NORTON, Mass.

No sooner does Leah Niederstadt finish teaching her introduction to museum studies class at Wheaton College than she has to rush out the door to her next class.

There, she transforms from instructor to student.

Dr. Niederstadt, an assistant professor of art history, is one of the first-year Wheaton professors participating in a unique, semester-long orientation program college officials hope will help them better assimilate into campus culture and ultimately keep them at the school for their careers.

The school says the program is innovative, because it goes well beyond the standard for training faculty.

“It’s giving us an overview of the way things work at Wheaton, the history, the curriculum, student services, support for faculty,” she said.

“It has made me feel incredibly welcome on campus.”

The goal is to show new faculty members that they have as big a stake in the 1,550-student college as the school has in them and that their contributions are valued, said Provost Molly E. Smith, who came up with the semester-long concept.

“I want faculty to understand they are a part of an institution with a rich history and the future is in their hands,” she said.

The idea came out of her own observations and experiences while working as a professor and administrator at Seton Hall University, Ithaca College, Saint Louis University, and the University of Aberdeen in Scotland.

“I’ve worked in many academic environments and one of the things I’ve realized is that when new faculty come in, there is an assumption that they will find their way and connect, and often they don’t, at least not right away,” Smith said.

Before Smith came on board in July 2006, Wheaton’s faculty orientation program consisted of an intensive daylong cram session that came at the start of the semester when new professors are buried under a pile of greater concerns.

That’s typical of most colleges.