Dear COE community,

I am delighted to share that the College of Education has been awarded three new IHPS for the 2023-24 AY (see attached memo from the Provost). These new tenure track lines are in addition to any lines we don’t fill this year. Any unfilled lines will automatically carry over to next year!  The three new IHPs we have been awarded for the 2023-24 AY represent the most IHPs that the COE has been awarded in a single year since the centralization of tenure track hiring a few years back. I see our three new IHPs as a huge win for the COE but also a recognition of the importance of faculty governance, department leadership, and problem-solving and collaboration with the dean’s office. Huge thanks to all who contributed to this year’s IHP proposals!

The three lines we have been awarded are distributed across each department (one per department) and are strongly tied to our undergraduate programs in Education Foundations (EDF/EDST dept), Family and Human Services (FHS; CPHS dept), and Communication Disorders and Sciences (CDS; SPECS dept). Each line has been approved at the Assistant Professor rank. We submitted a fourth “bonus” IHP this round focusing on Climate Education, and unfortunately this one was not awarded. A brief description of the three funded lines can be found below.

• EDF Summary: This IHP focuses on recruiting a faculty member in the field of Social and Cultural Foundations of Education. This scholar will bring much-needed faculty leadership to the undergraduate program in Educational Foundations (EdF). This TTF member will also help develop revisions to the curriculum in response to new K-12 Oregon state mandates that require Oregon schools, and by extension teacher education programs, to include instruction in the areas of Ethnic Studies, Tribal History/Shared History, and Holocaust education. This proposed position is uniquely suited to respond to these new instructional standards and integrate this suite of cultural studies topics into the EdF curriculum. Additionally, the faculty member will contribute to the growth of the new Certificate in Educational Foundations – Secondary program that provides future secondary teachers with education coursework. This proposed hire will have an emerging record of educational research related to social and cultural studies that will compliment established areas of excellence in EDST.

• CDS Summary: In keeping with the College of Education’s (COE’s) mission as a “community of leading researchers and practitioners dedicated to transformational scholarship, integrated teaching, and collaborative practice designed to enhance individual lives and systems” the Communication Disorders and Sciences (CDS) program is seeking a tenure track faculty member to (1) teach and mentor students in the CDS undergraduate program, a cornerstone major at UO that prepares students to work in underserved areas of need, which is experiencing severe faculty shortages, and (2) fill a critical gap in studying educational practices consistent with the sociocultural paradigm shift in understanding language development from a neurodiverse perspective.

• FHS Summary: This IHP focuses on recruiting a TTF Assistant Professor of Inclusive Sport and Well-Being position to support the Family and Human Services (FHS) program within the Counseling Psychology and Human Services Department, and to bring a new line of research excellence that responds to student interest and empirically identified inequities in sport/physical activity and mental health among communities often excluded from this work (e.g., individuals with disabilities, student athletes). In sum, the individual in this position will train the next generation of community leaders in addressing complex physical activity/sport and mental well-being with innovative and applied solutions that promote health equity in community settings. This is an innovative and integrative area of potential growth for the university given the UO’s excellence in all three areas (sports, mental health, disability research), combined with the nationwide need for an increased workforce who understands and can provide mental health supports.

Stay tuned for a campus Around The O announcement tomorrow about the overall IHP process and outcomes. The full IHP will be available on Tuesday on the Office of the Provost website.

I’m excited to partner with you on tenure track faculty recruitment with an eye toward recruiting scholars to add to our diversity, equity, and inclusion goals for our College. Please stay tuned for additional information from the Office of the Dean and Human Resources about inclusive excellence practices in hiring. Recruitment and retention of faculty colleagues is important and shared work across our entire community – in the COE, institution, and in our local communities.

I look forward to working with you!

Warmly, Laura Lee