Assistant Professor of Religion
- Employer
- Texas Christian University
- Location
- Texas, United States
- Salary
- Salary Commensurate with experience
- Date posted
- Sep 24, 2021
View more
- Position Type
- Faculty Positions, Humanities, Religion
- Employment Level
- Tenured/Tenured Track
- Employment Type
- Full Time
Application Deadline
Begin Reviewing Applications Oct 12, 2021
Position Details
The Department
of Religion invites applications for a full-time,
tenure-track assistant professor of religion with a concentration
in Native American and Indigenous Spiritual Traditions to begin
August 2022. Recognizing the holistic, interconnected, and
interdisciplinary nature of Native American and Indigenous
Spiritual Traditions, we welcome applicants from a wide array of
communities and fields of study. These might include, but not be
limited to, communities connected to lands in what is now called
Texas, the Great Plains, or the American Southeast or Southwest,
and the intersection of these communities and traditions with
fields such as decolonizing and Indigenous methodologies,
Borderlands studies, Indigenous languages, Indigenous medicine and
healing systems, and more. Candidates must have a Ph.D. or
equivalent in hand by the time of appointment. Preferred candidates
should have demonstrated experience with specific Native or
Indigenous communities and spiritualities, and commitment to
building respectful and mutually beneficial relationships. TCU
embraces the teacher-scholar model: excellence in teaching and
published scholarship will be expected. The teaching load is
typically five courses a year, three of which are introductory
courses in religion that meet one or more of the learning outcomes
associated with the “Religious
Traditions” (RT) category in the TCU Core Curriculum.
Upper-level courses will include classes on specific Native
American or Indigenous Spiritual Traditions and issues utilizing
the candidate’s particular area of expertise. We welcome candidates
whose experience and training in teaching, research, or community
involvement demonstrate their commitment to contributing to
diversity, equity, and inclusion. Preference will be given to
candidates whose experience and training have prepared them to make
significant contributions to any of the following interdisciplinary
curricular initiatives in the AddRan College of Liberal Arts: the
CALM (“Compassionate
Awareness and Living Mindfully”) group, The
Human-Animal Relationships minor, the Comparative Race and Ethnic Studies
Department, the Women
and Gender Studies Department, and the
university’s emerging initiatives and relationships with specific
Native American and Indigenous nations and communities. There
is also opportunity to collaborate with the university’s Native
American Nations and Communities Liaison and the Native American
Advisory Circle. The successful candidate will have a 3/2 teaching
load, and the salary and benefits are competitive.
This position will begin in August 2022, and it will be part of a
multi-position Diversity, Equity and Inclusion cluster hire by
TCU's AddRan College of Liberal Arts on race, ethnicity, and social
justice, which also involves searches in history, sociology, and
religion. AddRan desires to build a cohort of teacher-scholars
across disciplines and areas of specialization interested in
teaching and conducting research on race, racism, ethnicity, and
social justice. As part of the Diversity,
Equity and Inclusion cluster hire, AddRan College will provide
the cohort with opportunities and resources to participate in
mentoring and peer-support circles, research & writing
workshops, and other ongoing professional development.
Department Details
Committed to the liberal arts and its diverse disciplinary
perspectives, the Religion Department fosters an inquiring,
critical, and intersectional approach to the study of religion,
enabling students to become informed and engaged interpreters of
religious communities, texts, ideas, artifacts, and practices in
their cultural and historical contexts. The Department supports the
ethical and global aims of the university’s mission in its
commitment to prioritize diversity, equity, and inclusion and aims
to equip students to understand different worldviews expressed in
and beyond the world’s religions.
School/College Description
Named for TCU’s founders, Addison and Randolph Clark, the AddRan
College of Liberal Arts is home to the core academic disciplines of
the humanities and social sciences. The College includes
approximately 155 full-time faculty members, 11 departments
(Criminal Justice, Economics, English, Geography, History, Modern
Language Studies, Philosophy, Political Science, Religion,
Sociology & Anthropology, and Spanish and Hispanic Studies),
and two units of Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (Army and Air
Force). AddRan College departments confer 15 Bachelor of Arts and
six Bachelor of Science degrees, a Bachelor of General Studies, an
online master’s degree in Criminal Justice, a Master of Liberal
Arts degree, and master’s and Ph.D. degrees in History, English,
and Rhetoric and Composition.
University & Fort Worth Description
ABOUT TCU
Founded in 1873, Texas Christian University sits on 299 acres
nestled in a primarily residential part of Fort Worth, just minutes
away from downtown. The University includes eight schools and
colleges, in addition to the John V. Roach Honors College and the
new TCU and UNTHSC School of Medicine, which is operated in
collaboration with the University of North Texas Health Science
Center in Fort Worth.
Currently, TCU enrolls 9,474 undergraduates and 1,490 graduate
students. Twenty-six percent of students self-identify as a member
of a minority group, 5 percent are international students, and 42
percent are from out-of-state. Our students are supported by more
than 2,200 faculty and staff. The University has more than 700
full-time faculty members, 87 percent of whom hold a terminal
degree. For nine consecutive years, TCU has been selected as one of
the Great Colleges to Work For®.
At TCU, diversity, equity and inclusion are an educational
imperative that is tied directly to our University mission and
vision. For the second consecutive year, TCU has earned the Higher
Education Excellence in Diversity Award, which highlights our
ongoing commitment to build a comprehensive DEI strategy that
aligns with our core values and to create a campus culture where
everyone is respected and feels included. Among TCU’s actions this
year was approving a resolution to adopt DEI into its core
curriculum.
ABOUT FORT WORTH
Like TCU, Fort Worth has the approachable, friendly charm of a
smaller town, but offers the amenities, cultural activities,
diversity and unique personality of a much larger city. Fort Worth,
Texas, is the 13th largest city in the United States with an
ever-growing population nearing 1 million. Fort Worth is part of
the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area, the fourth largest
metropolitan area in the United States, and the number 1 tourist
destination in Texas. In 2018, bizjournals.com ranked Fort Worth
the 7th most affordable city to live and work in the United States
and U.S. News and World Report named Fort Worth one of the Best
Places to Live. Fort Worth, Dallas and Arlington all rank among the
top 25 most diverse cities in the country.
Fort Worth is known for its vast array of cultural, educational and
entertainment opportunities. The city boasts three world class art
museums—the Kimbell Art Museum, the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth
and the Amon Carter Museum of American Art. The Bass Performance
Hall is one of the premier performance venues in the country.
Concerts, film festivals and other events are held regularly at
Sundance Square, Panther Island and Near Southside venues.
Required Application Materials & Application
Instructions
Candidates must have a Ph.D. or equivalent in hand by the time of
appointment. TCU embraces the teacher-scholar model: excellence in
teaching and published scholarship will be expected. The teaching
load is typically five courses a year, three of which are
introductory courses in religion that meet the TCU Core Curriculum
Requirements (see http://www.core.tcu.edu).
Upper-level courses will include classes on specific Native
American or Indigenous spiritual traditions and issues utilizing
the candidate’s particular area of expertise. We welcome candidates
whose experience and training in teaching, research, or community
involvement demonstrate their commitment to contributing to
diversity, equity, and inclusion. Preferred candidates should have
demonstrated experience with specific Native or Indigenous
communities and spiritualities, and commitment to building
respectful and mutually beneficial relationships.
This position is part of TCU’s AddRan College of Liberal Arts
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Cluster hire. This race, ethnicity,
and social justice cluster hire seeks teacher-scholars from
multiple disciplines who may engage with any of the following
areas: African and African Diaspora studies, Migration and
Diasporas, Caribbean Studies, Critical Race Theory, Transformative
Justice, Intersectionality Studies, Emotional Labor of
Racialization, Decolonial and Postcolonial Thought, Digital, Public
and Spatial Humanities, Blackness and/in the Global South and/or
Gender and Sexuality Studies, Native American and Indigenous
Studies, African and African American Studies, Asian American and
Pacific Islander Studies, and Latinx Studies.
As part of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Cluster hire,
AddRan College will provide the cohort with opportunities and
resources to participate in mentoring and peer-support circles,
research & writing workshops and other ongoing professional
development.
To apply, upload a letter (signed and addressed to the Search
Committee Chair) indicating qualifications for the position, a
curriculum vitae, a one-page teaching statement, and a one-page
statement indicating the applicant’s experience with and
contributions to diversity, equity, and inclusion at this site. Three
confidential letters of recommendation should be sent by
recommenders or dossier service to hrtalentacquisition@tcu.edu.
Please address recommendation letters to Search Committee Chair Dr.
Darren Middleton. Consideration of candidates will begin on October
12, 2021 and continue until the position is filled. Select
interviews will be held at the annual meeting of the American
Academy of Religion in San Antonio, TX between November 20-23,
2021.
TCU is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and
recognizes and values the unique experiences drawn from differences
in race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, religion, and
veteran status. The Religion Department at TCU welcomes applicants
from diverse backgrounds.
AA/EEO Statement
As an AA/EEO employer, TCU recruits, hires, and promotes qualified
persons in all job classifications without regard to age, race,
color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity,
gender expression, national origin, ethnic origin, disability,
genetic information, covered veteran status, or any other basis
protected by law.
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