Assistant Professor of Practice / DePreist Visiting Professor in Art History

Brief Description of PSU/School/Dept

Portland State University is a nationally acclaimed leader in sustainability and community-based learning. Oregon's largest and most diverse university, PSU serves just under 30,000 students from 50 states and nearly 100 nations. Within this context, PSU's School of Art + Design offers degree programs that help students explore the many ways artists and designers function in and serve society. With more than 1,000 undergraduate majors, a vibrant dual-focus graduate program and a dedicated faculty of artists, designers and scholars, the School of A+D is a place where students from a variety of backgrounds interact, exchange ideas and cross conventional aesthetic boundaries.

The School of Art + Design's degree programs are built upon an intensive first-year core that introduces the materials, language, ideas and techniques of interdisciplinary practice in art, design and art history. From this common core, students may pursue a BFA degree in Art Practice, a BFA in Graphic Design or a BA/BS in Art History. Emphasizing community, visual literacy, the critical exploration of ideas, and the importance of craft, our degree programs provide students with opportunities to forge connections among traditions of visual art, the social dimension of art and design, and their own developing expression.

Position Summary

Portland State University College of the Arts and the School of Art + Design invite applications for the James DePreist Visiting Professorship. One of the first African- American conductors on the world stage, James DePreist helmed orchestras from Amsterdam to Tokyo and is credited with building the Oregon Symphony into one worthy of international acclaim. A National Medal of Arts winner, poet and educator, Mr. DePreist demonstrated a lifelong commitment to the power of arts education and the importance of equal access. This Professorship seeks to perpetuate his exemplary spirit by supporting inclusive experiences and diverse, non-western perspectives in art and design education.

The teaching focus of each new Professorship is determined by the current needs of the School of Art + Design in concert with the interests and expertise of the successful candidate. For the 2022-2024 position we seek a scholar with expertise in African-American, African Diaspora or Native American/Indigenous art history of any time period, including contemporary.

This is a 1.0 FTE, two-year position, renewable for a maximum total of four years. The position begins September 16, 2022.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Typically, a Full-time Fixed Term position teaches 36 credits during the three-quarter academic year.  However, this position involves an instructional workload reduction of 12 credits for funded DEI community-engagement and outreach.

The successful candidate will have an active scholarly research agenda; a commitment to teaching lower and upper-division courses in the area of his/her/their expertise; and an interest in the possibility of engaging local collections of pertinent material, for example the Native American holdings of the Portland Art Museum.

Minimum Qualifications

• Ph.D. in art history or related field strongly preferred; ABD candidates and/or candidates with an MA in art history and relevant experience will also be considered.
• Applicants must possess knowledge of current technologies relative to instructional tasks and an interest in their creative use.
• A record of accomplishment, such as art historical publications and/or curatorial achievements.
• College-level teaching experience.
• Demonstrated interest in contributing to a contemporary interdisciplinary setting in an atmosphere of close faculty-student mentoring.

 Preferred Qualifications

• Two years of teaching experience at the college/university level beyond a teaching assistantship. 
• Experience teaching one or more of the following: Critical Race theory, Diaspora studies, indigenous studies, post-colonial theory, decolonization theory, Ethnic studies, feminist theory, African-American art, African Diaspora arts, Indigenous arts/Visual arts by indigenous peoples of the Americas, and/or theory from a non-eurocentric perspective.
• An interest in developing community-based courses.
• A record of community outreach activities.
• Experience in curriculum development.

For additional information about this position and to apply please visit: https://jobs.hrc.pdx.edu/postings/35164

To apply, please submit:

• A letter of interest.
• A CV.
• A statement of teaching philosophy. A statement of research interests. Evidence of teaching effectiveness. Writing sample(s).
• Full contact information for three references (including phone numbers and email addresses).

Review of applications will begin November 15th, 2021 and will continue until the finalists are identified. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.

For further information, please contact Professor Alberto McKelligan Hernandez at alberto6@pdx.edu or (503) 725-3366.