Skip to main content

This job has expired

College of Applied Health Sciences: Assistant Professor - Kinesiology and Community Health-Exer...

Job Details

Description:

POSITION ANNOUNCEMENT

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR POSITION IN EXERCISE PHYSIOLOGY

MICROBIOME AND HEALTH

Kinesiology and Community Health

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) is hiring six or more tenure-track faculty conducting research in microbial systems or microbiome and health (https://go.illinois.edu/MSIHires). This coordinated strategic hiring plan is part of a larger Microbial Systems Initiative that will expand interdisciplinary microbial systems research and education across campus. Microbial research at UIUC has contributed foundational insights from which modern microbiome research grew. We aim to build on the existing research taking place across campus to integrate fundamental, mechanistic understanding with application in human, animal, and environmental systems. Through this interdisciplinary hiring strategy and other investments, we are poised to illuminate the biology of microbial systems and their interactions with hosts.

The University of Illinois is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action employer. Minorities, women, veterans and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply. For more information, visit http://go.illinois.edu/EEO.

Basic and applied microbial sciences research permeates colleges across the UIUC campus. The Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, the Roy J. Carver Biotechnology Center, and a new gnotobiotic animal facility provide unparalleled infrastructure supporting interdisciplinary team science on microbiomes in health and disease, infectious disease genomics and antimicrobial resistance, and discovery of novel antimicrobials. The successful candidates will be part of a large cohort of new faculty contributing to and benefitting from this rich microbial systems research environment and will have tenure-track homes in one of five participating colleges.

Position Description: The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (http://illinois.edu/) and the College of Applied Health Sciences (AHS; http://ahs.illinois.edu) invites applicants for a full-time, tenure-track Assistant Professor position in Exercise Physiology. Emphasis will be placed on a scholar who studies exercise/physical activity and health in the context of the gut microbiome and metabolome. Areas of emphasis may include the influence of exercise/physical activity on various aspects of host-microbe interactions including: the gut-brain axis, cancer, microbial-immune interactions, inflammatory bowel diseases, gut barrier function, and obesity (including nutrient sensing, body composition, and metabolism), but other areas also will be considered. The successful candidate will also contribute to both teaching and service missions in the Department.

Part of AHS, the Department of Kinesiology and Community Health (KCH; https://ahs.illinois.edu/kinesiology) has a strong record of excellence in teaching, research, and outreach that focus on human health and wellness related to the prevention and treatment of chronic health conditions and the environmental and personal factors that influence them. Our Doctoral Program was recently ranked #1 in the nation by the National Academy of Kinesiology (NAK) among 52 programs, and a brand new ~37,000ft clinical and biochemical exercise research laboratory will open in January 2020. While the successful candidate will hold a tenure-track appointment in KCH, the intent of the position is to identify someone who can integrate across the disciplines of health sciences and interact with other units in the campus microbial research ecosystem such as:

The Illinois Microbial Systems Initiative (https://go.illinois.edu/msi)

The Roy J. Carver Biotechnology Center (https://biotech.illinois.edu/)

The Institute for Genomic Biology (http://www.igb.illinois.edu/)

The Division of Nutritional Sciences (http://nutrsci.illinois.edu/)

The Interdisciplinary Health Sciences Institute (http://healthinstitute.illinois.edu/)

The Environmental Toxicology Program (http://vetmed.illinois.edu/ietp/index.html)

The Cancer Community at Illinois (http://cancer.illinois.edu/)

The Center for Nutrition, Learning and Memory (http://www.cnlm.illinois.edu/ )

The Neuroscience Program (http://neuroscience.illinois.edu/)

The National Center for Supercomputing Applications (http://www.ncsa.illinois.edu/)

The Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology (http://www.beckman.illinois.edu/index.aspx)

Our Community: Founded in 1867 as part of President Lincoln’s Morrill Act, UIUC is a leading public Research 1 institution with a long history of successful interdisciplinary endeavors. In its 2019 rankings, UIUC was the #13 public university among America’s Best Colleges by U.S. News and World Report. With over 33,000 undergraduates and 15,000 graduate students, UIUC is a vibrant campus community with outstanding research and teaching facilities. Our Research Park (http://researchpark.illinois.edu/ ) is ranked in the top ten nationally by Forbes and has helped UIUC become a top ten university for technology startups.

Urbana-Champaign is a ‘micro-urban’ community (http://micro-urbanist.com/index.html) with a population of ~125,000 located in east central Illinois. It is conveniently located between Chicago, Indianapolis and St. Louis and has its own airport and train service. Combining natural Midwest beauty and cultural resources typically found in much larger metropolitan areas, Urbana-Champaign is friendly, livable, easy to navigate, affordable, and has excellent public school systems. There is a ‘work-life’ balance here that gives faculty ample time for both scholarship and family pursuits devoid of the hassles of large city life. The dual Champaign and Urbana downtown areas have grown into vibrant public spaces and entertainment districts over the past two decades. Both communities have recently made substantial investments in new public libraries, and the University of Illinois library is known as one of the country's best.

Qualifications: Successful candidates must have an earned doctorate in exercise physiology or a related field. Postdoctoral experience is preferred. Evidence demonstrating potential capacity to acquire research funding, effectively teach, and provide a leadership role in the department is expected. We are seeking a candidate who can complement and extend our current department strengths in exercise physiology, specifically an individual with expertise in the investigation of the effects of exercise on the gut and its microbiome.

The committee strongly encourages applications and nominations of women and persons of underrepresented groups.

Salary: Compensation is competitive and will be commensurate with the applicant's record.

Applications: To apply, create a candidate profile at http://jobs.illinois.edu and select the position for which you are applying; then upload all required documents, including (a) curriculum vitae, (b) detailed cover letter that includes a research statement describing your past research accomplishments and relevance to this position, and (c) list of names, email addresses, and phone numbers of three references. Candidates will be informed before references are contacted. For initial consideration, please submit a completed application by October 15, 2019; however, applications will continue to be accepted until the position is filled. Interviews and inquiries may take place prior to the close date; however, no decision will be made until after the close date. The anticipated starting date is August 16, 2020, but is negotiable.

For additional information, please contact Dr. Ken Wilund, Chair of the Search Committee, at kwilund@illinois.edu.

The University of Illinois conducts criminal background checks on all job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent offer.

Category:1-Faculty Title:College of Applied Health Sciences: Assistant Professor - Kinesiology and Community Health-Exercise Physiology / Microbiome (121199) Open Date:09/10/2019 Organization Name:Kinesiology and Community Health

Organization

Since its founding in 1867, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has earned a reputation as a world-class leader in research, teaching, and public engagement.

Faculty

A talented and highly respected faculty is the University's most significant resource. Many are recognized for exceptional scholarship with memberships in such organizations as the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the National Academy of Sciences, and the National Academy of Engineering. 

Our faculty have been awarded Nobel Prizes, Pulitzer Prizes, and the Fields Medal in Mathematics.The success of our faculty is matched by that of our alumni: 11 are Nobel laureates and another 18 have won Pulitzer Prizes.

Academic Resources

Academic resources on campus are among the finest in the world. The University Library is one of the largest public university collections in the world with 11 million volumes in its 37 unit libraries. Annually, 53,000,000 people visit its online catalog. Students have access to thousands of computer terminals in classrooms, residence halls, and campus libraries for use in classroom instruction, study, and research.

Research

Students and scholars find the University an ideal place to conduct research. The Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology is a model for interdisciplinary research, where eighteen research groups from sixteen University departments work within and across three broadly defined themes: biological intelligence, human-computer intelligent interaction, and molecular and electronic nanostructures. The University is also home to the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA).

Undergraduate Education

The University has a fundamental commitment to undergraduate education. Nearly 28,000 undergraduate students are enrolled in nine undergraduate divisions, which together offer some 4,000 courses in more than 150 fields of study.

Undergraduate admission is highly selective. In the 2001 freshman class, students in the middle 50% had ACT scores between 25 and 30 and ranked between the 83rd and 96th percentiles of their high school graduating classes.

The University enrolls over 9,000 graduate and professional students in more than 100 disciplines. It is among the top five universities in number of earned doctorates awarded annually in the United States.

Also integral to the University's mission is a commitment to public engagement. Each year about 65,000 Illinois residents participate in scores of conferences, institutes, courses, and workshops presented statewide. Research and class projects take students and professors off campus to share expertise and technical support with Illinois farmers, manufacturing firms, and businesses. In a typical year, student volunteers log more than 60,000 volunteer hours.

The Arts

A major center for the arts, the campus attracts dozens of nationally and internationally renowned artists each year to its widely acclaimed Krannert Center for the Performing Arts. The University also supports two major museums: the Krannert Art Museum and Kinkead Pavilion; and the Spurlock Museum, a museum of world history and culture. 

Other major facilities include the multipurpose Assembly Hall (16,500 seats); Memorial Stadium (70,000 seats), site of Big Ten Conference football games; and the Intramural-Physical Education Building, one of the largest recreational facilities of its kind on a university campus.

Inclusive Illinois, one campus, many voices

Inclusive Illinois is the University’s commitment to cultivating a community at Illinois where everyone is welcomed, celebrated, and respected. Illinois is about how we value difference to make a difference. http://www.inclusiveillinois.illinois.edu/

As evidence of the University’s commitment to enhance the working, living, and learning environment for faculty, staff, and students, the University will encourage a standard of conduct and behavior that is consistent with the values of inclusivity. In an environment of inclusivity, there is no place for acts of hatred, intolerance, insensitivity, bigotry, threats of violence, harassment or discrimination.

Inclusive Illinois, one campus, many voices

Inclusive Illinois is the University’s commitment to cultivating a community at Illinois where everyone is welcomed, celebrated, and respected. Through education, engagement, and excellence, each voice creates the Inclusive Illinois Experience.

How can we appreciate difference to make a difference?

Illinois is the place where we embrace difference. We embrace it because we value it. We value it because we know that we have so much to learn from each other in our living, learning, and working environment.

Illinois is the place where we recognize the power of possibility and where great potential is realized. Inclusive Illinois is the vision of that place: a vision made real by leadership and commitment.

Illinois is the place where consensus is forged by discourse and where everyone’s contributions are recognized: significant contributions that elevate us because they are informed and enhanced by race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and gender identity, age, physical ability, religion, class, and national origin. We are enriched by these perspectives, and we are united by the very discourse that brings these views together.

It is a process. It is transformative. And we celebrate the remarkable changes we set in motion here … taking an important step … crossing boundaries … starting with our own.

It all starts with each of us: with our willingness to embark on the journey in the search for answers, and with our openness and acceptance of the answers we find. Illinois is the place where it all comes together.

Learn more about how Inclusive Illinois promotes diversity here.

Commitment to Equal Opportunity

The commitment of the University to the most fundamental principles of academic freedom, equality of opportunity, and human dignity requires that decisions involving students and employees be based on individual merit and be free from invidious discrimination in all its forms, whether or not specifically prohibited by law. Among the forms of invidious discrimination prohibited by the University policy but not law is discrimination, including harassment, on the basis of sexual orientation. Complaints of invidious discrimination in violation of University policy are to be resolved within existing University procedures. The policy of the University of Illinois is to comply with all federal and state nondiscrimination, equal opportunity, and affirmative action laws, orders, and regulations. The University will not engage in discrimination or harassment against any person because of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, disability, unfavorable discharge from the military, or status as a disabled veteran or a veteran of the Vietnam era. This nondiscrimination policy applies to admissions, employment, and access to and treatment in University programs and activities

Get job alerts

Create a job alert and receive personalized job recommendations straight to your inbox.

Create alert