Tenure Track Assistant/Associate Professor, Department of English (African American Literary and

University of Delaware

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

The University of Delaware is an Equal Opportunity Employer which encourages applications from Minority Group Members, Women, Individuals with Disabilities and Veterans. The University's Notice of Non-Discrimination can be found at http://www.udel.edu/aboutus/legalnotices.html


Job No: 499422
Work Type: Faculty
Location: Newark/Hybrid
Categories: English, Full Time

Assistant or Associate Professor of African American Literary and Cultural Studies

Department of English, College of Arts and Sciences, University of Delaware

The Department of English in the College of Arts and Sciences seeks an Assistant or Associate Professor tenure-track position in African American Literary and Cultural Studies. Successful candidates must have a doctorate in English or a field related to African American Studies. Applicants who are ABD should be prepared to complete their doctoral program by August 2023. Successful candidates must demonstrate excellence or strong potential in research and teaching as well as a commitment to and experience in promoting diversity and fostering equity in the classroom, at the University, and in the broader community. Preference will be given to candidates with experience in mentoring and advising graduate students.

QUALIFICATIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES: We welcome applicants with a robust research agenda in African American, Afro-Caribbean, or African Diaspora studies broadly defined, with a preference for candidates whose work covers the 20th or 21st century. Possible areas of research include (but are not restricted to) literary and cultural studies, material culture studies, visual culture, performance studies, archival studies, digital humanities, public humanities, Black feminism and queer studies, disability studies, writing practice and pedagogy, critical theory and environmental humanities. We are open to a wide variety of theoretical approaches.

The successful candidate will join English Department faculty who share commitments to thoughtful research, student-centered learning, interdisciplinary work, mentoring, and community engagement.

The position includes a competitive salary, a 2-2 teaching load, and excellent benefits, such as family-friendly policies. This position provides teaching opportunities in both our undergraduate and our graduate programs and will benefit from the department’s long-standing affiliations with other departments, programs, and initiatives on campus including the African American Public Humanities Initiative, Africana Studies, Art History, History, Material Cultural Studies, the Library and Special Collections, Museum Studies, and Women and Gender Studies, among others.

The Department of English is deeply committed to social justice in our teaching, scholarship, and community-engagement work, and we are dedicated to creating and sustaining a department community founded on the principles and practice of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Our community includes some of the top scholars and educators of a broad range of fields, including African American Studies, literary and cultural studies, English Education, film, creative writing, environmental humanities, print and material culture studies, and professional and technical writing, rhetoric and composition. Our department includes a partnership with UD’s Library, Museums, and Press that focuses on Black archives and community engagement, and we are one of four departments that support the African American Public Humanities Initiative for graduate students. The successful candidate will join an intellectual community determined to lead the way in re-energizing and redefining the integrated arts of critical research and writing across the spectrum of print and digital media. We seek applicants capable of engaging with our students, and of contributing to our community, with expertise, imagination, and passion. In addition to working with outstanding scholar-educators in the department, English Department faculty benefit from our strong affiliations with and leadership roles in interdisciplinary studies programs on campus, organizations associated with UD faculty (including the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, the Winterthur Museum, the Folger Library, the Hagley Museum, and The Library Company of Philadelphia), and numerous other archives and resources in the region.

The College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Delaware offers exceptional educational experiences including integrated instruction, research and public engagement. With 24 academic departments and more than 25 centers, programs and institutes, the College serves more than 6,000 undergraduate students and 2,000 graduate students with CAS majors, but also every single University student through fundamental course work. The College’s 600 faculty members emphasize the enduring value of an arts and science education and share a deep commitment to excellence in scholarship and all forms of creative and intellectual expression. The College includes departments in the arts, humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences, and it features outstanding research and teaching facilities. Faculty and staff encourage and support innovative interdisciplinary collaborations, and students engage local, national and global audiences through research and creative activity. With annual research expenditures of approximately $35 million, the College currently houses several large, interdisciplinary grants with significant funding from the NIH and NSF.

The University of Delaware is one of the nation’s oldest institutions of higher education, combining tradition and innovation. The university recognizes and values the importance of diversity and inclusion in enriching the experience of its employees and in supporting its academic mission. We are committed to attracting and retaining employees with varying identities and backgrounds, and we strongly encourage applications from educators from under-represented groups. UD provides equal access to and opportunity in its programs, facilities, and employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, age, marital status, disability, public assistance status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.

TO APPLY: Review of applications will begin November 7, 2022, and continue until the position is filled. Applicants should upload the following materials: a curriculum vitae and a letter of application that addresses the candidate’s strengths in research and teaching as well as a commitment to and experience in promoting diversity and fostering equity in the classroom, at the University, and in the broader community. Candidates who are invited to interview will be asked to submit a writing sample (15-20 pages) and three letters of recommendation will be requested. For additional information, please contact the search committee chair, Professor Tim Spaulding, at aspauldi@udel.edu (please indicate “African American Literary and Cultural Studies Search” in the subject line).

SALARY AND BENEFITS: Compensation packages are highly competitive and commensurate with experience and qualifications. The UD benefits package is one of the best in the nation.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY: The University of Delaware is an Equal Opportunity Employer and encourages applications from members of underrepresented groups. The University's Notice of Non-Discrimination can be found at http://www.udel.edu/aboutus/legalnotices.html.

Notice of Non-Discrimination, Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action
The University of Delaware does not discriminate against any person on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, genetic information, marital status, disability, religion, age, veteran status or any other characteristic protected by applicable law in its employment, educational programs and activities, admissions policies, and scholarship and loan programs as required by Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and other applicable statutes and University policies. The University of Delaware also prohibits unlawful harassment including sexual harassment and sexual violence.

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