Assistant Professor, Diverse Voices Creating Just Futures (cluster hire) (71102)

Job Description

Pratt Institute invites applications for a cluster of five new tenure-track faculty positions at the level of Assistant Professor, focused on “Diverse Voices Creating Just Futures.” We seek applicants from a range of disciplinary and interdisciplinary backgrounds whose teaching and research / creative practices will advance the Institute’s commitment to an education that centers on justice: “Pratt students make decisions with consideration of their impact upon individuals, communities, and the earth. They are compelled into action to resist all forms of discrimination, inequalities, and supremacism, in order to promote just societal transformation with frameworks and tools that allow for reflection and agency” (All-Institute Learning Goals). The faculty hired through this initiative will have the opportunity to work as a multi-disciplinary cohort with shared interests that cut across fields, as well as pursue their work as individual scholars and creative practitioners.

With this initiative, Pratt further elevates its commitment to increasing the size of its full-time faculty; to recruiting, hiring and supporting diverse faculty; and to educating artists and creative professionals whose work has a transformative impact on the world. A top-ranked college with opportunities in art, design, architecture, liberal arts and sciences, and information studies, Pratt Institute provides the creative leaders of tomorrow the knowledge and experience to make a better world.

Position Summaries

Each faculty member hired through this initiative will be appointed to a school / department that serves as their primary home for teaching, promotion, and tenure at Pratt. Faculty workloads for each school are described in the Collective Bargaining Agreement. We are especially interested in applicants whose teaching and creative / research practice qualify them for appointment in one of the following schools/departments:

School of Art

Film/Video (MFA or equivalent required): Seeking a filmmaker/artist with a practice centered in nonfiction/documentary able to demonstrate an active commitment to issues of decoloniality, social justice, and/or human rights through their work and/or pedagogy. Work/pedagogy should reflect their understanding of core values for ethical and accountable nonfiction filmmaking, including anti-oppression considerations, transparency, positionality, and power dynamics. A focus on advancing the stories of Black and Indigenous communities is especially welcome, as are expansive explorations of form.

School of Architecture

Undergraduate Architecture (MArch or PhD preferred, experience in other design fields welcomed): Proficiency as a designer with civic and community engagement experience. Having and exhibiting proficiency in computational fabrication, and design/build workflows, with a portfolio/dossier of work completed in the public realm. Experience and proficiency in work at both building and urban scales, with a knowledge of urban systems, policy, and processes. Experience in multidisciplinary collaboration, including but not limited to Graduate Design, Planning, and Management programs.

School of Design

Interior Design (MFA in Interior Design, a related field, or the equivalent, required): Focus on interior design teaching, practice, and research / creative work that serves communities otherwise absent or marginalized in the discipline, contributing to a community that works toward a goal of creating spaces, environments, and structures that are just, equitable, and accessible to all. The faculty member would bring new practices to our classrooms and studios building on the interdisciplinary nature of interior design, as it draws on and is influenced by allied design disciplines.

School of Information

Library and Information Science, Information Experience Design, Data Analytics and Visualization, and/or Museums and Digital Culture (earned doctorate required for all): Focus on critical approaches and engagement with areas including, but not limited to, critical information studies, critical design, data justice and tech ethics, activism, and communities facing barriers (e.g., people who are incarcerated).

School of Liberal Arts and Sciences

History of Art and Design (PhD required): Focus on the digital humanities, with attention to how digital tools and research methods have contributed to re-visioning the histories of art/architecture/design, and to revising and decolonizing the curricula through which we teach these histories. Work that focuses on Brooklyn and/or Lenapehoking and Lenape cultures—and urban space and indigenous cultures more broadly—is especially welcome. The faculty member will contribute substantially to Pratt's vibrant and multi-disciplinary General Education curriculum.

Salary, Benefits, and Faculty Support
Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience and qualifications. The salary range for this position is $82,500 - $95,000. Pratt Institute provides a comprehensive benefits package with the flexibility to meet the varying needs of a diverse group of individual employees.

Benefits include

* 403B Retirement Program
* Supplemental Retirement Account
* Tuition Benefits for Employees and Dependents
* Tuition Exchange Program
* Flexible Spending Accounts - commuter, medical, dependent care
* Child care Benefit
* Basic life and AD&D insurance provided by Pratt
* Medical, Dental, and Vision Care Coverage
* Reduced teaching load in first year (1 course release)
* Sabbatical leave, as described in the Collective Bargaining Agreement
* Additional Perks - free entry to select museums and cultural institutions, free use of campus recreation facilities

The cohort of faculty hired through this initiative will join an institution that is committed to their success: Pratt’s Center for Teaching and Learning, along with the Office of Research and Strategic Partnerships, will provide support for the cohort as a group and for its individual members. The Institute is also developing professional mentoring programs for all faculty, and provides additional professional development opportunities through the Association of Independent Colleges and Design (AICAD), the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), and other organizations. All Pratt faculty are represented by the UFCT Local 1460 and the Academic Senate, which provides funding opportunities for professional development and academic initiatives, as well as nominating faculty for awards in teaching, research, and service.

Qualifications
Candidates should have a terminal degree or equivalent in a field relevant to the position for which they wish to be considered (as detailed above). At least 1–3 years of teaching experience, and a growing body of research / creative work, as well as a demonstrated commitment to creating and sustaining diverse, equitable, and inclusive communities.

Application Instructions
To apply, please submit:

* A letter of interest addressing the ways that the applicant’s creative practice / research and teaching speaks to the broad focus of the cluster and to at least one of the specific departmental positions listed above
* A statement of teaching philosophy
* A statement describing how the applicant has worked to promote diversity, equity and inclusion in their creative practice, research, teaching, and/or service, and how they will continue to do so here at Pratt
* A current CV

Samples of current work:
* For art, design, architecture: a portfolio of 10 examples of creative/professional work and a portfolio of up to 10 examples of student work
* For fields requiring a PhD or earned doctorate: a brief statement of research.

Applicants should specify in their materials which school(s)/department(s) are the best fit for their primary home at Pratt.

Review of applications will begin in November 2023. First-round interviews will be conducted via Zoom, and finalists will be invited for on-campus visits in the Spring 2024 semester. References will be requested for finalists. Applications will be evaluated by a faculty-led, cross-disciplinary search committee drawn from the schools and departments listed above, and at later stages of the search by department(s) best aligned with their work.

Application Details

Extended Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Pratt Institute is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate in hiring or employment on the basis of race, color, religion or belief, national or ethnic origin, citizenship, marital or domestic partnership status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law. Pratt Institute recognizes and values the benefits of a diverse workforce, and further advances this essential commitment through its Institute-level Strategic Plan, through the work of its Office of Human Resources, its Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and through its membership in the Higher Education Recruitment Consortium.