Assistant or Associate Professor - Theatre, Dance, and Multimedia Performing Arts

Lehman College - Asssistant or Associate Professor - Theatre, Dance, and Multimedia Performing Arts

FACULTY VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT

The Department of Theatre, Dance, and Multimedia Performing Arts at Lehman College, City University of New York invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor or tenure-track / tenured Associate Professor position in Dramatic Writing beginning in the Fall of 2027.

The department presents a full mainstage season of six productions, as well as having a multimedia performing arts track that integrates live performance with digital media that focuses on student-driven work as part of its mainstage season. In addition, the department has a focus on new work for the stage and screen created by students that is presented in various forums throughout the academic year. Full-time faculty are expected to mentor students in developing their own voices for a hybrid of stage and new media platforms.

The department is seeking candidates with specializations in dramatic writing, including but not limited to playwriting, screenwriting, digital streaming media, immersive and devised theatre, merging traditional dramatic scriptwriting with new media storytelling arts. The department is seeking candidates that can combine the pedagogy of dramatic scriptwriting with an emphasis on performance, embodiment, and somatic learning that is the signature of the department’s academic and performance work.

Candidates must demonstrate the ability to teach major courses in playwriting and screenwriting at both the introductory and advanced levels. They must also be able to teach general education courses in theatre for non-majors. Depending upon the candidate’s area of specialization, they may be asked to teach other theatre program-related courses that cover new play development, public presentation and communication skills, business of the arts, and special topics in theatre, such as Africana Theatre and/or Latino Theatre.

Candidates must be committed to exploring innovative pedagogical techniques to promote student success. To that end, candidates must be able to address the realities of teaching dramatic writing in the age of A.I. The cognitive offloading of creative, research, and technical skills to A.I. poses pedagogical questions regarding the authenticity of the individual “voice” and creative spirit of all students, and requires innovative teaching techniques as a result. Rather than ignoring A.I., how can pedagogy address the concerns posed by A.I. without simply saying “no” to its use? Candidates should be able to address both the drawbacks and possible uses of A.I. in their teaching with the search committee.

The starting date is August 26, 2027. The teaching load is 18 credit hours (5-6 courses) per academic year that may be taught in person or online. The successful candidate will also be expected to maintain an active creative work/research agenda in the field. For tenure-track faculty, the teaching commitment is reduced by six courses over the first five years in order to assist with creative work/research. Tenured faculty may also receive teaching releases to assist with creative work/research. All faculty are eligible to apply for competitive internal Lehman College and CUNY grants to support their creative work/research.

Service is required for all full-time faculty, and so the successful candidate will be expected to engage in significant service activities at the departmental, college, university, professional and/or community levels, commensurate with rank. Areas of service include but are not limited to recruitment, advising, curriculum development and assessment, and production supervision. The appointment at the rank of Assistant Professor or Associate Professor will begin Fall 2027.

Lehman College is a senior college in the City University of New York system that prides itself on its commitment to public urban higher education. Located in the Bronx, the College serves its diverse student body of more than 14,000 students by providing a liberal arts education that prepares them for employment, graduate study, and the professions. The College is a Hispanic-Serving Institution. In 2018, Lehman College was ranked 3rd in the U.S. among four-year public institutions for economic mobility for students, and 1st in the U.S. among Hispanic-Serving Institutions with high extended upward income mobility rates.

QUALIFICATIONS

• MFA in Dramatic Writing or PhD/DFA in Theatre by the start date of the position (August 26th, 2027).

For Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor:

• Ph.D. degree in area(s) of experience or equivalent. Also required are the ability to teach successfully, demonstrated scholarship or achievement, and ability to cooperate with others for the good of the institution.

For Instructor:

• Master's degree in area(s) of expertise, and/or active progress toward a Doctorate, or equivalent. Also required are the ability to teach successfully, interest in productive scholarship or achievement, and ability to cooperate with others for the good of the institution.

COMPENSATION

Assistant Prof: $94,017-$105,588

Associate Prof: $113,745-$125,436

CUNY offers faculty a competitive compensation and benefits package covering health insurance, pension and retirement benefits, paid parental leave, and savings programs. We also provide mentoring and support for research, scholarship, and publication as part of our commitment to ongoing faculty professional development.