Full-Time Faculty, Social Design

Full-Time Faculty, Social Design

Position:
Full-time appointment in the MA in Social Design (MASD) program, a graduate program integrated into the Center for Social Design, invites applications for a full-time faculty position with a one-year non-renewable contract in a non-tenure institution beginning Fall 2021. 

Job Description:
The faculty position will teach eighteen credits per year at an art school nationally known for valuing the arts as an avenue for social change, a dedication to teaching excellence, and a rigorous liberal arts curriculum. MASD seeks a candidate with solid teaching experience and a distinguished professional career in the space of design and social impact, social innovation or a related field. The first degree-bearing program of its kind in the United States, MASD is an intensive, practice-based graduate program that prepares students with the tools and methods to advance equity and social justice and become pioneers and leaders in the practice. The 1-year, 30-credit, interdisciplinary program consists of seminar, studio, and elective courses as well as a variety of other immersive and practice-based experiences that take students outside of the institution to learn. Examples include:

• Visiting Faculty—In addition to core faculty and staff, MASD students learn from visiting faculty across a variety of disciplines and backgrounds.
• Practice-based Studio—MASD students are eligible to enroll in semester-long courses that bring students from a variety of disciplines together with outside partners from government, nonprofit and business sectors to learn and apply the human-centered design process.
• Human-centered Design Intensive—MASD students learn and experience the human-centered design process in a multi-day, immersive project with a local partner facilitated by a leading practitioner in the field.
• Graduate Fellowships—MASD students put their skills into practice in professional contexts through paid, part-time fellowships with a variety of institutions during the academic year.
• Capstone— MASD students undertake an immersive, design-driven project that focuses on a specific social problem and applies the methods, tools, and frameworks learned in the curriculum.
• Post-graduate Associates— MASD graduates are eligible for associate positions within the Center for Social Design to build a professional practice and deepen their work in Baltimore after they graduate.

Throughout the 1-year program, students will:

• Increase Social Literacy—Develop a deeper understanding of the issues of equity, power, race and privilege that exist at the heart of the social problems we aim to address.
• Deepen Design Literacy—Establish an ethical framework to guide personal practice and learn human-centered design methods to build empathy with and engage people in making and doing.
• Create Professional Pathways—MASD alumni are pioneering and innovative leaders in the public, private, non-profit, entrepreneurial and academic sectors.

The MASD curriculum is built around a set of core competencies with corresponding learning outcomes, each with elements of theory, practice and reflection:

• theory: students are exposed to theoretical frameworks & definitions through a combination of readings, critical discussion, writing and critique;
• practice: students are exposed to a variety of contexts and design challenges in order to put theory and models into practice in and outside of the classroom, as well as through a self-directed capstone project; 
• reflection: students critically reflect on the work of others, of their peers, and of themselves in order to develop their own unique voice, perspective and practice in social design.

Qualified candidates should be engaged in both theoretical/experimental explorations of social design practice and experienced in the processes and practical applications to real-world problems. Candidates should have experience leading and managing multidisciplinary teams, establishing collaborative projects, and engaging multiple stakeholders and communities. Additionally, candidates should possess a solid understanding of various methods of design practice and research, including human-centered design. The candidate is expected to provide students with inspiration, leadership, mentorship, and technical guidance. 

The faculty position will lead both MASD Seminar (3 credits per semester) and Studio (6 credits per semester) in collaboration with the interim program director. Students in the MASD program are encouraged to work towards tangible solutions in collaboration with other institutions, organizations, and community members and with visiting faculty and scholars from different disciplines and backgrounds. The faculty position will be responsible for guiding the curricular experience, coordinating partners and stakeholders outside the institution, hosting visiting faculty and scholars, and serving as capstone project advisor and mentor to the students. 

Working closely with the MASD Interim Director, this faculty member will be expected to be an advocate for the Program and a partner in program support and recruitment of community partners and future students through graduate admissions, curriculum and facility management, committee work, and office hours. 

Requirements:

• Mix of academic and professional experience in both design and/or a relevant field of art, social innovation, social entrepreneurship, social sciences, public policy, and/or community/economic development;
• Graduate degree in design or a relevant social field(s);
• Experience working collaboratively with people of diverse disciplines, races, ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, nationalities, ages, and abilities;

Valued, but not required:

• At least 7 years of professional experience working on social problems at local, national and/or international levels in design for social impact, social innovation, community engagement or a relevant field;
• At least 3 years of college-level teaching experience. 

The online application should include:

• Current CV;
• Brief statement on social design education and practice;
• Brief statement of teaching philosophy;
• Portfolio of recent work and process;
• Names and contact information of three references. 

Additional Information:
Salary: Commensurate with experience and college policy; excellent benefits package. 

Apply:  The College will review applications as received. This position will remain open until filled. To ensure full consideration, materials must be received by March 12, 2021. All inquiries, nominations and applications will be held in the strictest confidence.

MICA, Graduate Studies, and the Center for Social Design are committed to advancing equity and social justice, and encourage applications from candidates belonging to groups that have been historically underrepresented in design and higher education, including (but not limited to) racial and ethnic minorities, women, LGBTQ people, and people with disabilities.

Application Instructions:
Full-Time Faculty, Social Design -  https://mica.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/Faculty/job/Baltimore-MD/Full-Time-Faculty--Social-Design_R1233 

Visit https://www.micahr.slideroom.com  You will be asked to login or create a login. Once you have logged in, please follow these instructions.  Instructions will also be posted in Slide Room as you are applying.

(subject to change per specific department requirements such as listed below)

Submit online: Two multi-page PDF documents. 

The first multi-page PDF document should include letter of application, comprehensive CV, statement of teaching philosophy, artist statement, and names and contact information including address, phone and email for three references. 

The second multi-page PDF document should include a portfolio of 20-25 images of professional creative work and 15-20 images of student work, to include descriptions. Links to live URLs may be submitted as well, but will be considered as a secondary source. Any additional media (MOV, MP3, etc.) should be formatted for Apple computers and have representative still image and description information in PDF portfolio document.

Please format PDF documents for screen resolution and viewing.  No physical media are requested nor will be returned. 

About MICA: The Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA), founded in 1826, is consistently ranked in the very top tier of visual arts colleges in the nation and enrolls approximately 1,800 undergraduate students and 300 graduate students. MICA offers programs of study leading to the BFA, MA, MAT, and MFA degrees, as well as post-baccalaureate certificate programs and a full slate of credit and noncredit courses for adults, college-bound students, and children.

Located in the City of Baltimore, MICA is committed to an expanded understanding of the role of creative citizens in communities and unique approaches to cross-cultural, economic, and political contexts and partnerships. MICA accelerates the knowledge, skills, habits, and work of creative people who are self-reflexive, visionary, and entrepreneurial. MICA is recognized as an important cultural resource for the Baltimore/Washington region, sponsoring many public and community-based programs, including more than 100 exhibitions by students, faculty, and nationally and internationally known artists annually, as well artists’ residencies, film series, lectures, readings, and performances. Visit the College’s website at www.mica.edu.

As part of our ongoing efforts to create a more equitable and inclusive campus community, MICA is committed to diversifying its faculty and is especially interested in qualified candidates who can contribute, through their research, teaching, and/or service, to the equity and excellence of our academic community. People of color, people from underrepresented groups, women, individuals with disabilities and veterans are highly encouraged to apply.

MICA is an equal opportunity employer. As an educational institution dedicated to individual development in the visual arts, MICA nurtures, supports, and celebrates diversity in all of its forms including aesthetic, cultural, and philosophical and does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, religion, age, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability status, socio-economic status, and marital status. This requires that the College develop and maintain a diverse community of trustees, administration, staff, faculty, and students; and that diversity is a fundamental philosophic value that informs the content of all of its programs and activities. MICA’s commitment to diversity prepares its graduates to excel professionally and assume leadership roles in a global context.

MICA provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please contact Human Resources at 410-225-2363.

About the Center for Social Design:
MICA’s Center for Social Design is an interdisciplinary Center dedicated to demonstrating and promoting the value of design in advancing equity and social justice, and to inspiring and preparing the next generation of creative changemakers. The Center is the culmination of a decade of pioneering and experimental work to define and demonstrate new models of social design education and practice. Over ten years of collaboration with partners in the public and social sectors across Baltimore has reinforced our commitment to increasing the social literacy of designers so they have a better understanding of the issues of equity, power, race and privilege that exist at the heart of the social problems we aim to address. Our work breaks down the walls between disciplines and enables truly interdisciplinary work to take place. We’re committed to expanding opportunities for all students at MICA to deepen their design literacy, focusing not just on formal design skills and disciplines such as graphic design or architecture, but learning new methods and processes for engaging people in making and doing. This is human-centered design.

To date, the Center has engaged more than 500 students and faculty across 12 disciplines within MICA, and worked on more than 100 projects with communities and partners that include A selection of our many collaborating partners include: Baltimore City Health Department, Baltimore City Public Schools, Cochlear Center for Hearing and Public Health, Johns Hopkins Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety & Health, Johns Hopkins Center for Behavior & Health, Johns Hopkins Center for Child & Community Health Research, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Maryland Department of Transportation, Maryland Energy Administration, Mayor’s Office of Employment Development, National Wildlife Federation, Neighborhood Design Center, Real Food Farm, Trust for Mutual Understanding, and Whole Foods Market.