Job Opportunities

Open Position: Associate or Full Professor, Theatre Program 

College Division: FCLC, Arts and Sciences

Department/Area: Theatre and Visual Arts/Theatre Program

Rank: Associate or Full Professor 

Title: Associate or Full Professor, Theatre Program

Job Description 

Associate or Full Professor Theatre Program

The Theatre Program in The Department of Theatre and Visual Arts at Fordham University is seeking a Tenured Associate or Full Professor with extensive professional and teaching experience beginning August 2023. We invite applicants who are invested in continuing to generate and support future generations of innovative artists and creative risk-takers through their own dynamic experiences within the department’s intersecting areas of study. Fordham Theatre Program engages across a broad spectrum of embodied practices and rigorous study, including but not limited to performance, directing, design, management, and playwriting.  We are especially interested in theatre specialists whose work and teaching cover areas within these disciplines.  As an Associate or Full Professor, the successful candidate is expected to maintain a robust research profile reflecting the rank at which they enter, while also participating in university and departmental service. Departmental service includes recruitment, curriculum development, and a desire to continue to build collaborative projects within the Theatre & Visual Arts Department. All tenured and tenure track faculty of Arts and Sciences carry a 2-3 course teaching load (5 courses per year).  

As a department, we believe theatre and visual arts are transformational art forms that have the power and promise to change individuals and society. Transformation can only manifest when we are challenged as collaborators, liberated as creators, and respected as people. To amplify this mission, the department seeks to diversify its current faculty and build a culturally inclusive creative community. We strongly encourage applications from historically under-represented groups, LGBTQIA+, and women. We welcome applicants who work across a range of perspectives and training modalities.

Responsibilities (including but not limited to): 

  • Leadership
    • Serve as leader, mentor and steward of the University and Department’s mission.  Works directly with the Theatre Program Director and fellow faculty to strategize integration and growth.  
    • The Associate/Full Professor may serve in a leadership capacity as Head of Concentration in Theatre and/or Chair of the Theatre and Visual Department.  The candidate is expected to have strong leadership potential and interest in leading the department.  
  • Teaching
    • Within the vision of the Theatre Program Director, Associate/Full Professor works to uphold the academic rigor and excellence through its curriculum and experiential learning.  This includes a yearly audit of the courses, generating course offerings, incorporating current industry trends and needs within the curriculum, advising students within the discipline and working with faculty to articulate learning goals.
    • Teaches in the discipline of their specialty and broad-based theatre courses, such as Collaboration, Text Analysis and Theatre History. The course load for a Tenured Professor is defined as 3/2.  There are options for course reduction for administrative responsibilities when serving as Head of Concentration or Department Chair.

  • Mentoring 
    • Mentor and advise students in respective discipline to ensure students are on a successful path to graduation.  Guidance with personal and career issues is often a part of this function.
    • As a senior faculty member, the Associate or Full-Time professor will recommend and research potential teachers who are inspired by our mission, will work well with our students, are excited and committed to Fordham’s BA education.  They will work with incoming adjuncts on their syllabi and serve as a resource for them during the semester.  We hire adjuncts who are experts in the field, meet our students where they are, and challenge and inspire them to reach their full creative potential.

  • Practical Application of Craft
    • Participates as a theater practitioner in a Mainstage production, in consultation with the Director of the Theatre Program.  The curriculum is experiential and project based, and faculty participation by directing, designing, or mentorship in Mainstage Productions are a critical aspect to Fordham Theatre education.  
    • Represent respective concentration at recruitment events.  Meet with prospective students during Spring Preview and during their Fordham visits. Interview prospective theatre students and review applications.  Follow up with prospective students and serve as a resource throughout the recruitment process.  
  • Recruitment

Application Process

Review of applications will begin in March 2023 with initial zoom interviews scheduled in April 2023 and campus visits taking place by early May 2023. Applications will continue to be accepted and considered until the position is filled.

Requirements: 

  • Applicants should be tenured faculty at Associate or Professor rank.
  • Applicants should possess a terminal degree, and/or 7-10 years of administrative leadership experience in either the academic institution or in the professional theater industry.

A successful candidate will possess many of the following strengths: 

  • "An appreciation for the Jesuit mission of the University and its relevance to Fordham Theatre's self-understanding "as a program centered on the values of social justice and responsibility" that "aim[s] to serve our greater global community as citizen artists, using theatrical expression to create paths for empathy, understanding and dialogue."
  • Demonstrated leadership in areas contributing to diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as a commitment to advancing these principles within the Department and in Arts & Sciences.
  • 5-10 years of distinguished scholarly research, and/or professional accomplishments in a field of Theatre & Visual Arts suitable for appointment at the rank of Associate or Full Professor.
  • 3-5 years of evidence of mentoring students, and significant teaching experience in academic or studio environments.
  • 5-10 years of dynamic leadership skills that include excellent written and oral communication, effective management skills, and innovation and follow through.  
  • History of mentoring faculty and/or practitioners 
  • Ability to work and thrive in a dynamic and collaborative environment and work within a team.

Application Requirements

Document requirements:

  • Letter of interest
  • Curriculum Vitae 
  • Statement of Teaching 
  • Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility Statement that addresses the practice and teaching in Theatre and includes specific contributions towards social justice.  

Reference requirements

  • 3-5 required (contact information only) 
  • The contact information for 3 references is required. Candidates may add up to 2 additional references for a total of 5.

Salary and Compensation

The salary for this position is $97,000-$141,000, which comprises Associate Professor and Professor ranges. Fordham University has provided a compensation range that represents its good faith estimate of what the University may pay for the position at the time of posting. The salary offered to the selected candidate will be determined based on factors including the qualifications and experiences of the selected candidate and internal salary equity considerations.

Apply link:

https://apply.interfolio.com/122184

Campus Information

Fordham is an independent, Catholic University in the Jesuit tradition. Diversifying its faculty and curriculum is at the heart of the mission and vision of Fordham University. We are committed to an application process accessible to individuals with disabilities and encourage applicants to request any needed accommodation(s). Fordham is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to diversity in all dimensions.

About Fordham

Founded in 1841, Fordham is the Jesuit University of New York, offering an exceptional education distinguished by the Jesuit tradition to more than 16,000 students in its 9 colleges and schools. It has residential campuses in the Bronx and Manhattan, a campus in West Harrison, N.Y., the Louis Calder Center Biological Field Station in Armonk, N.Y., and the London Centre in the United Kingdom. Fordham University is committed to excellence through diversity and welcomes candidates of all backgrounds. Fordham is an Equal Opportunity Employer – Veterans/Disabled and other protected categories

University Diversity, Equity and Inclusion 

Link: https://www.fordham.edu/about/diversity-equity-and-inclusion-at-fordham/