Faculty Positions
Position Title / Rank: Acting Graduate Program Coordinator (4-Month Contractually-Limited)
College: College of Arts
Department: School of English and Theatre Studies
Date Posted: August 13, 2020
Deadline: September 11, 2020
Please reference AD #20-27
Position Description:
The Creative Writing MFA, School of English and Theatre Studies, at the University of Guelph invites applications for a contractually-limited position as Acting Graduate Program Coordinator.
Call for Applications: One-semester (Jan 1, 2021 – May 1, 2021) contractually-limited (CL) appointment to the position of Acting Graduate Program Coordinator in the Creative Writing MFA.
The Creative Writing MFA is seeking a one-semester Contractually Limited Appointment (CLA) beginning January 1, 2021. The key features of the Acting Graduate Program Coordinator position are: overseeing and participating in the MFA admissions process and communicating with accepted applicants; scholarship selection at the program, school and college level; selecting the professional mentors for first-year students’ individual study semester; thesis supervision; ongoing program administration and academic advising for all MFA students. The selected candidate should be a professional writer of national acclaim who has familiarity with the local and national literary communities. They should have some experience in a graduate creative writing program (e.g. graduate thesis supervision in creative writing, mentorship, teaching creative writing at the graduate level, creating a diverse and inclusive graduate creative writing community, etc.) The candidate should have some experience teaching creative writing since they will likely be asked to teach a one-semester writing workshop either in fiction or creative nonfiction, potentially in a remote-delivery mode.
Preferred qualifications include: administrative experience, some experience with graduate admissions committee processes, mentorship, working independently with distanced administrative support, hosting program social events possibly online. The minimum educational requirement is a BA. Some knowledge of the Guelph Creative Writing MFA will be an asset. Because the CW MFA has a diverse student body and diversity in the program is of high importance, supporting this diversity is crucial to program principle and practice and to the Coordinator’s role. This requires knowledge of best practices related to inclusive classrooms, pedagogy, and instruction, and a track record of managing and facilitating respectful dialogues with diverse student populations.
About Us: The Guelph Creative Writing MFA welcomes and is structured to nurture and support many voices and wide imaginaries. Our distinguished faculty and our many acclaimed graduates recognize the power of language to summon a different world. We offer workshops in creative nonfiction, drama, fiction, hybrid forms, poetry and screenwriting. Defining characteristics include innovative plenary courses, courses committed to a decolonial writing practice, a semester-long mentorship with a professional writer, a commitment to creating literary community, and opportunity to design and teach creative writing workshops in downtown Toronto schools. The program is located in Toronto, housed in the University of Guelph-Humber building on the Humber College North campus.
The University of Guelph is the third largest employer in Guelph, a city of approximately 130,000 people, located about an hour drive west of Toronto, Ontario. University of Guelph is a top-ranked comprehensive university in Canada with an enrolment of about 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students across over 40 academic units. The University is known for its commitment to student learning, innovative research, and collaboration with world-class partners. It is a unique place, with transformative research and teaching and a distinctive campus culture. People who learn and work here are shaped and inspired by a shared purpose: To Improve Life. Reflecting that shared purpose in every experience connected to our university positions us to create positive change, here and around the world. Our University community shares a profound sense of social responsibility, a drive for international development, and an obligation to address global issues.
Application Process
Assessment of applications will begin on September 11, 2020 and will continue until the position is filled. Interested applicants should submit the following materials (preferably as a single PDF file): a letter of application; curriculum vitae; teaching statement; a one-page statement about your experience working with a diverse student body and your contributions or potential contributions to creating/advancing a culture of equity and inclusions; evidence of teaching effectiveness (course outline/s, a selection of student evaluations from a course/a few courses at the relevant level). Applications should be sent to the attention of:
Martha Nandorfy Director School of English and Theatre Studies College of Arts University of Guelph Guelph, ON N1G 2W1
Email: setshire@uoguelph.ca
All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.
The University recognizes that applicants may have had obligations outside of work that have negatively impacted their record of achievements (e.g., parental, elder care, and/or medical). You are not required to disclose these obligations in the hiring process. If you choose to do so, the University will ensure that these obligations do not negatively impact the assessment of your qualifications for the position.
The University of Guelph resides on the ancestral lands of the Attawandaron people and the treaty lands and territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit and we offer our respect to our Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee and Métis neighbours as we strive to strengthen our relationships with them.
At the University of Guelph, fostering a culture of inclusion (https://uoguel.ph/ox2p9) is an institutional imperative. The University invites and encourages applications from all qualified individuals, including from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in employment, who may contribute to further diversification of our Institution.
If you require a medical accommodation during the recruitment or selection process, please contact Occupational Health and Wellness at 519-824-4120 x52674.