Community Studies Program: Assistant or Associate Teaching Professor of Community Activism (ini[...]

Company: University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC)
Location: Santa Cruz
Posted on: January 20, 2023

Job Description:

The Community Studies Program at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC) invites applications for an Assistant or Associate Teaching Professor position. Founded in 1969, Community Studies is UCSC's oldest interdisciplinary undergraduate degree program and a national pioneer in the field of experiential education related to community activism and social justice. The program consists of a core curriculum whose keystone is an extended field study focused on building community capacity and conditions for social change. The field study articulates with an array of topically focused coursework. More information about the history and pedagogy model of Community Studies is available at
We seek an outstanding, intellectually curious candidate who is widely trained in the social sciences, enthusiastic about undergraduate instruction and well versed in the history and contemporary state of community activism. The selected candidate will teach four courses per year at the undergraduate level (and perform two course equivalencies of effort for the program). Three of the courses will be within the core curriculum and the fourth course will be taught in areas drawing on the candidate's expected topical disciplinary expertise; especially economic justice, critical public health, climate justice, and broader questions of structural inequality arising from race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and class differences.
The incumbent will also assist the Faculty Director with program management, share responsibility for the field study and represent the program in UCSC ventures that share a community facing mission. The successful candidate will be expected to assume a leadership role and work closely with the Faculty Director. Applicants for the Associate Teaching Professor position with security of employment are expected to have a demonstrated record of effective program leadership. We welcome applicants with a demonstrated record of excellence in undergraduate teaching and demonstrable record of excellence in community activism related scholarly activity and participation
Applicants should be committed to critically appraising the shifting discursive field of community based social change efforts connected to community activism, social movements and/or the non-governmental/non-profit sector of civil society. We are especially interested in candidates whose work is future oriented and seeks to transcend the nonprofitization of social movements (and corresponding nonprofit industrial complex critique) by exploring emergent organizing and activist formations.
UC Santa Cruz values diversity, equity, and inclusion and is committed to hiring faculty who will work to advance these values. UC Santa Cruz is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) and an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution (AANAPISI) with a high proportion of first-generation students We welcome candidates who understand the barriers facing historically oppressed groups in higher education (as evidenced by life experiences and educational background) and who can clearly articulate participation in equity and diversity advancement efforts with respect to teaching, mentoring, creative/professional activity, and service towards building an equitable and scholarly environment. Activities promoting equity and inclusion at UC Santa Cruz will be recognized as important university service during the faculty promotion process. More information can be found:
The chosen candidate will be expected to sign a statement representing that they are not the subject of any ongoing investigation or disciplinary proceeding at their current academic institution or place of employment, nor have they in the past ten years been formally disciplined at any academic institution/place of employment. In the event the candidate cannot make this representation, they will be expected to disclose in writing to the hiring Dean the circumstances surrounding any formal discipline that they have received, as well as any current or ongoing investigation or disciplinary process of which they are the subject. (Note that discipline includes a negotiated settlement agreement to resolve a matter related to substantiated misconduct.)

Keywords: University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC), Santa Cruz , Community Studies Program: Assistant or Associate Teaching Professor of Community Activism (ini[...], Education / Teaching , Santa Cruz, California