Full Professor & Director of the School of International Letters and Cultures

The School of International Letters and Cultures (SILC) in The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Arizona State University (ASU) seeks an innovative leader and skilled administrator and scholar to serve as the next School Director, with a concurrent appointment as a tenured Professor. Appointment will be located at the Tempe campus with an anticipated start date of July 1, 2022. Salary is competitive. The College values our cultural and intellectual diversity, and continually strives to foster a welcoming and inclusive environment. We are especially interested in applicants who can strengthen the diversity of the academic community. 

The School of International Letters and Cultures (SILC) provides a rich environment for education and research. The School offers instruction in more than 20 languages, a variety of transnational and transdisciplinary undergraduate and graduate courses and programs in selected areas, including nationally prominent PhD programs in Spanish and Chinese, as well as a new PhD program in Comparative Culture and Language. The School aims to provide students with a wide range of opportunities to engage with global cultures and develop language skills, regardless of major. SILC faculty members are world leaders in research in culture, linguistics and literature and collaborate widely with each other and with other faculty members across ASU.

The Director of the School is expected to provide visionary leadership for the instruction of linguistics, language and culture for the twenty-first century, working to recruit, develop, and retain exceptional faculty and staff; promote excellence in the graduate and undergraduate programs; develop and build interdisciplinary research and teaching initiatives; support and lead efforts for diversity, equity and inclusion; and expand the School's outreach initiatives. The Director's vision is expected to resonate with the design aspirations of the “The New American University“ (https://newamericanuniversity.asu.edu/ ), fostering growth and innovation in the School’s research mission, advancing entrepreneurial opportunities, and enhancing relations within and outside the university community.

The Director of SILC works closely with a team of Humanities leaders that includes the director of the School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies, the chair of the Department of English, and the directors of fourteen centers and initiatives (including the Institute for Humanities Research, Center for Imagination in the Borderlands, Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, Center for Asian Research, the Humanities Lab, and the newly launched Center for Public Humanities).

Minimum Qualifications:

• A PhD in linguistics, languages, literature, culture, or civilization, or a closely related or relevant field.
• A scholarly record commensurate with the rank of tenured Full Professor in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at ASU.
• A record of relevant administrative experience and evidence of effective leadership, performing significant and effective financial oversight (i.e., group/center leader; department chair/director).
• Demonstrated commitment to enhancing diversity, equity and inclusion and cultivating and supporting diverse members of the University community.

Desired Qualifications:

• Visionary leadership in a complex, academic environment.
• Demonstrated experience with program development in research and education.
• Demonstrated commitment to teaching and academic innovation and transdisciplinary collaborations.
• Demonstrated commitment to fundraising, grant development, and fostering interactions among multiple stakeholders including private sector, research, and community organizations.
• The capacity to engage faculty members across a broad range of disciplines.
• Evidence of excellent communication and organizational skills.
• Record of experience with online humanities education.

Nominations, inquiries, and applications: Please supply the following: a curriculum vitae; a letter of interest describing how you meet the qualifications noted above, and your vision for leadership of an interdisciplinary school; a statement addressing how your past and/or potential contributions to diversity and inclusion will advance ASU’s commitment to inclusive excellence; and contact information, including email addresses for five references (references may be contacted at a later stage of the search and only with the candidate’s approval) can be submitted online at http://apply.interfolio.com/95411. Applications will be reviewed beginning November 15, 2021; if not filled, reviews will occur every two weeks thereafter until the search is closed.

A background check is required for employment.

 ASU is a VEVRAA Federal Contractor and an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will be considered without regard to race, color, sex, religion, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other basis protected by law. For more information on ASU’s policies, please see: https://www.asu.edu/aad/manuals/acd/acd401.html  and its complete non-discrimination statement at: https://www.asu.edu/titleIX/.

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