Faculty Opportunities

Breadcrumb

Whittier College is committed to attracting and retaining a high quality, diverse faculty with a shared passion for student-centered teaching and mentoring. 

Distinguished by small class sizes, high-impact pedagogies, and an innovative liberal arts curriculum, it is a nationally recognized model for inclusion and diversity. With over 65% students of color, Whittier is both an HSI and AANAPISI. Founded in 1887, it is an independent, four-year liberal arts college with about 1,700 undergraduates, ideally situated in the scenic hills 18 miles east of downtown Los Angeles.

Whittier College is an Affirmative Action, Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate against employees or applicants because of race, religion creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, or sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by State or Federal Law.

The Department of Social Work at Whittier College invites applications for an adjunct faculty position to teach an undergraduate social work course in Spring 2023.

Position Responsibilities

Responsibilities include teaching, providing feedback and grading learning assignments, attending to regular email communication with students, and providing office hours. It is your responsibility to communicate with Social Work faculty and the program director for course concerns, student issues, etc. Course syllabus and access to past Moodle Course sites are available for you to use.  

Minimum Qualifications

  • A master's degree in social work is required for all social work courses
  • Two years post-MSW full-time experience preferred
  • Experience and expertise in research, policy, and social welfare issues

Additional Information

To apply for this position, email a cover letter, CV, and official transcripts to ghong@whittier.edu. In the cover letter, candidates should address their ability to educate and mentor diverse students and/or contribute to a diverse community. The cover letter should also include your ability to teach research in the context of social welfare and policy. As a part of the online application process, you will be required to provide the names of three professional references. If your application advances in this search, you will be notified prior to Whittier College contacting your references.

Application review will begin immediately; position open until filled.

The Kinesiology Department at Whittier College is accepting applications for a tenure-track appointment as Assistant Professor in Kinesiology, specializing in motor learning & control, beginning August 2023.

The Kinesiology Department seeks an outstanding candidate whose experience in teaching, research, or community service has prepared them to contribute to our commitment to diversity and equity.The Department is particularly interested in candidates who have experience working with students from a diverse background and a demonstrated commitment to improving access to higher education for students from marginalized identities.The faculty member will have the opportunity to teach undergraduate courses on motor learning and control, research methods/statistics, courses that contribute to the liberal arts curriculum, and selected courses in kinesiology at the introductory and advanced levels.The faculty member will also help advise students and engage in service work for the college. Whittier College prides itself on inclusive, hands-on teaching of undergraduates and engagement with students in undergraduate research.The successful applicant will be comfortable supervising senior seminar projects in motor learning and control in addition to developing equitable research opportunities in motor learning and control for a diverse student population.

Applicants must have a Ph.D. by August 2023 in Kinesiology with a focus on motor learning and control, or a closely-related field with specialization in motor learning and control. Additionally, successful applicants will be able to show evidence of successful teaching; the potential for a productive research agenda in Kinesiology; and effective communication skills. Experience in mentoring women and minorities in STEM fields is desired.

Whittier College is an independent, four-year Liberal Arts College distinguished by its small size and its nationally recognized undergraduate liberal arts program. As a liberal arts college, Whittier is also distinctive by having a strong Department of Kinesiology that is well respected within the College and has the second largest number of majors on campus. The Kinesiology major has been designed to fit within the context of the liberal arts program and allows for creativity in course content and design supports the learning of a diverse student population. Whittier College is committed to attracting and retaining a high quality, diverse faculty with a shared passion for student-centered teaching and mentoring. It is distinguished by its small class sizes, high-impact pedagogies, and innovative liberal arts curriculum blended with professional and pre-professional programs. It is a nationally recognized model for inclusion and diversity.  With over 60% students of color, Whittier is designated as both an HSI and AANAPISI.

Interested candidates should submit a letter of interest addressing educational experiences that correspond to the duties and qualifications articulated in the position description; brief research and teaching statements; curriculum vitae; evidence of effective teaching (e.g. summary of teaching evaluations); and the names and contact information of your letters of recommendation writers.  Please arrange for three confidential letters of recommendation to be submitted directly by the letter writers. All application materials and letters of support are to be submitted to http://apply.interfolio.com/114969. Review of applications will begin on October 17 and will continue until the position is filled.

The History Department at Whittier College is seeking the applications of outstanding candidates for a faculty fellow position in African-American U.S. history, with any period considered, as part of the Bayard Rustin Fellowship program.

Individuals who work on the historical intersections of race, class, gender, sexuality and/or other identity categories are particularly welcomed, although we also welcome candidates who bring depth and expertise in new or emerging fields.  The Bayard Rustin Fellowships at Whittier are designed to attract faculty from underrepresented groups in higher education who are interested in teaching in a liberal-arts setting. Rustin Fellows teach three courses during the year (in a Fall 2023/Spring 2024 calendar), at a salary of $67,000 plus a small fund for research & development. As a Rustin Fellow, the successful candidate will have the opportunity to teach introductory survey courses in U.S. history, as well as more specialized upper-division courses of their choice and creation.  The position is for one year, and the Fellowship is renewable for a second year, pending favorable review.  Rustin Fellows are eligible for tenure-track consideration, pending budgetary and administrative approval and, if A.B.D., completion of the Ph.D.

We seek a colleague with a clear commitment to engaging with undergraduates from a wide range of racial, class, gender, cultural, linguistic, and economic backgrounds, and who wants to teach in a liberal-arts setting, which means smaller classes, close academic mentoring of students, and continuous assessment and improvement of our teaching.  Individuals with a history of, and commitment to, teaching and mentoring students from underrepresented groups, or whose experience in teaching, research, or community service has prepared them to contribute to our dedication to diversity and equity, are strongly encouraged to apply.  We also seek someone who is interested in collaboratively rethinking the curriculum of Whittier’s history major, and – since faculty at Whittier College are also scholars – who has an on-going and promising research agenda in their area of specialization and interest.  For a successful candidate who is interested, there is the opportunity during the second year of the Rustin Fellowship to participate in Whittier’s Our Story oral history project which is dedicated to elevating and documenting the history and voices of Black/African-American alumni and culture at Whittier College.

Successful candidates will be recent Ph.D. recipients, or advanced graduate students. Candidates with some teaching experience, whether as instructor or teaching assistant, are particularly welcomed.  Applicants should submit a letter of application (which describes relevant teaching and mentoring experiences, the dissertation and/or the most recent scholarly project, as well as other appropriate experiences), a brief statement of teaching philosophy, a c.v. and graduate transcript.  Please also provide a reference list with contact information of two individuals capable of submitting a letter of reference on your behalf at a later date. Review of materials will begin immediately, and will continue until the position is filled.  Submit application materials to http://apply.interfolio.com/121301.

Whittier College is a nationally recognized, selective, independent liberal arts college with a diverse student body of approximately 1,200 undergraduates.  The College is distinguished by its small size and innovative interdisciplinary programs.  The campus is located on a 95-acre hillside campus 18 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles.  We have a long history of commitment to equity, reflecting our Quaker origins, and our student body mirrors the diversity of the region, making the college one of the most diverse liberal arts institutions in the country.  Whittier College adheres to the Family and Medical Leave Act/California Family Rights Act and provides tuition remission for dependents, spouses/domestic partners, and employees to support the needs of families.  In addition, Broadoaks School, established over a century ago, located on the Whittier College campus, has exemplary preschool through middle school programs, including before and after-school care (http://www.whittier.edu/about/broadoaks).

Whittier College is an Affirmative Action, Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate against employees or applicants because of race, religion, creed, color, national origin, class, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, or sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by State or Federal Law.

 

The Department of Sociology & Anthropology at Whittier College seeks a Rustin Fellow in the Anthropology of the African Diaspora.

Anthropological subdiscipline, specialty, and region are open. We are interested in candidates who are dedicated to their teaching practice and who seek to work in a small department of research-active teacher-scholars. The successful candidate should be able to teach introductory courses as well as upper-level courses in the regions or issues of their expertise.

The Bayard Rustin Fellowship positions are designed to attract faculty from historically underrepresented groups within higher education to experience the unique liberal arts college setting. Applicants for the Fellowship can be either new Ph.Ds. or in the writing stage of the dissertation before beginning the position.

Rustin Fellowships allow scholarly time for writing, while gaining teaching experience in a liberal arts setting. Fellows will teach three courses during the year (in a Fall 2023/Spring 2024 calendar), at a salary of $67,000 plus a small fund for research & development. The position is for one year and the Fellowship is renewable for a second year, pending favorable review. Rustin Fellow positions are eligible for tenure-track consideration, pending budgetary and administrative approval.

Whittier College is a nationally recognized, selective, independent liberal arts college with a diverse student body of approximately 1,200 undergraduates and the College is distinguished by its small size and innovative interdisciplinary programs. The campus is located on 95-acre hillside campus 18 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles. We have a long history of commitment to equity, reflecting our Quaker origins, and our student body mirrors the diversity of the region, making Whittier one of the most diverse liberal arts colleges in the country. Our faculty of committed teacher-scholars weave issues of diversity into their work with students.

Please submit a cover letter, CV, a 1–2-page statement on your approach toward equity and inclusion in teaching and mentoring, and a list of three referees to the search committee at http://apply.interfolio.com/120867. EO and AA Employer.

 

The Bayard Rustin Fellowship positions are designed to attract faculty from historically underrepresented groups within higher education to experience the unique liberal arts college setting.

Applicants for the Fellowship can be either new Ph.D.s or in the writing stage of the dissertation before beginning the position.  Whittier College seeks a Rustin Fellow in social justice counseling (preferred), applied developmental, cross-cultural, &/or community psychology, with a scholarly focus on minoritized and marginalized communities.
 
Rustin Fellowships are designed to allow scholarly time for writing, while gaining teaching experience in a liberal arts setting. Fellows will teach three courses during the year (in a Fall//Spring calendar), at a salary of $67,000 plus a small fund for research & development. The position is for one year and the Fellowship is renewable for a second year, pending favorable review. Rustin Fellow positions are eligible for tenure-track consideration, pending budgetary and administrative approval. Their expected course load would include teaching the Senior Capstone, Statistics, or Research Methods, as well as two electives focusing on counseling, social justice, cross-cultural, applied developmental, and/or community psychology.

Review of materials (letter of application, vita/e, teaching statement, a summary & status of the dissertation project) will begin immediately, and will continue until positions are filled.  Submit application materials to: http://apply.interfolio.com/120663. EO and AA Employer.

Whittier College is a nationally recognized, selective, independent liberal arts college with a diverse student body of approximately 1,200 undergraduates and the College is distinguished by its small size and innovative interdisciplinary programs.  The campus is located on a 95-acre hillside campus 18 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles. We have a long history of commitment to equity, reflecting our Quaker origins, and our student body mirrors the diversity of the region, making Whittier one of the most diverse liberal arts colleges in the country.  Our faculty, committed teacher-scholars, weave issues of diversity into their work with students.  

Whittier College is seeking an experienced writing specialist to lead the Writing Center and direct the College Writing Program.

The College Writing Program is a writing-intensive feature of the liberal arts curriculum, which is designed to teach students how to communicate effectively at each successive level of their major discipline, as well as to general audiences outside their chosen fields. In our writing courses, students are trained to read and listen critically and to construct supportable written arguments, integrating knowledge from within and without their chosen disciplines, through recursive, collaborative processes.

The Director will work with the Dean of Academic Success and the faculty to staff the College Writing Program, an integral feature of the First-Year Experience Program. Each semester and throughout the summer, the Director will offer professional development training for students serving as tutors, and for Faculty teaching INTD 100, College Writing Seminar. In turn the Director will be expected to teach INTD 90, Introductory Writing Seminar, once each semester, and INTD 100, College Writing Seminar, once each semester. Additionally, the Director will serve as an academic advisor for students in the INTD 90 courses each semester.

The Director will work with the Center for Advising and Academic Success during the summer months to support Summer Advising and Registration and transition to Whittier College experiences. Additionally, the Director will work with the Office of Institutional Effectiveness to establish clear assessment standards and protocols for the College Writing Program, its instructors, and Writing Across the Curriculum.

Tenure Status: Non-Tenure Track
Exempt Status: Faculty, Exempt; 12 Months
Hours: Varies
Full Time/Part Time status: full-time
Salary Range: $75,000-80,000 (dependent on qualifications)
Reports to: Dean of Academic Success
Location/Department: Whittier College (Main Campus)/Writing Program

Responsibilities

Below is a listing of the essential functions of the Director of Writing Center:

  • Work with the Dean of Academic Success to re-establish the Writing Center to support the College Writing Program.
  • The expectation is that the Writing Director will work on campus during the time of their appointment.
  • Develop and deliver professional training development workshops for student peer writing associates (tutors) each semester and during the summer months.
  • Develop and deliver professional training development workshops for Faculty members teaching INTD 90 or INTD 100 and Writing Across the Curriculum at Whittier College.
  • Supporting Summer Advising and Registration and transitioning to Whittier College experiences in May, June, July, and August, directed by the Dean of Academic Success.
  • Service on College-wide faculty committees such as the curriculum committee, Enrollment and Student Affairs Committee, or others directed by the Dean of Academic Success.
  • Assess and evaluate the effectiveness of the Writing Center and each component of the College Writing Program.

If adjustments to the teaching schedule need to be made, the Director will work with the Dean of Academic Success to establish projects for the academic year. In general, the Director teaches 50% of their workload, with 25% of their time dedicated to training and management of the tutors, and the other 25% dedicated to the professional development and training of the faculty.

Position Requirements

Master’s Degree required. Terminal Degree preferred in Rhetoric and Composition, English, ESL Education (concentration in literacy/writing), or a related field.

The position is based in Whittier, California. To be considered for this position, please submit your cover letter and resume to: whittierjobs@whittier.edu or mail to Whittier College, Attn: Human Resources Manager, 13406 E Philadelphia Street Whittier, CA  90608. AA/EOE.

 

Whittier College invites applications for a Lecturer of Political Science.

This will be a full-time position for the 2023-2024 Academic Year.
 
Tenure Status: Non-tenure track
Exempt Status: Exempt
Hours: Monday-Exempt
Full-Time/Part-Time status: Full-time
Salary Range: 57,000. Salary will be commensurate with experience, skills and knowledge.
Degree Status: Ph.D. in hand or close to completion.
Reports to: Associate Dean of Faculty
Location/Department: Whittier College Main Campus; Political Science Dept., Platner Hall
 
The Department of Political Science at Whittier College invites applications for a non-tenure track Lecturer position beginning in the fall of 2023. This is a one-year position with the possibility of renewal, and the teaching load is seven courses during the year. We seek applicants who are committed to excellence in teaching in an undergraduate liberal arts setting.
 
During the fall semester the new hire will teach one section of International Relations (220), American Foreign Policy (332), and either one section of American Politics (110) or a course in comparative politics or international relations in the lecturer’s area(s) of expertise. In the spring semester the new hire will teach one section of International Relations (220), International Organization (228), and a course in comparative politics or international relations based on the lecturer’s area(s) of expertise. A seventh course will be decided upon once the final selection of a lecturer has been made.
 
Candidates should send: a letter of application; curriculum vita; a statement of teaching philosophy; evidence of teaching effectiveness; graduate school transcripts; and contact information for three references. The deadline for submission of complete applications is March 20, 2023, though the position will remain open until filled. Please direct all inquiries to plscsearch@whittier.edu.

Whittier College seeks a Postdoctoral Fellow in art history, design history, or visual culture with teaching, research, and/or curatorial specialties inclusive of Afro-Latinx, Caribbean, Latin American, U.S. Latinx, Indigenous North American, or Art of the Americas, broadly conceived.

Within this geographic framework, we seek a colleague focused primarily in the 20th and 21st centuries with the ability to provide historical framework inclusive of the impact of Colonialism in the Americas. The ideal candidate will want to collaborate in redesigning our Department curriculum and be able to contribute to the College’s interdisciplinary programs in Gender Studies, Environmental Studies, Latinx Studies, and/or African American studies, and/or the Art department’s Design major track. The goal of Whittier’s Postdoctoral Fellowship program is to move fellows into tenure-track lines by the time they have completed their fellowship.  The Rustin-Mellon Fellow will therefore be eligible for a tenure-track appointment by the end of this three-year Mellon-funded postdoctoral fellowship (appointment is dependent on a successful performance review).

In the first three years, the Fellow’s responsibilities will include teaching, research, and participating in the campus’s new Mellon-funded Poet StoryLab (2023-2026). This project will investigate the historical evolution of a “brown” identity in the US, paying close attention to the way intersectional experiences related to gender and sexual orientation impact the lived experience of racialized bodies in our current cultural and political climate. The Fellow will teach two small classes of 15-20 undergraduate students per year on topics relevant to these themes. Additionally, the Fellow will join the faculty team responsible for grant-funded programmatic activities and assist particularly in the areas of coordinating student interns and community outreach.

We seek a colleague with enthusiasm for developing innovative and forward-thinking curriculum in art history and visual culture for students at one of the most diverse liberal arts colleges in the country. The Mellon-funded Storylab initiative offers a framework for what we envision as a series of storytelling experiences that will act as a testing ground for experimentation in liberatory narratives rooted in joy and in celebration of the messiness of being in the world as a brown subject. Our team will work with faculty across campus and community partners to develop student-centered experiences including creative storytelling workshops, off-campus fieldwork using the abundant creative resources of Los Angeles, inviting resident artists and storytellers whose work focuses on “brownness”, and other programmatic and pedagogical activities. Because of the StoryLab focus on resources in greater Los Angeles, the Fellow will have ample opportunity to connect with artists, curators, writers, historians, and creative and cultural institutions whose work and research centers “brown” identities.

Preference will be for applicants who will add to the diversity of the Whittier College campus experience through their teaching, research, and programmatic activities. No prior teaching experience required. PhD in art history or other closely related areas of the arts and humanities (such as visual culture, design & media history) should be complete by August 2023. Individuals from historically underrepresented groups in higher education are encouraged to apply.  

Interested applicants should submit (1) a letter of application, (2) a CV, (3) a teaching statement, and (4) a research statement that outlines your area of research. Names and contact information for three references will be requested during the second round of interviews.

Starting salary for this position is $67,000 and includes an additional research stipend.

Review of materials will begin March 15, 2023 and will continue until position is filled.  Submit application materials to: http://apply.interfolio.com/120974. EO and AA Employer.

Whittier College is a nationally recognized, selective, independent liberal arts college with a diverse student body of approximately 1,200 undergraduates and the College is distinguished by its small size and innovative interdisciplinary programs. The campus is located on 95-acre hillside campus 18 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles. We have a long history of commitment to equity, reflecting our Quaker origins, and our student body mirrors the diversity of the region, making Whittier one of the most diverse liberal arts colleges in the country. Our faculty committed teacher-scholars, weave diversity into their work with students.