Term-Tenure Track Assistant Professor of English

The Department of Language, Literature &Writing at Messiah University invites applications for a full-time, term-tenure track position as Assistant Professor of English specializing in composition to begin August 2024. The department seeks an experienced educator to teach first-year composition and professional writing courses and to serve as the Director of Writing.

Responsibilities: We seek a dynamic teacher committed to working closely with undergraduate students in a Christian university environment. Successful candidates must demonstrate experience in and an ability to teach first-year composition as well as professional writing courses. The best candidates will be conversant with the ways theories about race, culture, and inclusive excellence impact the practice of writing. Evidence of administrative ability to serve as Director of Writing is required as is an ability to contribute to other departmental and institutional service. Successful candidates will have a demonstrated record of publication, excellence in teaching, and administrative experience in a university writing program or writing center.

Qualifications: A Ph.D. in Rhetoric and Composition or in English with a focus in Rhetoric and Composition is required. Previous experience teaching first-year composition is required. Experience administering a university Writing Program is preferred. Candidates must evidence the potential for strong classroom teaching and positive student interaction and mentorship. Messiah University selects its educators for their Christian commitment, practice of inclusive excellence, and proven teaching ability.

The Program: The English program at Messiah University assists students in studying a wide array of written texts using a variety of critical thinking and writing skills to help them become perceptive readers, insightful thinkers, and responsible writers. Professors encourage students to develop perspectives on the relationship of Christian faith to all aspects of literary and writing studies. Our English curriculum offers a comprehensive education in literature, theory, creative writing and professional writing.

The Department: The Department of Language, Literature and Writing is a community of faculty and students who pursue the call to creative thought, engaged discussion, perceptive reading and responsible writing as tools for the future. The department includes 9 full-time faculty members: 5 in English, 3 in Spanish, and 1 in Chinese Studies. Faculty pursue scholarship and professional interests in literary studies, creative writing, rhetoric and composition, professional writing, language studies, linguistics, cultural studies, pedagogy, and the integration of Christian faith and scholarship.

The University: Messiah University is a Christian university of the liberal and applied arts and sciences and has a student body of nearly 2,500 undergraduate students including 18.5% under-represented and 2.6% international students from 22 countries and over 700 graduate students including 18.8% of students from under-represented populations.

The University is committed to an embracing evangelical spirit rooted in the Anabaptist, Pietist and Wesleyan traditions of the Christian Church. Our mission is to educate men and women toward maturity of intellect, character and Christian faith in preparation for lives of service, leadership and reconciliation in church and society. Messiah University is a teaching institution that emphasizes instruction but values research and public service. Strong support is given to faculty development in teaching and scholarship.

Diversity: Messiah University’s commitment to diversity and inclusive excellence draws inspiration from its mission “to educate men and women toward maturity of intellect, character and Christian faith in preparation for lives of service, leadership and reconciliation in church and society.” The university has pursued this vision through a strategic planning process that encourages diversity through employee and student composition, campus climate, and an educational program that enables educators and students to embrace diversity.

Candidates should clearly articulate why diversity and cultural intelligence matter to them as persons of faith as well as in their profession. Candidates will speak to how as a potential employee, they will contribute to the advancement of this vision through their teaching-learning, research, institutional service, and public engagement.

Start Date: Fall 2024

Compensation: Salary and rank commensurate with qualifications and experience.

Applications/Nominations: Application materials will be reviewed upon receipt and will be accepted until the position is filled. Please provide a current curriculum vitae or resume as well as a letter of interest that clearly explains how your Christian faith represents a strong fit with the mission of Messiah University, which is “to educate men and women toward maturity of intellect, character and Christian faith in preparation for lives of service, leadership and reconciliation in church and society."

Apply online at: https://jobs.messiah.edu/postings/25689

Messiah University does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, sex, national or ethnic origin, disability, or veteran’s status in the recruitment and admission of students, the recruitment and employment of faculty and staff, or the operation of any of its programs. Consistent with our nondiscrimination statement, the University does not tolerate abuse or harassment of employees, students or other individuals associated with the University. This includes, but is not limited to, vendors, contractors, and guests on the basis of, but not limited to, any of the above categories.