheduling. 

Submission Deadline: Sunday, 3/30/25 @ 11:59p

The Academy of Educators in collaboration with the Medical Education Research Unit (MERU) of the Washington University School of Medicine are pleased to announce the call for proposals for grant funding for education research and scholarship projects. Projects must be focused on the scholarship of teaching and learning, rather than biomedical discovery or application. Proposals may originate from any unit within the School of Medicine. The principal investigator must be a WUSM faculty member. Any questions about the appropriateness of a proposal can be directed to MERU. Grants of up to $5000 will be awarded based on a competitive review process. Please reference the application requirements here, and limit to 4 pages inclusive of references.

Congratulations to Fahd Ahmad, MD, MSCI and Tyler Fraum, MD for being selected as the Loeb Teaching Fellows for the term of July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2027.

Fahd Ahmad, MD, MSCI
Associate Professor of Pediatrics

Implementation of a Financial Well-Being Curriculum to Reduce Burnout and Increase Career Satisfaction in Pediatricians

This project will create a longitudinal curriculum to enhance physician financial literacy, promote sustainable financial behaviors, reduce financial stress and burnout, and provide personalized financial education. Dr. Ahmad plans to develop a robust evaluation process to measure knowledge gains, behavior changes, and long-term financial well-being. Further, he plans to use ongoing feedback and data to refine and improve the curriculum to ensure lasting impact.

Tyler Fraum, MD
Assistant Professor of Radiology

Promoting Active Learning for Trainees in Radiologic Physics: Development of a Case-based, Clinically Relevant Curriculum

This project will develop and implement an overhaul of the radiologic physics curriculum for the Department of Radiology’s residency programs by (A) incorporating active learning strategies to promote trainee engagement and (B) integrating clinical scenarios to emphasize real-world relevance. Further, the project will evaluate trainees’ progress toward practical competence in radiologic physics via web-based and hands-on assessment modules.

Associate Professor of Pathology & Immunology

I love baking cookies and other desserts. I developed a passion for baking while in college after seeing how chemistry lab techniques had overlap with how baking ingredients interact with each other. I love that no matter what is going on in my life, I can make a delicious dessert and bring joy to someone's day.

To see full workshop descriptions and information click here.

Riding the Wave: Supporting the Grief of Trainees in Health Professions Programs

Date: February 11, 2025, 11:30a-1p
Location: In-Person on WUSM Campus

Grief is a normal behavioral and emotional response to loss. Interprofessional health profession trainees care for patients and families who are grieving and experience grief themselves. The consequences of unrecognized or under-supported provider grief are significant, including decreased engagement with families, compassion fatigue, and burnout. Despite this, barriers to supporting trainee grief persist, in part due to 1) a lack of training to empathize and communicate with grieving people and 2) cultural expectations of what constitutes appropriate emotional expression by care providers. It is a critical educational opportunity, for the sake of our trainees and their patients, to shine a light on the humanness and normality of the grieving healthcare provider and implement ways to support them through the inevitable losses that they will encounter in medicine.

Additional CIPE offerings may be found at the
Center for Interprofessional Practice & Education website

You don't have to be a member of the Academy to take advantage of all of our offerings.
Check out our workshops, courses, grant opportunities, and events at the links above
to help you become the best educator & teacher you can be!