Sustaining the Work: Faculty Well-Being, Burnout, and Support with Dr. Emily Stafford

Sustaining the Work: Faculty Well-Being, Burnout, and Support with Dr. Emily Stafford

Teaching is deeply meaningful work, but it can also be demanding work. In this episode of InCITEful Teaching, host Dr. Shannon Harmon sits down with Dr. Emily Stafford, Director of Mississippi State University's Psychology Clinic, to explore faculty well-being, burnout, work-life balance, and the importance of seeking support. Together, they discuss how burnout manifests in higher education, the unique pressures faculty face, practical strategies for setting boundaries, and ways institutions and colleagues can foster healthier academic cultures. Dr. Stafford also shares information about the Psychology Clinic's services and offers guidance for faculty and students. Whether you're navigating a challenging semester, supporting colleagues, or simply looking for ways to sustain yourself in this important work, this conversation offers thoughtful insights and practical takeaways.

AI, Innovation, and Teaching in MSU Meteorology with Andrew Mercer

Dr. Andrew Mercer is a meteorologist and climatologist at Mississippi State University, home to one in three of today's on-air broadcast meteorologists. As Graduate Coordinator for the Department of Geosciences and meteorology team lead, his research applies machine learning and AI to large scale atmospheric problems, from severe weather forecasting to hurricane prediction. In this conversation with host Dr. Shannon Harmon, Andrew reflects on what it means to teach in a nationally recognized program built around both the science and the communication of weather. He shares how MSU prepares students for careers across the country, how uncertainty is woven into meteorology as a discipline, and how he is thinking about the role AI might play in the future of the field and the classroom. For faculty wondering how to approach AI in their own classrooms, Andrew's advice is simple: treat it as a tool, meet your students where they are, and keep the focus on critical thinking.

Learning by Experimentation and the First-Year Faculty Experience with Neil Deochand

Dr. Neil Deochand is completing his first year as an assistant professor at Mississippi State University. He came with a doctorate in behavior analysis, years of online teaching experience, and a lot of ideas about how people learn. This year, he has been putting all of it into practice at Mississippi State. In this conversation with host Dr. Shannon Harmon, Neil reflects on what it looks like to experiment with your teaching while navigating the realities of a first year at a new institution. He shares how he brings the experimental mindset of a researcher into the classroom, what hands-on learning looks like in a behavior analysis course, and what he has learned about his students and himself along the way. The willingness to experiment, reflect, and adjust turns out to be not just good science. It's good teaching.

Project-Based Teaching, Technology, and Mid-Career Innovation with Greg Francom

Dr. Greg Francom came to teaching through four degrees, four universities, a lifelong faith community, and a conviction that media and technology are most valuable when they help people learn. Today, as a Clinical Professor in the Department of Technology, Leadership, and Design at Mississippi State University, he is the author of the first ever multi-platform interactive textbook for educational technology. In this conversation with host Dr. Shannon Harmon, Greg reflects on project-based teaching and what it looks like to keep innovating with technology in the middle of a long career. He shares how project-based learning creates space for students to personalize their own learning, what a mid-career light bulb moment taught him about his relationship with students, and why changing one thing at a time might be the most sustainable innovation strategy there is. If you are somewhere in the middle of your teaching career and wondering how to keep growing, this conversation is for you.

Designing Active Learning in Large Lecture Classrooms with Melissa Moore

Dr. Melissa Moore has taught at Mississippi State University for 26 years. Today, her marketing courses enroll up to 450 students at a time. She is a Turner A. Wingo Endowed Professor, a department head, and a Grisham Master Level Teacher. And after all of that, nothing disappoints her more than leaving class feeling like she didn't connect. That standard, and what she does to meet it, is at the heart of this conversation with host Dr. Shannon Harmon about designing active learning in large lecture classrooms. Melissa pulls back the curtain on what looks like effortless teaching but is actually deeply intentional: how she uses music, ownership, and real-world connection to pull students in, and what keeps her seeking out new approaches after more than two decades in the classroom. A class of 450 doesn't have to feel anonymous. It doesn't have to feel disengaged. Dr. Moore has spent 26 years proving otherwise. If you've ever wondered how to structure opportunities for real connection in a large classroom, this conversation is for you.