Visiting Assistant Professor of Emerging Media

About Occidental College

Founded in 1887, Occidental is a nationally recognized, private college of the liberal arts and sciences, dedicated to providing a gifted and diverse group of students with a total educational experience of the highest quality -- one that prepares them for leadership in an increasingly complex, interdependent and pluralistic world.

What makes Occidental special? An intellectually rigorous academic environment. Small classroom settings where students collaborate with professors and their peers while pursuing or discovering their passion. A beautiful residential campus that offers students hands-on engagement with the cultural and intellectual resources of Los Angeles. A community open to stimulating conversation and divergent points of view. Some 2,100 students from 46 states and 28 countries choose from 41 majors and minors and participate in one the country’s top undergraduate research programs. Oxy students routinely win top awards and fellowships; its first Rhodes Scholar was named in 1907. Dedicated to excellence and equity, Occidental also is one of the country’s most economically diverse campuses, according to the New York Times. Some 71 percent of Oxy students receive some form of financial aid; 20 percent are Pell Grant recipients; and 19 percent are the first in their family to attend college

Visiting Assistant Professor of Emerging Media Media Arts & Culture Department

POSITION SUMMARY

Occidental College’s Media Arts & Culture Department (MAC) seeks a Visiting Assistant Professor of Emerging Media for a 1-year full-time, terminal appointment.

The successful candidate would be a critically-engaged scholar/practitioner with demonstrated teaching/mentoring abilities and a compelling body of project and/or publication-based research that advances the creative and cultural possibilities of emergent media forms. Given the rapid pace of technological change, we leave the definition of emergent media intentionally broad, but areas of emphasis might include: VR/AR (virtual reality, augmented reality, immersive media), speculative design and worldbuilding, animation, game studies and design, transmedia storytelling, and interactive and computational media forms.

We seek a candidate who can envision the liberal arts context as a space to both imagine and critique emergent media practices through both theory and practice, grounding new forms within larger histories, ethical frameworks, and/or questions of access, agency, and activism. We are particularly interested in exploring ways that emergent media can expand the diversity of perspectives, identities, and voices represented through media and how these experiences and stories can reach and engage audiences. The ideal candidate can offer courses that integrate technical emerging media practices in ways that are accessible to both production and critical media track students. Their creative media work might engage with issues of social justice, health, inclusion and representation, gender, sexual, or racial identity, and/or the environment.

The position entails teaching a 3/2 5-course course which might include one of our gateway courses—Introduction to Digital Media and Culture; Introduction to Visual and Critical Studies; and Aesthetics of Cinema—and electives in the candidate’s area of interest, listed under such thematic headings as: Topics in Emerging Media, Topics in Animation & Visual Effects, Topics in Digital Culture, and/or Topics in Media Theory and Practice. In addition to these courses, the position also requires curating a semester of the MAC Cinematheque Screening event series.

Our ideal candidate will help us continue developing and supporting a signature approach to media arts and cultural studies that leverages Occidental’s location in Los Angeles and manifests our commitments to local/global dialogues, community-based learning, undergraduate research, co-curricular curation and exhibition, and social justice.

QUALIFICATIONS

An advanced terminal degree (Ph.D., M.F.A., or equivalent) in media studies or media practices is required at the time of appointment.

Revision Date: 12.22

SALARY RANGE

EXPECTED SALARY RANGE: $57,200 to $75,000

If you are offered this position at Occidental College, your final base salary compensation will be determined based on

factors such as skills, education, experience, and/or geographic location. In addition to those factors, Occidental

complies with applicable pay equity laws and considers internal equity among current employees when developing the

final offer. Please keep in mind that the range mentioned above is the base salary range for the role. Hiring at the

maximum of the range would not be typical in order to allow for future and continued salary growth.

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

The deadline for receiving application materials is Wednesday, January 18, 2023. Please submit the following as a single electronic file (PDF) to: emergingmedia2023@oxy.edu (1) a cover letter detailing your professional activity and pedagogical experience, as well as how each resonates with the position criteria and your interest in teaching in a liberal arts environment; (2) a current CV; (3) a link to a professional work sample; (4) a course syllabus from a past class; and (5) names and contact information of three professional references.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

The position start is August 2023 and includes a medical benefits package. For more information about the College and the Media Arts & Culture Department, please visit the MAC website at http://www.oxy.edu/mac.

Occidental is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not unlawfully discriminate against employees or applicants on

the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, breastfeeding

or related medical condition, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, age, marital status, physical disability, mental

disability, medical condition, genetic characteristic or information, military and veteran status, or any other

characteristic protected by state or federal law. Occidental is strongly committed to increasing the diversity of the

campus community and the curriculum, and to fostering an inclusive, equitable, and just environment within which

students, staff, administrators, and faculty thrive. Candidates who can contribute to this goal through their work are

encouraged to identify their strengths and experiences in this area. Individuals advancing the College’s strategic equity

and justice goals and those from groups whose underrepresentation in the field are particularly encouraged to apply.

Salary is commensurate with experience and qualifications. A comprehensive benefits package is available that includes:

excellent medical, dental, vision, and retirement benefits; additional extras including use of gym facilities and the

College Library. For a detailed description of benefits, please visit:

https://www.oxy.edu/offices-services/humanresources/benefits-information.

All qualified applicants will be considered for employment, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent

with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for

Hiring Ordinance.

Revision Date: 12.22

Occidental College is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with qualifying

disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation because of a disability for any part of the application or

employment process, please contact Human Resources (hr@oxy.edu).

As a condition of hire for a staff position and for appointment to a faculty position, Occidental College requires that all

candidates who have received a conditional offer of employment complete an application form (if they have not already

done so) and consent to a background check. Satisfactory completion of a background check, along with preemployment

verifications and references are required as a condition of employment, but only as permitted by federal, state, and local

law, including the City of Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance.



This position is included in the Non-Tenure Track Bargaining Unit, and the successful applicant will be a bargaining unit employee, subject to the terms of the College’s Collective Bargaining Agreement with SEIU Local 721.