Office of the Provost - University of Southern California

Assistant Director of Faculty Development - STEM focus

To be considered for this opportunity, please submit:

1. Cover letter
2. CV/Resume
3. A writing sample. (Create a new 1-2 page written resource for USC faculty on incorporating mindfulness activities in a course. Review the website for CET resource format and samples. Please download one of our existing resources, and use our formatting for your document.)

The USC Center for Excellence in Teaching is a resource center that supports USC’s core values and strategic priorities within its teaching mission; serves as a resource to USC’s schools for developing, evaluating, and rewarding teaching excellence; and supports best practices in instruction and course design.

This is a STEM focused, senior-level faculty development position, requiring extensive professional teaching and faculty development experience in a research university setting, with a focus on supporting best practices in both on-ground and online instruction across the university. (Teaching or leading training while still a graduate student does not meet this qualification.) This is a 100% full-time, on-site staff position located on USC’s University Park Campus.

JOB ACCOUNTABILITIES:

1. Supports the development, establishment, and evaluation of university-wide and school-based teaching initiatives from an evidence-based teaching perspective. Serves as a centralized resource for faculty-led interdisciplinary teaching development projects. Researches, develops, and provides centralized training and resources that support teaching initiatives, as well as rigorous, criterion-based tools for evaluating teaching, all aligned with the criteria in USC’s Definition of Excellence in Teaching. Builds partnerships with other USC support services to collaborate on projects that further enhance teaching excellence.
2. Serves as a discipline-specific pedagogical specialist in STEM that consults with assigned schools, departments, individual faculty, graduate students, and instructional support staff. Serves as point of contact for deans, vice deans, and chairs of assigned schools for pedagogical support in teaching and curricular development projects. Analyzes academic programs, courses, and student and faculty input to make recommendations for program/course alignment, curriculum/course design, and instructional strategies, as requested by schools within their discipline. Provides actionable strategies, guiding frameworks, and ongoing support for best practices in teaching and curriculum/course design for on-ground, online, and blended instruction. Provides recommendations and guidance that is aligned with the priorities of faculty, programs, schools, and the university, and is informed by pedagogical practices that are evidence-based and endorsed by the respective disciplines.
3. Conducts training needs assessments. Designs and facilitates training sessions for faculty based on individual or group needs (i.e., large-scale university-wide faculty development institutes, school-based seminar series, online modules, workshops, and small group or individual consultations). Researches, develops, distributes, and provides training for customized pedagogical resources that address identified needs. Recommends and implements centralized university support strategies based on trends in school-based needs and pedagogical research. Convenes, leads, and facilitates an advisory group comprising school-based instructional designers from across the university to align school and university pedagogical support efforts, and facilitate the exchange of innovative ideas, research findings, and applications.
4. Designs, creates, and revises center instructional-support materials using multimedia authoring tools. Develops written resources and learning media for the center website, training events, and newsletters. Plans, creates, and builds training content in the learning management system.
5. Models and provides basic support for the use of the university-supported learning management systems, video conferencing platforms, and other university-supported e-learning tools as pedagogical tools.
6. Researches current trends, issues, and developments in instruction, program/course design, and innovative pedagogies. Engages in professional development and conducts research, presents, or publishes on innovative faculty development, instructional, and program/course design practices (with faculty partners whenever possible).
7. Performs other related duties as assigned or requested. The university reserves the right to add or change duties at any time.

Preferred Qualifications:

Education:

- Doctoral Degree

Experience:

- 5 years

• Experience in leading faculty development training within a Center for Teaching and Learning at a large or research university
• Expertise in STEM pedagogy
• 10 semester/15 quarters of teaching experience as a university faculty member (adjunct, part-time, or full-time). TA or graduate student teaching experience would not meet this criteria.
• Demonstrated ability to motivate change in higher education faculty
• Demonstrated ability to work independently and in a team under deadlines
• Ability to problem solve, think critically, and make sound judgments
• Ability to adjust to rapidly changing priorities and environment
• Demonstrated ability to create productive partnerships with other campus service offices to amplify impact of services provided to the campus community
• Demonstrated ability to develop relationships with influential university leaders and faculty champions to create a network of support
• Knowledge of multimedia authoring tools (e.g., Storyline, Camtasia, Adobe Captivate, etc.)
• Knowledge of educational technologies often used in higher education settings

Field of Expertise:

• Pedagogy/Andragogy
• Faculty Development and Training in Higher Education
• Instructional Design in Higher Education
• On-ground and Online Instruction in Higher Education
• Multimedia Authoring

In addition, the successful candidate must also demonstrate, through ideas, words and actions, a strong commitment to USC’s Unifying Values of integrity, excellence, diversity, equity and inclusion, well-being, open communication and accountability.

The annual base salary range for this position is $96,047.59 - $119,312.64 . When extending an offer of employment, the University of Southern California considers factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the candidate’s work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, federal, state and local laws, contractual stipulations, grant funding, as well as external market and organizational considerations.