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MFA Interim Program Director

Employer
Stetson University
Location
Deland, Florida
Salary
Salary is competitive.
Date posted
Feb 14, 2023

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Job Details

COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES

POSITION: MFA Interim Program Director

Stetson University invites applications for the position of Interim Director of the MFA of the Americas Program, the low-residency graduate program in creative writing in the College of the Arts and Sciences, for 2023-24. The position is a one-year, twelve-month appointment, to coincide with the MFA academic calendar and residencies, which occur in December and June.

QUALIFICATIONS:

  • MFA in Creative Writing
  • 3-5 years of administrative/management experience
  • College-level teaching experience (preferred)

RESPONSIBILITIES:
The MFA Interim Program Director is responsible for the academic excellence and vitality of the MFA program, including a curriculum and structure that aligns with AWP hallmarks for low-residency programs. As an interdisciplinary graduate program, it is understood that the MFA program must include a healthy number of students, guests, and faculty to create a vibrant intellectual community. The MFA Interim Program Director is responsible for administering the program and will:

  • plan and coordinate two annual 10-day MFA residencies, one local and one abroad, and manage ongoing program logistics during residencies
  • oversee the program budget;
  • hire and onboard returning/new adjunct hires each semester;
  • mentor and advise faculty;
  • maintain open lines of communication with faculty and administration;
  • handle admissions and recruiting functions;
  • ensure effective messaging and program marketing
  • represent MFA program at annual AWP conference and at on-campus events and collaborations
  • work with staff to maintain program websites and database listings
  • supervise program staff
  • oversee and complete appropriate program assessment;
  • communicate with and report to the Dean’s office as requested.


Depending on the experience and interest of the candidate, the Interim MFA Program Director will have the opportunity to teach an undergraduate workshop.

THE DEPARTMENT
The English department is a vibrant community of undergraduate, graduate, and faculty writers that supports the English major and minor, the Creative Writing Minor, and the MFA of the Americas program; we likewise support area studies programs, the Gender Studies program, the Pre-Law advisory program, and the University Writing Program. We are committed to engaging our students and colleagues in scholarship, critique, and creative practice. For more information, see the department web page: https://www.stetson.edu/other/academics/undergraduate/english.php.

The MFA of the Americas is designed to develop writers whose creative practice embodies an expanded notion of inquiry, making, contexts and kinships. The curriculum emphasizes craft, experimentation, reading strategies, collaboration, translation, site-specificity and an exploration of the political, social, aesthetic and cultural constellations that form us and our work. For more information, see the MFA Experience page: https://www.stetson.edu/artsci/mfa/

Since 1995, the Sullivan Creative Writing program has sponsored curriculum, student scholarships and faculty support for creative practitioners who make work using text.

THE COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES:
Stetson’s College of Arts and Sciences (http://www.stetson.edu/portal/artsci/) is the largest and most diverse of the University’s colleges and schools. With nineteen academic departments and nine interdisciplinary programs, the College is the liberal arts core of the University; it includes the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, education, and creative arts. A great strength of the College is its faculty of approximately 140 full-time teacher-scholars. The College offers 31 undergraduate majors and 34 undergraduate minors; six graduate degrees are offered in Education, Counselor Education, and Creative Writing. Every undergraduate major requires a senior research project, giving students the opportunity to design and carry out independent research under faculty mentorship. Our academic programs are shaped by the values of social justice and civic responsibility.

All of our courses and programs of study promote engaged learning, whereby students create connections between the classroom or lab and the local, regional, and global community. The academic programs of the College of Arts and Sciences prepare students to live significant lives, to interact with and positively affect the world around them.

THE UNIVERSITY:
Founded in 1883, Stetson University (http://www.stetson.edu) is a private, selective university comprised of a rich array of liberal arts and professional academic programs. Collectively, Stetson’s faculty works with nearly 4,000 students in undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs. The University’s historic main campus, located in DeLand, enrolls more than 2,600 students in undergraduate programs in the College of Arts & Sciences, the School of Business Administration, and the School of Music. Stetson University College of Law, Florida’s first law school, moved from the main campus to Gulfport in 1954, and, with the addition of the Tampa Law Center, serves approximately 1,000 students working full-time or part-time toward J.D. or LL.M. degrees. Graduate programs offered include Business, Accounting, Educational Leadership, Counseling, and Creative Writing. Florida’s oldest private institution of higher learning, Stetson has regularly been ranked among the best regional universities in the Southeast and was the first private college in Florida to be granted a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.

Stetson University provides an inspiring education that engages students with rigorous academic and creative study grounded in liberal learning and promotes civic values of personal and social responsibility. Working closely with faculty and with one another, students cultivate abilities to explore issues deeply, think critically, reason empirically, speak persuasively, and connect ideas creatively. Firmly committed to inclusive excellence, our vibrant community of teacher-scholars nurtures the potential of individual students to lead lives of significance and prepares each to meet the challenges of shaping the future—locally, nationally, and globally.

THE COMMUNITY:
DeLand is a picturesque residential community of 32,000 located 20 miles west of Daytona Beach and 35 miles northeast of Orlando. The area offers extensive cultural as well as recreational activities.

SALARY:  Salary is competitive.

STARTING DATE:  July 1, 2023

APPLICATION:
Applicants must send the following materials for consideration: 1) a cover letter, 2) a curriculum vitae, 3) a 20-page writing sample of creative work, 4) transcript from the institution awarding the highest degree (a copy is acceptable for screening), and 5) three letters of recommendation [or contact information for three references]. Candidates are encouraged to highlight skills and experiences that demonstrate a commitment to diversity and inclusion. Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled, with preference given to applications received on or before March 20, 2023.

Application materials may be submitted electronically to Dr. Joel Davis, Search Committee Chair, at englishdept@stetson.edu.

Stetson University is an Equal Opportunity Employer that affirms cultural diversity and inclusion as a core value of academic excellence at Stetson University. We are committed to achieving equal access in education, employment, and participation through the recruitment and retention of outstanding faculty, staff, and students from diverse backgrounds, and to meaningful academic and intellectual transformation in curriculum, research and service. We are dedicated to actions and policies that foster a community in which individuals with various identities, cultures, backgrounds, and viewpoints work together to create opportunities for engagement through rewarding and fulfilling careers and personal experiences in a culturally and racially diverse society and a globalized world. We strongly encourage members of historically under-represented and economically-disadvantaged groups and women to apply for employment. Stetson University is an EEO, ADA, ADEA, and GINA employer.

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Our mission at Stetson University is to provide an excellent education in a creative community where learning and values meet, and to foster in students the qualities of mind and heart that will prepare them to reach their full potential as informed citizens of local communities and the world.

At Stetson, the art of teaching is practiced through programs solidly grounded in a tradition of liberal learning that stimulates critical thinking, imaginative inquiry, creative expression, and lively intellectual debate. The art of learning is enhanced through small interactive classes, close student-faculty alliances, and collaborative approaches that provide the foundation for rewarding careers and advanced study in selective graduate and professional programs. We embrace diverse methodologies to foster effective communication, information and technological literacy, and aesthetic appreciation. We encourage the development of informed convictions, independent judgment, and lifelong commitments to learning that are characteristic features of the enlightened citizen. In bringing together learning and values, the University encourages all of its members to demonstrate personal integrity; to develop an appreciation for the spiritual dimension of life; to embrace leadership in an increasingly complex, interdependent, and technological world; and to commit to active forms of social responsibility.

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