Assistant Professor-Chemical Education
POSITION DESCRIPTION: The College of Science at The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is seeking applications for a tenure-track assistant professor in Chemical Education. The successful candidate will be expected to build an excellent chemical education program at a departmental level through research and curricular development activities, lead the expansion of the program through collaborations with other faculty, and attract external funding at levels needed to build and sustain such a research program.
A commitment to and effectiveness in classroom instruction are expected. Teaching responsibilities will include the very successful Research Foundations Course (RFC), a core course within the Freshmen Year Research Intensive Sequence (FYRIS). There may also be opportunities to contribute to the chemistry/ biology curriculum programs as determined by the chemistry department chair based on departmental workload requirements.
The new hire will be expected to synergize with the research team within UTEP’s National Institutes of Health-funded BUILDing SCHOLARS Center. The Center is training the next generation of underserved and underrepresented biomedical and socio-behavioral scientists and engineers for careers in health-related research. The Center addresses the needs of undergraduate students in the U.S. Southwest through a multi-institution consortium, which includes Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona as well as a multitude of extra-regional research partners. The center’s institutional development, student training, and research enrichment cores are anchored in undergraduate research and other high-impact, evidence-based educational practices to advance discoveries in seven interdisciplinary research nodes where UTEP faculty in the biomedical and socio-behavioral sciences and engineering have demonstrated strength: Addiction, Cancer, Neurodegenerative & Chronic Diseases, Environmental Health, Health Disparities, Infectious Diseases, and Translational Biomedicine. The center has a 2,000 sq. ft. dedicated collaborative learning environment designed specifically as a SCALE-UP classroom/innovation space.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS: An earned doctorate in Chemistry or Biochemistry, with an emphasis on discipline-based education research (DBER) practices, as well as publications in the area of chemical education, are required. Postdoctoral experience is highly preferred. Applicants with potential to attract external funding, and the ability to teach and direct research foundation classes are highly desired.
ABOUT THE CHEMISTRY & BIOCHEMISTRY DEPARTMENT:
The Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry is a vibrant department housed in a state of the art building completed in 2011, with all the major instrumentation needed to uphold its very high research activity reputation. The department offers a Bachelor of Science degree in both chemistry and biochemistry that are certified by the American Chemical Society. It also offers a Master of Science (M.S.) degree and a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree. These degrees are designed to be consistent with the student's professional goals, which include chemical or biochemical research in an industrial (agriculture, petroleum, pharmaceutical, plastics, etc.), academic, or national laboratory setting, as well as non-traditional STEM careers. The department serves over 3,000 students per semester from multiple majors across the colleges of science, engineering and health sciences. There are currently over 300 students majoring in chemistry or biochemistry, and the majority of them engage in undergraduate research.
ABOUT UTEP AND EL PASO: UTEP, a member of the University of Texas System, is a Hispanic Serving Institution that enrolls more than 25,000 students and is designated an R1 university (very high research activity) by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. UTEP serves its primary constituency with167 bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral programs in 10 colleges and schools. With an 80% Hispanic student population, UTEP proudly reflects the demographic composition of the bi-national region from which it draws the vast majority of its students. Eighty-three percent of students are from El Paso County. UTEP is the top university in the continental United States for graduating Hispanic students who go on to earn doctoral degrees in STEM fields. It also is recognized as one of the top universities in the U.S. for the number of Hispanic graduates in biomedical sciences. UTEP employs more than 4,000 people (faculty, staff and students). The university maintains an operating budget of $450 million. Its rapidly growing research portfolio in the sciences, engineering, health-related fields, and other areas has over $100 million in total annual research expenditures. UTEP receives funding from the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Endowment for the Humanities and other agencies. The University is ranked among the top 5% of colleges and universities in research and fifth in Texas for federal research expenditures at public universities, after UT Austin, Texas A&M, the University of Houston and The University of Texas at Dallas. For more information about UTEP, please visit our website https://www.utep.edu/.
El Paso is a highly livable, bicultural community of 800,000 people, which offers affordable homes and attractive neighborhoods. It is the safest large city in the United States. Sheltered by mountains on three sides, El Paso experiences more than 300 days of sunshine annually, and residents enjoy outdoor activities year-round. The city of El Paso is adjacent to both the state of New Mexico and the country of Mexico, making it the nation’s leading area for cultural diversity and border health research. El Paso is the sixth largest city in Texas and 19th largest city in the United States.
El Paso’s active arts and culture community features the state’s longest running symphony orchestra, a nationally recognized chamber music festival, art galleries, museums, and a full schedule of seasonal events and festivals. UTEP adds to the arts and entertainment scene with an award-winning dinner theater, music and dance productions, contemporary and student art galleries, and a natural history museum.
For sports fans, the UTEP Miners offer exciting Division I college athletics at several campus venues: Sun Bowl Stadium, the Don Haskins Center, Kidd Field, University Field and the Helen of Troy Softball Complex. Southwest University Park, located a mile away in lively downtown El Paso, is home to the El Paso Chihuahuas, the Triple-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. The El Paso Locomotive, a professional soccer team, was founded in 2019. For additional information about UTEP, please visit https://www.utep.edu/.
Application Instructions: To apply, please visit https://www.utep.edu/employment. Only electronic submissions will be accepted. To assure full consideration, please submit the following as separate documents.
- Letter of application
- Curriculum vita
- Statement of teaching philosophy and interests
- Research plan
- Statement of commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and access as it relates to your research, teaching, service and mentoring
- Complete contact information for three professional references
Contact Information: If you have questions about the position, you may contact Lourdes E. Echegoyen, Search Committee Chair at lourdes@utep.edu
Application review date: Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled
Appointment date and salary: Anticipated appointment date is January 1, 2021. Salary will be competitive for the rank. The position comes with an attractive start-up package, funded through UTEP’s NIH BUILDing SCHOLARS Center
In keeping with its Access and Excellence mission, The University of Texas at El Paso is committed to an open, diverse, and inclusive learning and working environment that honors the talents, respects the differences, and nurtures the growth and development of all.
The University of Texas at El Paso is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. The University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, sexual orientation, or gender identity in employment or the provision of services in accordance with state and federal law. Discrimination on the basis of sex includes an employee’s or prospective employee’s right to be free from sexual harassment under Title IX of the Higher Education Amendments of 1972.