Assistant Professor - Africana Studies - Georgia State University
Department of Africana Studies, Georgia State University (Atlanta, Georgia)
Log #25-038
The Department of Africana Studies at Georgia State University (GSU) invites applications for a tenure track Assistant Professor position to begin August 2024 at the Atlanta campus.
The successful applicant will enter a robust intellectual community. The department hosts an undergraduate major, an undergraduate minor, an MA program, and a graduate certificate. Our programs attract a diverse student population from urban, rural, and suburban communities from across the United States (U.S.) as well as a significant international population. Our undergraduate and graduate programs are research intensive with opportunities for our students to develop and present their scholarship. The department was founded in 1994 as a result of student, faculty, and community activism and support. We have a strong and ongoing history of community engagement with relationships across academic units, professional organizations, and community organizations. You can find out more about the department on our department webpage.
Georgia State University is the largest public research university in the Southeastern U.S. with campuses across the metro Atlanta area. GSU has been nationally recognized for its programs supporting student success and graduates more Black college students than any college in the U.S. It hosts programs such as GSU-62, which diversifies the student body by supporting students over the age of 62; 25% of the students are first-generation; and the vast majority of students receive some form of financial aid.
The metro-Atlanta area provides scholars of Africana studies with a number of opportunities and resources for collaboration including several cultural institutions, libraries, archives, and neighborhood associations. As an international city, Atlanta hosts one of the most traveled airports in the world and is home to many longstanding migrant, refugee, and transnational communities.
Applicants must have a terminal degree with a strong research profile in Africana Studies or a related field of study by the date of the appointment. The successful applicant must be able to:
- Demonstrate the ability to teach undergraduate and graduate courses in cultural studies with a focus on humanistic Africana studies;
- Engage in research that compliments the diverse research profile of the department and build new areas of collaboration;
- Demonstrate the potential to contribute to the department's curriculum and engage in ongoing community partnerships
Candidates with one or more of the following areas of expertise are strongly preferred:
- Gender and sexuality
- Caribbean and Latin America Performance studies
- Africana literature, broadly defined
- Cultural expression as political resistance
- Visual culture
- Digital humanities
- Music and sound culture
Application Instructions
Applications should include a cover letter that details a clear research agenda, research methods, teaching interests, the ability to work with GSU's undergraduate and graduate students, and any interest or experience in outreach and service in campus, professional, or wider communities; a curriculum vitae; and a journal article or chapter-length writing sample.
Review of applications will begin November 30 and continue until the position in filled. Applicants who successfully make it to the next round of review should expect to submit:
- Three professional letters of recommendation
- A teaching statement that indicates the applicant’s teaching philosophy, methods, and experience
- Evidence of teaching excellence (such as but not limited to student evals and/or sample syllabi)
- In two pages or less, please outline how your professional and academic experiences have prepared you to support and apply Georgia State’s mission and core values, which are described in our strategic plan (https://strategic.gsu.edu/).
If you have any questions about the position, please contact Jonathan Gayles [email protected] or Akinyele Umoja at [email protected]. Submit your application materials to this email address: [email protected].
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.