ASE Surgical Education and Leadership Fellowship
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The ASE Surgical Education and Leadership Fellowship (SELF) is a one-year fellowship designed for all ASE members who wish to improve their teaching, education design, and leadership skills in surgical education. The Fellowship is designed as an ongoing self and mentored program throughout the course of one year. Participants will be assigned an experienced advisor who will meet with each fellow three times during the year to coach and advise on a teaching area that each fellow individually identifies that they want to improve. Advisors are carefully assigned to ensure the “best fit” for the fellow’s interest.
Download the SELF Brochure
What are the SELF Program Goals?
- Provide tools necessary to enhance abilities as teachers and leaders in surgical education.
- Provide coaching/advising to all members who wish to improve an area of their teaching.
- Provide ASE onboarding guidance to new members
- Establish an invaluable, life-long network of colleagues who share their career aspirations and interests.
Intended Participants
All members of the ASE, including Residents/Fellows/Physicians and Education Scientists who wish to develop or hone their skills to become more effective teachers and education leaders.
For more information on becoming a member of the Association for Surgical Education, visit here.
Application Process & Cost
Applicants must complete the online SELF Application Form and submit it with required attachments. Course tuition is $2,500.00. Travel and Lodging not included.
Fellowship Requirements
1. Attendance at all SELF sessions:
First Portion (session 1)-Held in person during Surgical Education Week (SEW): Session 1 will be a day and a half interactive course providing fellows with the foundations of set, teach, and closure.
Sessions 1 & 2: Wednesday, May 7, 2025 from 8:00 AM-4:30 PM Pacific and Thursday, May 8, 2025 from 9:00 AM-1:00 PM Pacific
Seattle, WA
Optional: SELF Wrap Up Reception and Forum: Thursday, May 8, 2025 from 5:30 PM-7:00 PM Pacific, Seattle, WA
Second Portion: Spaced Education Monthly Zoom Sessions: 75-minute interactive sessions held once a month June 2025-March 2026 providing the fellows with the foundations of education design and an introduction to leadership skills.
The tentative dates are forthcoming.
Third Portion: Advising Sessions: During November, January and March, each fellow will meet with their paired advisor to receive an hour of advising on their individual deliverable to help fellow improve on a desired area of teaching/leadership.
Fourth Portion (session 4) -Held During Surgical Education Week (SEW-following year): All fellows present reflections on their development as a teacher/leader in a forum setting.
Wednesday, April 29, 2026, 5:30 PM-7:00 PM Eastern
SELF Forum during 2026 Surgical Education Week
ASE Annual Meeting
Atlanta, Georgia
*Date and time subject to change
2. Complete an educational journal to be turned in to SELF Director: Dr. Laura Torbeck.
**Those fellows who attended 85% of the interactive sessions, identified a specific area of teaching/leadership that they wanted to improve, and met with their advisor for all 3 coaching sessions will be given a Certificate of Completion during SEW the following year.
**Those fellows who attended less than 85% of the interactive sessions and/or did not identify an area of teaching they wanted to improve on and/or did not meet with their advisor three times may be given a Certificate of Participation during SEW the following year.
Letters of notification regarding course acceptance will be emailed by February 3, 2025.
SELF Faculty
Laura Torbeck, PhD
SELF Program Director
Assistant Dean for Faculty Development
Indiana University
Laura Torbeck, PhD, is a Professor of Surgery, Vice Chair of Professional Development for the Department of Surgery, and an Assistant Dean for Faculty Affairs and Professional Development at Indiana University School of Medicine. Dr. Torbeck champions professional development initiatives for surgery as well as for state-wide faculty. She is also an Adjunct Faculty in the Department of Anatomy and teaches/mentors students in the Anatomy and Cell Biology Education Track PhD program. Her research interests include program evaluation, remediation practices, resident autonomy, and faculty development.
Jeremy Lipman, MD, MHPE, FACS, FASCRS
Associate Professor of Surgery
Cleveland Clinic
Dr. Lipman serves as the Designated Institutional Official and Director of Graduate Medical Education at Cleveland Clinic where he is a staff Colorectal Surgeon. He is a Professor of Surgery at the Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University. He received his medical degree from Drexel University, College of Medicine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and completed residency in General Surgery at Case Western Reserve University. He then completed fellowship training in Colorectal Surgery at Cleveland Clinic. He has also received a Masters in Health Professions Education from the University of Illinois, Chicago. He is the former Program Director of the General Surgery residency at Cleveland Clinic and prior Surgery Clerkship Director at MetroHealth Medical Center.
Kevin Pei, MD, MHSEd, FACS
Program Director, General Surgery Residency
Associate Chief Academic Education Officer
Parkview Health
Kevin Pei is a passionate and experienced educator and robotic general surgeon. He trained at George Washington University in Washington DC. While at Yale School of Medicine, he served as associate clerkship director for surgery and director of surgery education in the Yale Center for Medical Simulation. He has served in multiple GME roles including Program Director of the Surgical Critical Care Fellowship and Program Director of the American College of Surgeons Accredited Fellowship in Education and Simulation at Houston Methodist – Weill Cornell Medicine. He is currently Vice President, Associate Chief Academic Officer of Parkview Health and Program Director of the General Surgery Residency. He also serves as the ACS – AEI Institute and Fellowship Director. He serves on the executive councils of the Association for Surgical Education (ASE) and the Association for Women Surgeons (AWS). He has expertise in faculty development in clinical teaching and received his Masters in Health Sciences in Medical Education from Yale University. He serves on the editorial boards of the American Board of Surgery SCORE, American Journal of Surgery, Annals of Surgery Open, and Associate Editor at Global Surgical Education, the official journal of ASE. Among his proudest accomplishments is being named the 2018 Philip J. Wolfson Outstanding Educator Award from the ASE, 2024 ASE Distinguished MidCareer Educator Award, and induction into the prestigious ACS Academy of Master Surgeon Educators.
For any questions, please email the ASE Office at [email protected].