Assistant Professor - Native American and Indigenous Studies

Company: San Jose State University
Location: San Jose
Posted on: April 16, 2024

Job Description:

Position and rank: Assistant Professor of Native American and Indigenous Studies
Department: Sociology and Interdisciplinary Social Sciences
Compensation: Commensurate with qualifications, experience, and rank as established by the CSU Salary Schedule. Anticipated hiring academic year annual salary range: $83,000 - $88,000. See Benefits Summary for details about the CSU's excellent employment benefits.
Target Start Date: August 2024
Application Deadline: December 8, 2023


Position Description
San Jose State University Department of Sociology and Interdisciplinary Social Sciences (SISS) invites applications for an assistant professor position emphasizing California native communities, the urban Indigenous experience, community research, and decolonizing methodologies. Responsibilities include teaching Native American and Indigenous Studies courses, building the program's curriculum, and helping to develop a minor and a B.A. degree.
Candidates should demonstrate how their research, teaching, and experience connect with decolonizing methodologies and community-based participatory research. The area of specialization within Native American and Indigenous Studies is open. Still, candidate profiles should reflect the ability to help develop a curriculum around decolonization and connecting local, regional, and transnational issues. Candidates should be able to apply critical, indigenizing, decolonial, and culturally sustaining methods to their instruction. The successful candidate will be interested in developing, managing, and strengthening cross-departmental partnerships and have a history of working with tribes and Indigenous communities and developing community-based projects and partnerships in higher education.
Additional professional responsibilities include research, scholarship and creative activity, and service to the University, profession, and community. These responsibilities generally include advising students, participation in campus and system-wide committees, maintaining office hours, working collaboratively and productively with colleagues, and participating in traditional academic functions. Successful candidates will establish an on-campus presence at SJSU to fulfill their teaching and service responsibilities.
The Sociology and Interdisciplinary Social Sciences department is part of the College of Social Sciences, which is committed to equitable and inclusive teaching and learning. The College sees faculty and student success as inextricably linked and strives to provide culturally-sustaining and academically-affirming approaches to supporting and engaging students and faculty. We provide opportunities for faculty development around asset-based, holistic student success and support scholarship of engagement that addresses issues that affect our campus and community. We strive to build leadership capacity and foster a culture of support and belonging for faculty, staff, and students.
SISS and San Jose State University value diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. Our excellence in research, teaching, and service can only be fully realized by faculty, students, and staff who share our commitment to these values. SJSU enrolls more than 36,000 students, many of whom are historically underserved, and around 45% are first-generation and 38% are Pell-recipients. SJSU is a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander (AANAPISI) Serving Institution. The university's commitment to social justice extends from its vibrant, inclusive campus to an international network of over 275,000 alumni. As such, San Jose State is committed to increasing the diversity of its faculty so our disciplines, students, and the community can benefit from multiple ethnic and gender perspectives.
Successful candidates will demonstrate evidence of a commitment to equity and inclusion through their research, teaching, and/or service. We ask that all applicants include a Diversity Statement with their application package. A guide to writing this statement can be found at SJSU Diversity Statement Guidelines, along with information about how these statements will be evaluated.


Required Qualifications

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• An earned doctorate (Ph.D., Ed.D.) in American Indian, Native American, Indigenous, Ethnic Studies, or other relevant interdisciplinary fields from an accredited institution (or equivalent) is required at the time of application;
  
• Record of, or potential for, publishing in scholarly journals, community engagement, and creative activities in American Indian, Indigenous, and Native American Studies;
  
• Evidence of ability to communicate Native American and Indigenous Studies epistemological frameworks, including settler colonialism, sovereignty, self-determination, autonomy, and decolonization;
  
• Potential for effective teaching or teaching experience using a variety of methodologies;
  
• Applicants should demonstrate an awareness of and sensitivity to the educational goals of a socially and economically diverse student population as might have been gained in cross-cultural study, training, teaching, and other comparable experience.
  
  
  
  Preferred Qualifications
  
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  • Demonstrated outstanding teaching experience at the undergraduate level of a diverse student population;
    
  • Demonstrated experience working with tribes and Indigenous communities;
    
  • Evidence of a commitment to Indigenous community-based research;
    
  • Evidence of ability to build interdisciplinary, cross-departmental programs and projects;
    
  • Research background and community practice experience in decolonizing methodologies;
    
  • Record of, or potential for, involving students in research and scholarly activity;
    
  • Ability to develop, implement, and assess programs in ways that advance equitable and inclusive learning communities;
    
  • Commitment to participating in professional development opportunities that build effectiveness in areas of inclusion, intercultural communication, and advancing diversity;
    
  • Demonstrated leadership in promoting equity and diversity in higher education; and
    
  • Demonstrated ability to advise and mentor students from minoritized groups in higher education.
    
    
    
    Key Responsibilities
    
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    • The candidate will participate in shared governance, usually in department, college, and university committees and other service assignments.
      
    • Ability to collaborate effectively with diverse students and colleagues;
      
    • An understanding of the dynamics of diversity in higher education and a demonstrated ability to incorporate this understanding, as appropriate, in one's teaching, scholarship, and service;
      
    • Participation in the development of online learning experiences.
      
    • Faculty shall organize all their classes within the Canvas Learning Management System (LMS).
      
    • The candidate must demonstrate awareness and experience in understanding the needs of a student population of great diversity - in age, abilities, cultural background, ethnicity, religion, economic background, primary language, sexual orientation, gender identity, and academic preparation - through inclusive course materials, teaching strategies and advisement.
      
      
      Other Duties
      
      Note that all San Jose State University employees are considered mandated reporters under the California Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act and are required to comply with the requirements set forth in CSU Executive Order 1083 as a condition of employment. Pursuant to the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act) and CSU systemwide policy, some faculty duties may lead to designation as a Campus Security Authority (CSA). CSAs are required to complete Clery Act training and to immediately report Clery incidents to the institution.
      Faculty employees must complete CSU employee training as assigned and required based on their role (e.g., Data Security, FERPA, Preventing Discrimination and Harassment, Title IX, Health and Safety). The President may recommend or require compliance with safety measures that decrease the likelihood of COVID-19 transmission or illness and allows the core mission and activities of the campus to continue.
      
      Application Procedure
      Click Apply Now to complete the SJSU Online Employment Application and attach the following documents:
      
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      • letter of interest (no more than 2 pages)
        
      • curriculum vitae
        
      • diversity statement (no more than 2 pages)
        
      • statement of teaching interests/philosophy (no more than 2 pages)
        
      • Sample of scholarly writing, community engagement, or creative activities in American Indian, Indigenous, and Native American Studies;
        
      • Five-year research plan
        
      • Three references with contact information
        
        Inquiries may be directed to the Search Committee Chair: .
        
        
        Conditional Offer
        The work for this faculty position is located in the State of California and requires commuting to the campus. Employment is contingent upon US residence and proof of eligibility to work in the United States. Satisfactory completion of a background check (including a criminal records check) is required for employment. SJSU will make a conditional offer of employment, which may be rescinded if the background check reveals disqualifying information, and/or it is discovered that the candidate knowingly withheld or falsified information. Failure to satisfactorily complete the background check may affect the continued employment of a current employee who was conditionally offered the position.
        
        
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        Located in the heart of Silicon Valley - one of the most innovative regions in the world - San Jose State University is the founding campus of the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system and the first public university in the West. Recognized as a leading transformative educational institution, San Jose State is an essential partner in the technological, economic, cultural, and social development of Silicon Valley, the Bay Area, and California. SJSU is a top-200 school nationally in research funding and second highest in research productivity in the CSU system. Cutting-edge research, world-class scholarship, student-centered learning, diverse communities, and commitment to social justice, allow SJSU to provide life-changing opportunities and advance the public good locally and globally.
        
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Keywords: San Jose State University, San Jose , Assistant Professor - Native American and Indigenous Studies, Education / Teaching , San Jose, California