Position Description: Situated on the unceded, ancestral, and traditional territory of the xwmə0kwəyəm (Musqueam people), the Department of Language and Literacy Education (LLED) in the Faculty of Education at the University of British Columbia (UBC) in Vancouver invites applications for a Tenure-Stream position in Indigenous Language and Literacy Education at the rank of Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, or Professor. An appointment at the rank of Associate Professor or Professor may come with tenure.

We invite candidates with a primary specialization in Indigenous language and literacy education to extend research, teaching, and community collaboration in reclamation, reconciliation, and revitalization. We see Indigenous Language and Literacy Education as encompassing a broad range of meaning-making practices. These include, but are not limited to, storytelling in different forms and genres; Indigenous children and adolescent literatures; land-based literacies; multimodal and digital literacies; health literacies linked to well-being; Indigenous language revitalization, renewal and reclamation; and literacy pedagogies in school, community-based and other educational contexts.

Preference will be given to candidates who identify as Indigenous. This position is expected to commence July 1, 2022 (or as negotiated with the successful candidate).

This position fulfills a growing area of need that is in response to the University, Faculty, Department, and Indigenous strategic priorities, the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Actions, Bill 41- (Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act), Bill C-91 (Indigenous Languages Act), as well as the United Nations declaration of the International Decade of Indigenous Languages beginning in 2022.

Qualifications & Requirements: Candidates should have a doctorate (PhD or EdD) in Education or a related field by the start date of this appointment, with proven experience or potential to embed Indigenous language and literacy education practices in teaching, learning, and research that is representative of their current standing. We welcome applicants from all ranks, including those in the final stages of completion of their dissertation, and recognize the diversity of career trajectories and lived experiences among applicants.

Ideal Applicant:

• have a strong record of Indigenous community-centred scholarship and/or K-12 research in advancing Indigenous language and literacy priorities;
• will demonstrate excellence or potential for excellence in advancing research and scholarship that contributes to Indigenous language and literacy education priorities at the local, provincial, national,  nd/or international levels;
• will show evidence or potential of sustained engagement with Indigenous methodologies, knowledges, and research ethics;
• will have culturally-grounded and/or lived experiences and Indigenous worldviews; and e) will engage in the eradication of anti-Indigenous racism and contribute to decolonizing approaches to language and literacy education.

We anticipate that applicants will demonstrate a strong record or promise of scholarship in the form of peer-reviewed publications and/or alternative forms of knowledge dissemination that has impact in the field locally, nationally or internationally; show the solid evidence or potential to secure competitive external research funding; and can provide evidence of excellent, successful or effective teaching.

Responsibilities: The new hire will be committed to the cultivation of Indigeneity through research, teaching, development of Indigenous language and literacy education program initiatives, graduate student supervision, scholarly collaboration, and Indigenous engagement in local and/or broader communities. The candidate will build on existing strengths and research synergies with colleagues in the Department and Faculty, add research and teaching expertise to the graduate programs within LLED, the Indigenous Teacher Education Program (NITEP), Teacher Education, and university and community programs for language teacher professional development. The successful candidate is expected to (a) teach in both undergraduate and graduate programs coordinated by the Department, including courses in the Teacher Education Program; (b) recruit and supervise graduate students enrolled in the Department’s programs; (c) engage in sustained and productive scholarly activity, and (d) contribute to scholarly and educational communities and service work of the Department, the Faculty of Education, and the University. The annual workload for this position is 4 courses (12 credits) or equivalent.

This is a tenure-stream position in the Professoriate Stream. The appointment (rank and tenure) is subject to a positive review of the candidate’s records of achievements following the process established by the University and based on the criteria specified in the Collective Agreement. The successful candidate who is offered the rank of Assistant Professor or Associate Professor will be reviewed for reappointment and/or promotion in subsequent years in accordance with the Collective Agreement.

Application Materials

• a cover letter (maximum 2 single-space pages and please indicate if you are legally
  entitled to work in Canada),
• curriculum vitae,
• a statement of their current and projected research interests (maximum 1 single-space page),
• a statement of teaching/mentoring experience and philosophy (maximum 1 single-space page),
• evidence of teaching effectiveness (such as course outlines and student evaluations) and graduate student supervision (if applicable),
• 2-3 samples of recently published scholarship, and
• a Diversity Statement that describes and documents how values of equity, diversity, inclusion, anti-racism, and anti-oppression figure into your past, present, and future experience of teaching, research/educational leadership, community engagement, and your lived experience (maximum 1 page), and
• names and contact details of three references who should be at the rank of Associate Professor or above at a university of comparable or superior stature to UBC. Letters of reference will only be requested from short-listed candidates and referees will be asked to comment on the candidate’s engagement in equity, diversity, inclusion, anti-racism, and anti-oppression.

All applications must be submitted electronically, in the format of a single, bookmarked PDF file to: lled-posting.educ@ubc.ca. Following the submission of the application, the applicant will receive an Equity Survey link via email. Completion of the Equity Survey is required as part of the application process.

While the search remains open until the position is filled, in order to be considered in this round of adjudication, interested applicants are asked to submit their complete application package by Friday, January 7, 2022. Questions regarding the position and the application deadline should be directed to Dr. Margaret Kovach at margaret.kovach@ubc.ca

Equity and diversity are essential to academic excellence. An open and diverse community fosters the inclusion of voices that have been underrepresented or discouraged. We encourage applications from members of groups that have been marginalized on any grounds enumerated under the British Columbia Human Rights Code, including sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, racialization, disability, political belief, religion, marital or family status, age, and/or status as a First Nation, Metis, Inuit, or Indigenous person. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents of Canada will be given priority.

In accordance with UBC’s employment equity plan, and pursuant to Section 42 of the BC Human Rights Code, this job competition will be limited to those who self-identify as Indigenous. Indigenous applicants are requested to self-identify in their application.

Fore more information: UBC and Department of Language & Literacy Education