Tenure Track Assistant, Associate or Full Professor

Mission or Goal of Unit

Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) School of Social Work invites applications for tenured/tenure track faculty members at the assistant, associate, or full professor level. Several positions will be filled in this open rank search. Founded in 1917, VCU’s School of Social Work is a long established leader in social work education and research. With BSW, MSW, and PhD programs as well as fully online and on-campus learning modalities, ours is one of the largest accredited, comprehensive social work programs in the United States. A preeminent national, urban public university and health sciences center, VCU is one of only 28 public universities nationwide designated as both a Carnegie designated Research Intensive (R1) and Community Engaged University, and our faculty are active contributors to VCU’s community-engaged research vision. VCU is located in the capital city of Richmond, recently ranked among the top 25 places to live in the U.S.

The mission of the VCU School of Social Work is to prepare professional social workers as practitioners, scholars and leaders; to generate research and scholarship for advancing knowledge and practice; and to contribute to the local, state, national, international and professional communities to improve quality of life. Guided by the principle of promoting social and economic justice in a diverse and multicultural society, our programs focus on service to and empowerment of people who experience oppression or vulnerability due to inadequate and/or inequitable distribution of personal, social or institutional resources. Our faculty and staff have articulated Commitments to Racial and Social Justice which guide our priorities and decision-making. We seek faculty candidates with demonstrated experience in advancing these priorities through their scholarship, teaching, and service.

As a research-intensive University, we welcome faculty colleagues with active research programs and publication records in social work and interdisciplinary refereed journals, as well as a track record of funding to support their research and scholarship, commensurate with career stage and rank. The SSW encourages and supports research across a range of substantive areas, paradigms, and methodologies, with a particular focus on research that embraces community engagement and impact. While all research areas are welcome, we have particular interest in research which contributes to our racial and social justice initiatives including health and behavioral health equity, anti-oppressive practice, and policy advocacy to promote social change.

Opportunities for collaborative research exist within a number of centers across the University, including the Clark-Hill Institute for Positive Youth Development, Partnership for People with Disabilities, Center on Health Disparities, Wright Center for Clinical and Translational Research, Institute for Drug and Alcohol Studies, Institute for Women’s Health, The Queer Research and Advocacy Center (Q Collective), and the Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics, among others. In addition, our proximity in the capital of Virginia allows collaboration with many state agencies, as well as proximity to federal agencies and organizational partnerships. We are building internal capacity in several areas including mental health, substance use/treatment and child welfare.

Chief purpose of this position in support of above mission or goal

This is an open rank, tenure-eligible faculty position in social work. Expectations are that the person filling this position will work with colleagues in social work, the community, and across the university to collaborate in research and teaching, and will expand the school’s perspectives to enhance an inclusive school and community. VCU is a research-intensive institution with a diverse community and commitment to multiculturalism. This position requires an active research agenda, interest in teaching, and a clear potential for scholarship to complement and expand existing expertise in the School. Successful candidates will enhance our focus on social and economic justice and interdisciplinary applied research and have experience or potential for working in a diverse community.

Position Responsibilities

Teaching
Faculty Member will have teaching opportunities at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Possible course assignments may include, but are not limited to, required courses in practice, oppressed groups, human behavior (person-in society), research, and policy in the B.S.W. program; and required foundation and concentration courses in practice, social justice, human behavior, research, and policy in the M.S.W. program; courses may also be taught in the Ph.D. program. In addition, faculty will have opportunities to mentor undergraduate and graduate students, and may choose to participate in field liaison activities.

Research
It is expected that faculty members will have an active research program, will have a record of publication in refereed journals (commensurate with their career stage and rank), and will show track record or potential to obtain funding to support their work. The school encourages and supports research across a range of substantive areas, paradigms, and methodologies, with a particular focus on community engagement and impact.

Service
Faculty member will serve on School and/or University committees as necessary, as well as in a professional capacity in their area of expertise.

Required Qualifications

• An earned PhD in Social Work or related discipline by start of position is required.
• All applicants should have the potential for excellence in teaching in one or more programs; an active research agenda; and clear potential for collaboration and expanding our faculty expertise.
• Applicants at the Assistant Professor rank should demonstrate intention and capacity to support a funded research agenda. Applicants at the Associate and full Professor ranks should demonstrate a track record of securing and sustaining external funding.
• Demonstrated experience working in and fostering a diverse faculty, staff, and student environment or commitment to do so as a faculty member at VCU is required.

Preferred Qualifications

• M.S.W. degree is strongly preferred.
• Practice experience is desirable.

Position Type: Teaching & Research Faculty
Full time equivalent: 100
Tenure: Tenure Track
Rank: Open Rank
Months: 9
Department: School of Social Work

Salary: commensurate with experience

Contact Information:
Contact Name: Sarah K. Price
Contact Email: skprice@vcu.edu