Assistant Professor of African American Literature and Culture/College of Liberal Arts

Assistant Professor of African American Literature and Culture/College of Liberal Arts

Job Class Code: 10031
FLSA: Exempt
Posting Number: FRGV1721
Location: Rio Grande Valley
Division/Organization: Provost - Academic Affairs
Appointment Period for Non-Tenure Position:
Tenure Status: Tenure Track
FTE: 1.0

Scope of Job:
We seek applicants who are dedicated to serving The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley's student body as an Assistant Professor of African American Literature and Culture beginning in the 2025-2026 academic year.

The search is open to all subfields and periods. Professors in the Department of Literatures and Cultural Studies will teach courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels, with an opportunity for reduced teaching load commensurate with research activity. UTRGV is a Carnegie R2 institution with R1 aspirations. We are especially interested in candidates whose research and teaching interests are positioned in and/or intersects with other genres and fields, such as transatlantic Black studies, gender studies, disability studies, Latinx studies, Caribbean studies, French-phoneme literature, popular culture studies, Asian American studies, and/or Native American/Indigenous Peoples studies. The successful applicant will teach courses in African American literature and culture and will have the opportunity to grow and develop courses within the English program and develop new classes conceptualized thematically and/or through an interdisciplinary lens. The successful applicant will maintain an active research agenda and contribute to the Department of Literatures and Cultural Studies and UTRGV's strategic goals. The teaching load and research requirements shall be commensurate with an emerging R1 university.

About UTRGV: UTRGV serves the Rio Grande Valley and beyond via an innovative and unique multicultural education dedicated to student access and success. By championing leading research, healthcare, and application of university discoveries, we support sustainable development, community engagement, and well-being. The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) is committed to building and sustaining a highly qualified and talented faculty to pursue excellence in everything that we do, including teaching, research, and service.

Drawing on our unique identity as the leading Hispanic-Serving Institution in a bilingual and bicultural environment, UTRGV will promote student access and success by building from strength in education and creating a vibrant campus experience. By 2027, we will accelerate transformation in the Rio Grande Valley and beyond by driving meaningful advancements in research and creative works, expanding access to high-quality and affordable healthcare, and fostering authentic community engagement and integration.

UTRGV is a distributed campus, one university spanning four counties and multiple locations. Our purpose is to be a university for the entire Rio Grande Valley and beyond. Over 91% of the students enrolled at UTRGV identify as Hispanic, making UTRGV one of the top 3 universities with the highest percentage of Hispanic students. For additional information, please visit UTRGV website.

Minimum Qualifications:
Qualified candidates will hold a Ph.D. in English, Cultural Studies, Ethnic Studies, or Comparative Literature from an accredited institution of higher education (candidates with a terminal degree other than English must have at least 18 hours of graduate credit in English). The search committee will consider ABDs, but a PhD must be in hand by August 31st, 2025.

Discipline Specific Required Qualifications:
A foundation in Literary Studies and Cultural Studies with specialization in African American literature and culture.

Preferred Qualification:
Demonstrated ability to develop and maintain a scholarly research agenda; to pursue external funding and/or grants; to teach African American literature and cultural studies courses; to collaborate in interdisciplinary contexts.

Salary: Commensurate with Qualifications and Experience
License or Certification Required?: No
Number of Vacancies: 1
Desired Start Date: 09/01/2025

EEO Statement:
It is the policy of The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley to promote and ensure equal employment opportunities for all individuals without regard to race, color, national origin, sex, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information or protected veteran status. In accordance with the requirements of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended, our University is committed to comply with all government requirements and ensures non-discrimination in its education programs and activities, including employment. We encourage women, minorities and differently abled persons to apply for employment positions of interest.

Open Date: 10/11/2024

Special Instructions to Applicants:
Complete all sections on the application. If you are applying for the first time, please complete all biographical information including address, email and phone number. You may update this at any time by selecting to edit your profile in the application. Security sensitive; All UTRGV employees are required to have a criminal background check (CBC). CBCs will be conducted for all candidates invited for an on-campus interview.

Additional Information:
UTRGV is a distributed institution. As such and as assigned, the position may require presence at multiple locations throughout the Rio Grande Valley. Work is performed primarily in a general office environment. This position is security sensitive and thereby subject to the provisions of the Texas Education Code §51.215. The retirement plan for this position is Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length. This position has the option to elect the Optional Retirement Program (ORP) instead of TRS, subject to the position being 40 hours per week and at least 135 days in length

Please Note:
Texas law requires faculty members whose primary language is not English to demonstrate proficiency in English as determined by a satisfactory paper-based test score of 500 (computer-based of 173 or internet-based of 61) on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or a satisfactory test score of 6.0 on the International English Language Testing System (IELTS).
Incomplete applications will not be considered. All positions are subject to budget approval.

To apply, visit https://careers.utrgv.edu/postings/45180 jeid-4fa4e99f3a782745927ccc154ecc5103