Assistant Professor of Religious Studies

STETSON UNIVERSITY

College of Arts and Sciences

Position: Assistant Professor of Religious Studies

Stetson University invites applications for a tenure-track position in Islamic studies at the assistant professor level in the Department of Religious Studies.   

Qualifications:

The successful candidate must have a Ph.D. in Islamic studies by September 2020. We are seeking a colleague with a strong commitment to excellence in undergraduate teaching, an active scholarly agenda, and a willingness to be a strong, contributing member of the Department and the University community. Preference will be given to candidates who have evidence of effective teaching.

Responsibilities:  

The teaching load is three courses per semester.  Teaching assignments will include introductory and upper-division courses in Islam, Islamic history, and Islamic culture in the Department of Religious Studies.  Specific courses will be based on the candidate’s expertise.  The successful candidate should be conversant both with the historical development of Islam and with the modern manifestations of Islam.  The ability to teach courses in the following areas are preferred, but not required: religious ethics (including Islamic ethics) and comparisons among Islam, Judaism, and Christianity.  In addition to courses in Islam, other course assignments may include a First-Year Seminar or Junior Seminar, Senior Research, Methods and Theories in the Study of Religion, and the Department Colloquium.

Candidates should demonstrate a passion for the highest quality of teaching, scholarship, and a commitment to service.  For more information on our expectations in teaching and scholarship, our tenure policies, and our support for faculty development, please see the Academic Affairs website: http://www.stetson.edu/other/faculty/professional-development/index.php.

The Department:

The Department of Religious Studies (www.stetson.edu/religion) offers a major and minor in Religious Studies and is comprised of faculty committed to excellence in undergraduate teaching and to significant student/faculty interaction.   Focusing exclusively on undergraduate education, the Department defines its mission as helping students explore the role of religion in shaping human cultures through studies of sacred texts, languages, ethics, beliefs, rituals, spiritual methods, and the history of religious traditions.  The Department has six full-time faculty.

The University: 

Founded in 1883, Stetson University (http://www.stetson.edu) is a private, selective university comprised of a rich array of liberal arts and professional academic programs.  Collectively, Stetson’s teacher-scholar faculty works with 3,800 students in undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs.  The University’s historic main campus, located in DeLand, enrolls more than 2,500 students in undergraduate programs in the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Business Administration, and the School of Music.  Stetson University College of Law, Florida’s first law school, moved from the main campus to Gulfport in 1945, and, with the addition of the Tampa Law Center, serves over 1,000 students working full-time or part-time toward J.D. or LL.M. degrees.  Graduate programs offered at the main campus and at Stetson University Center in Celebration include Business, Educational Leadership, Reading, Education, Counseling, and English. Stetson has regularly been ranked among the best regional universities in the Southeast and was the first private college in Florida to be granted a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. 

Stetson University provides an inspiring education that engages students with rigorous academic and creative study grounded in liberal learning.  Working closely with faculty, staff, and with one another, students cultivate abilities to explore issues deeply, think critically, reason empirically, speak persuasively, and connect ideas creatively.  Stetson’s academic program prepares and inspires students to dare to be significant™, realizing 21st century learning goals that will foster their ability and commitment to make a difference in the world.  We seek faculty who themselves dare to be significant; think across disciplinary, methodological, and social boundaries; exercise pedagogical creativity and adaptability (including the use of technology to enrich and extend learning); and are passionate lifelong learners.  We seek candidates with a profound interest in liberal learning, an ability to teach writing intensive courses, and General Education courses, including First Year and Junior Seminars.

Stetson values the development of the whole person committed to engaging and building lifelong connections with the larger world through Personal Growth, Intellectual Development, and Global Citizenship. To that end, the University fosters policies, practices, and modes of inquiry to support and explore these values areas, integrated in a University-wide commitment to personal and social responsibility.  Firmly committed to inclusive excellence, our vibrant community of teacher-scholars nurtures the potential of individual students to lead lives of significance and prepares each to meet the challenges of shaping the future—locally, nationally, and globally.

The Community:

DeLand is a picturesque residential community of 32,000 located 20 miles west of Daytona Beach and 35 miles northeast of Orlando. The area offers extensive cultural as well as recreational activities.

Salary:  Salary is competitive.

Starting Date:  August 15, 2020

Application:

Applicants should supply cover letter, a statement on the applicant’s philosophy of teaching and learning in a liberal learning environment, curriculum vita, and three letters of reference.  In the cover letter, candidates are encouraged to highlight skills and experiences that demonstrate a commitment to social justice, diversity, and inclusion.

All information may be submitted electronically to Dr. Mitchell Reddish, Search Committee Chair at mreddish@stetson.edu.  While electronic submissions are preferred, alternatively application materials may be mailed to:

Dr. Mitchell Reddish, Chair
Department of Religious Studies
Stetson University
421 N. Woodland Blvd. Unit 8354
DeLand, FL 32723

Review of applications will begin October 28, 2019, and continue until the position is filled.

Stetson University is an Equal Opportunity Employer that affirms cultural diversity and inclusion as a core value of academic excellence at Stetson University. We are committed to achieving equal access in education, employment, and participation through the recruitment and retention of outstanding faculty, staff, and students from diverse backgrounds, and to meaningful academic and intellectual transformation in curriculum, research and service. We are dedicated to actions and policies that foster a community in which individuals with various identities, cultures, backgrounds, and viewpoints work together to create opportunities for engagement through rewarding and fulfilling careers and personal experiences in a culturally and racially diverse society and a globalized world. We strongly encourage members of historically under-represented and economically-disadvantaged groups and women to apply for employment. Stetson University is an EEO, ADA, ADEA, and GINA employer.