Department Chair
- Employer
- University of North Texas
- Location
- Denton
View more
- Position Type
- Tenured & Tenure-Track
- Employment Type
- Full Time
- Institution Type
- Four-Year Institution
Job Details
Welcome to the University of North Texas System, or UNT World as we like to call ourselves. UNT World includes the University of North Texas in Denton, the University of North Texas at Dallas and the University of North Texas Health Science Center in Fort Worth. We are the only university system based exclusively in the robust Dallas-Fort Worth region and we are committed to transforming lives and creating economic opportunity through education. We are growing with the DFW region, enrolling a record 47,000+ students across our system and awarding nearly 12,000 degrees each year.
Posting Title:Department Chair
Department:UNT-Mechanical Engineering-130340
College/School:College of Engineering
Job Location:Denton
Full Time/Part Time:Full-Time
Department Summary:The Department of Mechanical Engineering now consists of 26 full-time faculty and several others on joint/partial appointments, including a member of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE). Many of its faculty have received prestigious professional awards, are fellows of various societies, and are extensively cited for their work. ME faculty collaborate actively with researchers from various disciplines of sciences and engineering at UNT. The Department offers four bachelors, three masters and one doctoral degree programs with 970 baccalaureate, 88 Masters, and 39 doctoral students enrolled in these programs. The Department is expected to continue growing in the faculty size and student enrollment/ graduation. It is also envisioned that ME will expand its research potential through collaborations and team efforts with materials, manufacturing, AI, biomedical, and physics faculty. The department is associated with the UNT’s new Center for Agile and Adaptive Additive Manufacturing (CAAAM) ), which is funded $10M by the State of Texas for the initial phase of two years during 2019-2021, to establish a center of excellence (https://caaam.unt.edu/).(https://caaam.unt.edu/). A state-of-the-art materials research facility, including a nanofabrication facility and a clean room (https://mrf.research.unt.edu/) as well as a Net-Zero Energy House are available for research in emerging areas.
Position Summary:The University of North Texas, a Carnegie R1, Minority Serving Institution (MSI), and its College of Engineering seeks nominations or applications for the Chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering (ME) that has just been created by the merger of the Department of Mechanical and Energy Engineering and the Department of Engineering Technology. Other departments in the College of Engineering include: Biomedical Engineering, Computer Science and Engineering, Electrical Engineering, and Materials Science and Engineering.
The new Chair will have an opportunity to take the UNT’s Department of Mechanical Engineering to a new height among the ME departments at Carnegie R1 universities. They will understand how to build, manage, and advance education and research programs in several diverse areas simultaneously, how to work with the faculty in a collegial manner, and how to interact with the Dean, upper administration, and peers, e.g., chairs of other departments, for the benefit of the ME department. The new Chair will be collaborative, team builder, communicative, patient, and judicious. They will also be capable of building relationship with federal agencies, industry, and other organizations in order to expand ME’s research programs as well as support for student activities, scholarship and career opportunities.
Minimum Qualifications:Candidates for this position will have an earned doctorate in ME, or a closely related discipline; academic experience at an ABET-accredited institution; achievements commensurate with a tenured appointment as (full) Professor within ME; a strong record of sustained excellence in research, scholarship, and extramural funding; and a commitment to diversity and inclusiveness.
Physical Requirements:Ability to communicate
Security Sensitive:This is a security sensitive position.
EEO Statement:The University of North Texas System and its component institutions are committed to equal opportunity and comply with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. The University of North Texas System and its component institutions do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, religion, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, or veteran status in its application and admission processes, educational programs and activities, and employment practices.
Driving University Vehicle:No
Posting Number:F354P
Special Instructions to Applicants:Nominations and enquiries can be sent to Dr. Vish Prasad, Chair of the Search Committee at vish.prasad@unt.edu.
Applications must include
- a cover letter,
- a detailed CV,
- under “Narrative Describing Scholarly Research,” upload a summary of research, teaching, and management experience,
- under “Other Document,” upload a statement on vision for a high-ranking ME Department
- a list of five references
Applications should be preferably submitted by August 31, 2021. However, screening of nominations and applications will continue until the search is closed.
Quicklink for Posting:Organization
Working at University of North Texas
Since 1890, the University of North Texas has been a catalyst for transformation for its students and the North Texas region. As the nation’s 26th largest public university, UNT is dedicated to providing an excellent educational experience to its 36,000 students while fueling the intellectual, economic and cultural progress of one of the largest, most dynamic regions in the United States.
A student-focused public research university, UNT graduates more than 8,500 students each year from its 12 colleges and schools and offers 97 bachelor’s, 82 master’s and 35 doctoral degree programs, many nationally and internationally recognized. As UNT’s strengths in science, engineering and technology grow, the university continues to nurture its core areas of distinction in music, education, social sciences, business, the arts and humanities. Leading Texas public universities in the number of Goldwater Scholars and designated a “Best in the West” university by The Princeton Review, UNT is known for its academic excellence.
By providing access, welcoming diversity and strengthening collaborations with our many educational, business and community partners, as well as building new partnerships across the globe, UNT's faculty and staff work each day to prepare students for the challenges they will meet in our changing world.
Fostering global understanding and promoting cultural appreciation are central to preparing tomorrow's successful global leaders. Our strategic international partnerships seek to improve quality of life, facilitate the exchange of ideas and culture, and allow for important research addressing global issues. UNT's campus benefits from a rich diversity of about 2,500 international students representing 140 countries.
UNT faculty produce groundbreaking research in a wide range of disciplines spanning the sciences, mathematics, engineering and technology while also making nationally recognized contributions in the arts and humanities. The College of Music is one of the nation’s best music colleges with an internationally respected jazz program. UNT has the oldest program in emergency administration and planning and a unique program in applied philosophy and environmental ethics.
UNT also is home to many national centers and institutes, including the Net-Centric Software and Systems Center — a National Science Foundation Industry/University Cooperative Research Center; the Center for Electronic Materials Processing and Integration; the Institute of Applied Science; the Center for Advanced Scientific Computing and Modeling; and the Center for the Study of Interdisciplinarity.
UNT has developed many state-of-the-art research facilities, such as the federally funded Center for Advanced Research and Technology, one of the nation’s most extensive facilities for powerful materials characterization and analysis; a high-performance computational facility; and a clean room/nanofabrication research facility (under construction). UNT’s research extends outside the academy as well, with field stations as close as a neighboring lake and as far away as southern Chile.
In addition, UNT is developing Discovery Park, a research park with technology incubator facilities on a 300-acre property near the main campus. The university also has developed a Design Research Center in the heart of the Dallas design district.
As the largest and most comprehensive university in the North Texas region, UNT is growing as a national leader in education, research and scholarship, student support and community engagement — the pillars of a great public research university. UNT’s ultimate mission is to give a green light to greatness by helping its students, region, state and nation excel.
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