PRIMARY DUTY: Northwest Missouri State University invites applicants for a tenure track appointment at the rank of Assistant Professor in the field of Graphic Design. The successful candidate will have experience both as a design professional and a design educator with technical and conceptual expertise. The ideal candidate will also be fluent with historical and contemporary issues in the discipline, design methodology, and professional level knowledge of the graphic design industry. The successful candidate should be willing to cultivate cross-disciplinary and collaborative opportunities within the fine arts area, as well as across the university.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS: Duties include teaching courses ranging from introductory to advanced, and skills-based to conceptual. The successful candidate will teach and have a fundamental understanding of foundational art and design principles that are reinforced in projects, lectures, and critiques.
A successful candidate will be able to:
• teach in two or more of the following areas: typography, print design, packaging design, design for interactive media, motion graphics, identity design, information design, design history, and design theory
• demonstrate and maintain professional design or other creative activity and research as it relates to professional development as an educator and creative artist.
• advise and mentor undergraduate students.
• participate in the advancement of the Graphic Design area through the development of unique and relevant curriculum, committee work, collegiality, and recruitment.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:
• Candidates will have an MFA degree (or equivalent terminal degree) in Graphic Design, Visual Communication Design, or a closely related design subspecialty.
• College-level teaching experience.
• Demonstrate expertise in design theory, history, and criticism, graphic design foundations, typography, print and screen-based design.
• A record of research/creative/professional accomplishment.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS: • Experience with curriculum development • Industry experience • Significant college-level teaching experience

WORKING CONDITIONS: The Art department is a collegial environment across all disciplines, where collaboration and open dialogue are highly encouraged. A state of the art creative and collaborative digital lab was renovated in the summer of 2019. Each faculty member is provided with an up-to-date laptop and large individual office/studio.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES: Student employees and/or computer lab assistants.

EQUIPMENT/MATERIALS USED: Standard office equipment. Environment is technologically-enhanced.

TYPICAL PHYSICAL DEMANDS: Ability to lift and carry 20 pounds.

COMMUNITY: Northwest Missouri State University is located in Maryville, Missouri, a community of 12,000 with a diverse economy, and a strong industrial base. Maryville is located 45 miles north of St. Joseph, Missouri and 90 miles north of Kansas City, Missouri. For more information visit the website at www.maryville.org.

UNIVERSITY: With an enrollment of about 7,100 students, Northwest is a coeducational, primarily residential four-year university that offers a broad range of undergraduate and selected graduate programs on its Maryville campus as well as its Northwest-Kansas City location at the Northland Innovation Center and through Northwest Online.

Founded in 1905, Northwest places a high emphasis on profession-based learning to help graduates get a jumpstart on their careers. Students have opportunities to build their résumés with experiences on campus in nearly every area of study, including the Horace Mann Laboratory School, National Public Radio affiliate KXCV, the R.T. Wright Farm, Mozingo Outdoor Education Recreation Area or Knacktive, a student-driven integrated digital marketing communications agency.

The University is a national model for student success and career placement. In addition, 97 percent of Northwest bachelor’s degree earners and 99 percent of master’s degree earners secure employment or continue their education within six months of graduation, according to the most recent data. Zippia, a career website, names Northwest the best college in Missouri for getting a job.

Furthermore, its vibrant and diverse learning community offers more than 150 student organizations, and textbooks and a laptop are included in tuition, which is among the lowest in the nation, saving students an estimated $7,400 over four years. Northwest also offers 1,200 student employment positions, allowing students to build professional skills through its internationally benchmarked student employment program. Designated the Missouri Arboretum, the Northwest campus was named one of the “50 Most Amazing University Botanical Gardens and Arboretums in the U.S.”

For more information about Northwest and its performance, visit www.nwmissouri.edu.

COLLEGE: The College of Arts and Sciences is comprised of five departments and 16 academic areas, and offers 104 different major and minor programs. The College is also home of Northwest's Core (general education) program and serves all students across campus, regardless of major. For more information visit our website at http://www.nwmissouri.edu/academics/arts/index.htm

DEPARTMENT: The Department of Fine and Performing Arts is home to three disciplines- Art (150 majors), Music (100 undergraduate majors, NASM accredited), and Theatre (60 majors). The Department focuses primarily on teaching, providing a high degree of interaction between faculty and students, as well as serving as a cultural hub for the region. The Art program offers Bachelor of Fine Arts in studio (painting, drawing, photography, printmaking, ceramics, and sculpture), Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design, Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science in Digital Media, as well as a Bachelor of Science in Education (K-12 certification). The Art program employs eight full-time faculty, and adjunct faculty members as needed.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Review of applications begins December 6th, and will continue until the position is filled.

DATE AVAILABLE: Fall 2020

TO APPLY: Please fill out a Northwest application online by clicking on the APPLY button on the top of the page. You will also need to submit the application materials listed below in order for the application to be complete. Please contact the Office of Human Resources at 660-562-1127 or email bbadger@nwmissouri.edu for more information.

APPLICATION MATERIALS: A letter of application, statement of teaching philosophy, artist statement, diversity statement, current resume/vita, unofficial transcript(s) (official will be needed prior to offer of contract), portfolio with ten to fifteen samples of your professional work and ten to fifteen examples of student work with project descriptions, a web link to your portfolio (can be included on CV), and three references with current emails and phone numbers. Scholarship and Teaching Portfolios may be submitted as PDF files with embedded images and text or a list of web links provided through a text or PDF document.

INQUIRIES FOR THE POSITION CAN BE MADE TO:
Department of Fine and Performing Arts
Email: fparts@nwmissouri.edu