Welcome to the Professional Skills for Researchers Coaching Program client portal. The client portal provides detailed program information, instructions, and policies. Please read it thoroughly, follow all outlined instructions, and complete all assigned work in a timely manner.

On this Webpage, you will find needed information about coaching calls, video conferencing, client files, and program policies.

 

COACHING CALLS

In an email entitled “NEXT STEPS: Professional Skills for Researchers Coaching Program,” you will receive your assigned coach’s name and availability. Within 4 days of receiving this email, you are to select your seven (7) sessions from the choices provided. There are six coaching sessions; the seventh session is an extra session, should it be needed. If it is not needed, the session will be canceled.

Please note that the calls will typically last about an hour over the course of six weeks; however, the appointments may be spaced out, at the coach’s discretion, to allow the client more time to design and/or implement Professional Development Plan activities, e.g., standard operating procedure.  In such cases, appointments may be canceled and rescheduled as needed.

Once your appointment times are selected and confirmed, you will receive email confirmation and/or a calendar invitation. A Zoom link will be provided.

 

VIDEO CONFERENCING

Zoom, a HIPAA-compliant Web meeting platform, will be used for your scheduled coaching calls.  A Zoom account is not required.

The appointment confirmation email will include a Zoom link to your coaching session.

Coaching appointments are to be video and audio enabled.

 

CLIENT FILES

Box, a single place to manage and store documents on one platform, will be used throughout this program. You and your coach will use this secure service to share files.

A Box account is required to participate in the coaching program.

You will receive an email from the program manager, Emily Schenk, with the subject line “Schenk, Emily has invited you to collaborate on Box”. Open the message and click “Accept Invite”.  At this point, you will need either to sign in here if you have a Box account, or create a Box account.

To register for an account, please complete the following steps:

1. Enter your full name, the email address to which the invitation was sent, and a password of your choosing.
2. Click the “I’m not a robot” box and the blue “Submit” button.
3. Upon receipt of a follow-up email, click the blue “Verify Email” button to start using Box.

The folder contains

• Assessment results
• Supplemental materials
• Table of Coaching Assignments
• Assigned assessments, worksheets, readings, and activities

 

ASSIGNMENTS

Please note that assignments must be completed 24 hours BEFORE your coaching calls.

Upon accessing the Box folder, you will see a document entitled “0 Table of Coaching Assignments”.  This document is of the utmost importance as it guides you through the entire course and clearly outlines

• The timeline for when assignments are due
• Information needed for the assignments
• Space to track completion

Assignment numbers correspond to the documents in your Box folder.  A separate document, either a Word document or PDF, is included for each assignment.

All completed assignments are to be saved back to Box.  There is no need to email the completed documents to either the Program Manager, Emily Schenk, or your coach.

To complete a Word Document assignment: 

1. Click on the document name
2. In the top right menu, click “Open” and the following choices for opening the document will appear:

• • Microsoft Word
  • Microsoft Word Online

1. Select “Microsoft Word Online” to open and edit the file in your browser
2. Complete the assignment
3. Close the tab or your browser and the file will automatically be saved back to Box
4. Click refresh in your browser and you will see the new version and the update date.

To complete a PDF assignment: 

1. Click on the document name
2. In the top right menu, click “Open” and the following choices for opening the document will appear:
   •  Open
   • Adobe Acrobat
3. Select “Adobe Acrobat” to open and edit the file in your browser
4. A text box may appear that looks like this –
   
5. Click “Okay”
6. Complete the assignment
7. In the Adobe Acrobat ribbon at the top of the page, click to the right of the document name and a “Save” button will appear.
8. Click “Save” and you may now close out of your document.
9. Click refresh in your browser and you will see the new version and the update date.

 

POLICIES

Assignments

Before each coaching call, the client will complete one or more worksheet, reading or video assignments. Assignments must be completed at least 24 hours prior to scheduled calls to enable the coach time to review materials before coaching. If assignments are not completed 24 hours prior to a coaching call, that call will be cancelled. If a call is cancelled or missed, the client will need to present the coach with an acceptable written plan to avoid missing future deadlines or appointments before the call will be rescheduled.

 

Attendance

Six (6) coaching calls will be held by web conference technology (e.g., Zoom) or telephone. Each call will last about an hour.  The client will be permitted one make-up session.  If a call is cancelled or missed, the client will need to present the coach with an acceptable written plan to avoid missing future deadlines or appointments before the call will be rescheduled. For each additional cancelled or missed call, the client will be required to pay a $150 charge before the call is rescheduled.

 

Certificate of Completion

At the end of the program, the client will receive a Certificate of Completion if all expectations (described in the Expectations section below) have been met and the following components have been fulfilled:

 

• • Completion of the pre-assessments
  • Completion of readings and videos
  • Completion of assignments and worksheets
  • Attendance at coaching calls
  • Active participation in coaching calls
  • Creation of an appropriate Professional Development Plan (PDP) with initial implementation of elements
  • Creation of an accountability system of to accomplish elements outlined in the PDP
  • Completion of post-assessment
  • Completion of program evaluation survey
  • Completion of all requirements in a timely manner

Each component will be marked as either ‘Satisfactory’ or ‘Unsatisfactory.’

 

Confidentiality/Communication with Institutions Survey

As part of the registration process, the client completed an online survey describing the confidentiality protections the Coaching Program offers the client and expectations of the client, and soliciting information on the client’s choices regarding communication with his/her institution.  A copy of the survey is here. With written client permission, the program will share three things:

1. 1. • Confirmation of Enrollment
      • Professional Development Plan (PDP)
      • Itemized Certificate of Completion

 

Curricular Materials

Curricular materials are for the use of the client during and following participation in the program.  They are copyrighted and proprietary and are not to be distributed.

 

Expectations

There are four key expectations of our clients:

1. 1. • Complete all assignments.
      • Actively participate in coaching calls.
      • Be forthright about your situation and needs.
      • Honor deadlines and appointments.

Failure to meet these expectations will result in the termination of the coaching relationship.

 

Participation Confidentiality

To create a safe environment for sharing, to the fullest extent of law, the program will protect client data. We do the following to protect confidentiality:

1. 1. • Use a HIPAA-compliant version of Zoom
      • Prohibit anyone other than the client and coach from being on the calls, unless with permission in special circumstances
      • Prohibit audio or video recording of calls by clients or program coaches
      • Require clients and program coaches to sign a confidentiality agreement
      • De-identify assessment data to be used for quality improvement efforts
      • Send no information to third parties without client permission (as permitted by law)
      • Send a detailed certificate of completion to any party at the request of the client. Receiving a certificate of completion means that the client completed all program requirements including: pre- and post-assessments, readings, assignments and worksheets, attendance at and active participation in all coaching calls, initial implementation of PDP elements, and creation of a system of accountability to carry out elements outlined in the PDP in a timely manner. Beyond providing a certificate of completion, where each component is marked either ‘Satisfactory’ or ‘Unsatisfactory,’ the program does not share further evaluations of clients.

 

Refunds

We do not provide refunds once the client has begun assessments, except for reasons of documented personal illness.