Assistant Professor – Caribbean Studies – African American Studies

The Department of African American Studies at the University of California, Berkeley seeks a tenure-track Assistant Professor whose work demonstrates contributions to Caribbean Studies. The Department of African American Studies is an intellectual community committed to producing, refining and advancing knowledge of Black people in the United States, the Caribbean, Latin America, Europe and Africa. A key component of our mission is to interrogate the meanings and dimensions of slavery and colonialism, and their continuing political, social and cultural implications.

Our faculty is drawn from disciplines as diverse as cultural studies, linguistics, literature, history, sociology, performance, and creative writing. We are united by a relentless commitment to pushing the boundaries of knowledge through excellence in scholarship and pedagogy that are at once interdisciplinary and innovative.

The Caribbean has been central to the founding of our department and doctoral program and to our understanding of the field of African Diaspora Studies. In recent years, we have witnessed a resurgence of the Caribbean both as a key site in the field and as a place from which so much of our theorizing about blackness, colonialism, fugitivity and necropolitics derives. Applicants’ research and teaching should therefore investigate and produce knowledge centered on the Caribbean both geographically and analytically. This may include work on cultural representation and practices, epistemologies structuring the knowledge of philosophies, social-cultural formations, politics and political-economic processes, among other substantive areas. We adopt an expansive approach to the Caribbean that understands it as a geographic, socio-cultural and economic formation that is not static over time. As such, we invite scholars working on the broader circum-Caribbean, including work across different colonial and anticolonial formations, as well as work on the Caribbean diaspora and on the Caribbean coasts of Central and South America.

We are interested in applicants whose research and teaching articulate a clear methodological approach, whether grounded in a distinct discipline or in interdisciplinary practice. Successful candidates for academic positions in the African American Studies Department and Social Sciences Division of Letters and Science will demonstrate evidence of a commitment to advancing equity, inclusion, and belonging in the realms of research, teaching and service. We seek applicants working in and across fields and disciplines including but not limited to: history, literary studies, anthropology, sociology, geography, performance studies, visual culture studies, black feminist theory, queer cultural studies, and critical media studies.

The department is committed to addressing the family needs of faculty, including dual career couples and single parents. We are also interested in candidates who have had non-traditional career paths or who have taken time off for family reasons, or who have achieved excellence in careers outside academia. For information about potential relocation to Berkeley, or career needs of accompanying partners and spouses, please visit: http://ofew.berkeley.edu/new-faculty

Diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging are core values at UC Berkeley. Our excellence can only be fully realized by faculty, students, and academic and non-academic staff who share our commitment to these values. Successful candidates for our academic positions will demonstrate evidence of a commitment to advancing equity, inclusion, and belonging.

The University of California is committed to creating and maintaining a community dedicated to the advancement, application, and transmission of knowledge and creative endeavors through academic excellence, where all individuals who participate in University programs and activities can work and learn together in a safe and secure environment, free of violence, harassment, discrimination, exploitation, or intimidation. Consistent with this commitment, UC Berkeley requires all applicants for Senate faculty positions to complete, sign, and upload an Authorization of Information Release form into AP Recruit as part of their application. If an applicant does not include the signed authorization, the application will be considered incomplete, and as with any incomplete application, will not receive further consideration. Although all applicants for faculty recruitments must complete the entire application, applicants will only be subject to reference checks if and when they are selected as the candidate to whom the hiring unit would like to extend a formal offer. More information is available on this website.

Department: https://africam.berkeley.edu/

Qualifications

Basic qualifications (required at time of application)

A PhD or equivalent international degree , or enrolled in PhD or equivalent international degree-granting program at the time of application.

Preferred qualifications

Successful applicants are expected to develop a nationally recognized program and collaborate across disciplines to develop research initiatives related to the African Diaspora in the Caribbean. Candidates should demonstrate evidence of strong research productivity, potential for securing extramural funding, and a commitment to excellence in teaching and mentoring of undergraduates, graduate students, and post-docs. We are seeking applicants whose primary research and teaching theorizes and explores Caribbean Studies in the humanities and social sciences. We are particularly interested in scholars with a commitment and track record of promoting diversity, equity and inclusion in the realms of research, teaching and/or service.

Application Requirements

Document requirements

• Curriculum Vitae – Your most recently updated C.V.
• Cover Letter – You must include which position you are applying for in your Cover Letter.
• Statement of Research – Including past research accomplishments and proposed research at Berkeley
• Statement of Teaching – Including prior teaching experience, teaching philosophy, future teaching interests, prior and proposed academic, professional and/or community service.
• Statement on Contributions to Advancing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion – Statement on your contributions to diversity, equity, and inclusion, including information about your understanding of these topics, your record of activities to date, and your specific plans and goals for advancing equity and inclusion if hired at Berkeley (for additional information go to https://ofew.berkeley.edu/recruitment/contributions-diversity).
• Please note that the statement of contributions to diversity equity and inclusion may be evaluated as a standalone document and should, therefore, include all relevant information, even if aspects are also discussed in other submitted materials.
• First of three writing samples – Journal articles, book or dissertation chapters, publications or other appropriate products.
  Files must be 50 MB or smaller in size.
  Recruit also accepts the following other media file types: txt, pdf, jpg, jpeg, rar, tif, mov, bmp, 3gp, png, wmv, m4v, mp3, mp4, m4a, psd, swf, tiff.
• Second of three writing samples – Journal articles, book or dissertation chapters, publications or other appropriate products.
  Files must be 50 MB or smaller in size.
  Recruit also accepts the following other media file types: txt, pdf, jpg, jpeg, rar, tif, mov, bmp, 3gp, png, wmv, m4v, mp3, mp4, m4a, psd, swf, tiff.
• Third of three writing samples – Journal articles, book or dissertation chapters, publications or other appropriate products.
  Files must be 50 MB or smaller in size.
  Recruit also accepts the following other media file types: txt, pdf, jpg, jpeg, rar, tif, mov, bmp, 3gp, png, wmv, m4v, mp3, mp4, m4a, psd, swf, tiff.
• Authorization of Information Release – A reference check will be completed only if you are selected as the candidate to whom the hiring unit would like to extend a formal offer. Download, complete, sign, and upload the Authorization to Release Information form.

Reference requirements

• 3 required (contact information only)

References will only be contacted for those candidates under serious consideration and we will seek your permission before doing so.

Apply link: https://aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF04462

Help contact: jsd@berkeley.edu

About UC Berkeley

UC Berkeley is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. The excellence of the institution requires an environment in which the diverse community of faculty, students, and staff are welcome and included. Successful candidates will demonstrate knowledge and skill related to ensuring equity and inclusion in the activities of their academic position (e.g., teaching, research, and service, as applicable).

The University of California, Berkeley is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or protected veteran status.

Please refer to the University of California’s Affirmative Action Policy and the University of California’s Anti-Discrimination Policy.

In searches when letters of reference are required all letters will be treated as confidential per University of California policy and California state law. Please refer potential referees, including when letters are provided via a third party (i.e., dossier service or career center), to the UC Berkeley statement of confidentiality prior to submitting their letter.

As a University employee, you will be required to comply with all applicable University policies and/or collective bargaining agreements, as may be amended from time to time. Federal, state, or local government directives may impose additional requirements.