Posting Number: R0004734
Location: Portland Campus

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Position Summary:
The Pacific Northwest College of Art @ Willamette University (PNCA) is seeking a highly energetic, inclusive, and committed educator and professional to teach courses and contribute to the ongoing development of the undergraduate Graphic Design program at the college, with focus in one of two areas: 1. Interaction Design, with additional opportunities to work with the MFA program in Collaborative Design; -OR- 2. Graphic Design, with a potential focus to help shape first-year Foundation experience leading into the graphic design major.

PNCA openly acknowledges that diversity is a critical component in achieving a creative and innovative work and learning environment, and to that end, as an intentional community of students and educators, PNCA is committed to equity and social justice. Our goal is to create a more diverse faculty body to effectively serve our mission of preparing students for a life of creative practice. We welcome candidates who possess a demonstrated worldview and cultural competency to support teaching and mentoring undergraduate students of varied backgrounds, abilities, perspectives, social identities and gender expressions.

This position will be housed in the undergraduate Graphic Design Department. Design at PNCA emphasizes process, problem-solving, and is driven by meaningful concepts. Our students learn to answer the question "why" with every decision they make, and consider what they want the person experiencing their design to do. We want to inspire action, to make people understand each other better; to make people connect, empathize, think, and feel. We encourage designers to find the right form for their message and pollinate their work with connections from other creative disciplines and technologies, then apply these skills to a broad range of projects from print to web, interactive, and experiential, preparing designers for versatility in a field that's rapidly evolving. We work to break down the walls between school and working life, to forge a fluid path to influence the profession as a whole. Our students find jobs with large agencies and small studios, working on a range of projects from product design at Nike, to publishing, to video and experience design, to design for social change in politics and beyond.

Reasonable Accommodations Statement
To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Job Description:

In this role, there will be specific opportunities to collaborate around curriculum, degree planning, and projects/research with either the MA/MFA Collaborative Design/Design Systems programs and faculty, or with foundation (first-year) programs at PNCA, depending on candidates' experience and practice.

• INTERACTION SPECIALTY: We are inviting applications for a full-time faculty member who will help us grow and develop degrees and concentrations at the undergraduate and graduate levels in interaction design. Successful candidates should possess strong visual design skills and demonstrate a capacity for conducting original creative design and research work as well as possess a strong creative practice and background working in the industry. For the interactive design candidate, experience in one or more of the following applied areas is desired: UX/UI, agile/mobile design, game design, information design and data visualization, or interactive product design. -OR-
  
• FOUNDATION/GRAPHIC DESIGN SPECIALTY: We are inviting applications for a full-time faculty member in Graphic Design, who will help us deepen connections to our Foundation program for art and design students as we re-envision the first-year experience, strengthening the Graphic Design pathway for majors and minors. Successful candidates should be able to teach classes that build core design skills and thoughtful concept generation, showing possibilities and potential in the field through strong professional practice.
  
  

The primary professional responsibilities of full-time instructional faculty members are teaching, research, scholarship and/or creative activity (including professional practice), as well as service to the College and larger University, profession and to the community. These responsibilities generally include developing and enhancing curriculum, advising students, participation in campus and University-wide committees, maintaining office hours, working collaboratively and productively with colleagues, building external partnerships and industry relationships, and maintaining a vibrant creative practice in the region and beyond.

Overview of Duties

• Teach five courses a year which may be scheduled between the graduate and undergraduate faculties, including core department offerings as well as newly-developed courses in area of expertise.
  
• Help maintain instructional standards and outcomes across curriculum and syllabi.
  
• Foster a pedagogical approach to Design that is practice-based and informed by critical perspectives that support applied engagements with interdisciplinary approaches and innovative practices.
  
• Build and develop curriculum, in conjunction with faculty, aligned with University priorities.
  
• Mentor undergraduate students; Provide academic and career advising.
  
• Coordinate with the development of Interaction Design BFA major/minor and support graduate concentrations or professional certificates in Design.
  
• Work with the Department Head of Graphic Design, faculty, and potentially the Graduate Chair of Collaborative Design/Design Systems and Foundation Chairs in development of department policies, curriculum content, and evaluation methods.
  
• Participate in faculty governance, academic committees, and campus life.
  
• Keep up to date with professional and industry best practices.
  
• Foster an inclusive, equitable and diverse learning environment.

Minimum Qualifications

• Evidence of successful teaching experience and mentorship experience relevant to the position.
  
• Demonstrated experience in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, teaching environment.
  
• Demonstrated track record of scholarship or industry experience that evidences cutting-edge, applied work in areas of design expertise (i.e., interaction, digital, human-centered, and visual design).
  
• Evidence of successful design for accessibility.

Qualified Candidate will have several Preferred Qualifications

• An earned MA/MFA or terminal degree in Design or closely-related field from an accredited institution is desirable but not required; equivalent, significant professional experience is highly valued.
  
• A PDF document with links that show examples of student work that show portfolio-ready explorations of applied interaction design solutions with a high level of graphic design.
  
• Evidence of innovative ways of applying field research that include consideration for diverse user groups.

The successful candidate will be committed to the academic success of all of our students and to an environment that acknowledges, encourages, and celebrates diversity and differences. To this end, the successful candidate will work effectively, respectfully, and collaboratively in diverse, multicultural, and inclusive settings. In addition, the successful candidate will be ready to join faculty, staff, students, and administrators in our University's shared commitment to the principles of engagement, service, and the public good.

All University positions require that candidates submit to a criminal conviction record check prior to hire. Conviction does not automatically preclude candidates from being hired. Nature of conviction will be considered relative to the duties of the position.

You will need to upload the following documents as part of your application materials in the "My Experience" section labeled Resume:

• Cover letter highlighting your interest in PNCA's Design Program
  
• Relevant teaching experience with professional resume/CV
  
• Three professional references and their contact information.
  
• A single PDF Work Sample Attachment document containing:
  
  • A statement of approach to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Inclusive Pedagogy
    
  • A link to your full portfolio or website
    
  • A link containing up to five specific pieces of recent creative works in the following format: a one-page document that includes title, date created, brief description of the project including objectives, techniques, software and URL of online links for moving images or other portfolio material. Only online links will be accepted. Be sure to include any passwords if needed.
    
  • A selection of student work with project details and course information. This should be a PDF document with direct links to student work and details provided under each link.
    
    

Applications will start being reviewed on November 11,2022 and continue until the position is filled.

• Priority application deadline extended to January 18, 2023.

Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Background

Pacific Northwest College of Art is the oldest art & design college in Oregon. It began as the Portland Art Museum school in 1909 and operated independently until its merger with Willamette University in 2021. PNCA is now the second largest college within the University. Willamette University provides a rigorous education in the liberal arts, arts & design, law and management through its undergraduate and graduate programs and lifelong learning programs. Teaching and learning strengthened by scholarship, creative practice and service flourish in a vibrant campus community. A Willamette education prepares graduates to transform knowledge into action and lead lives of achievement, contribution and meaning. Pacific Northwest College of Art prepares students for a life of creative practice and facilitates that through Core-Pillars:

• Studio Practice
  
• Professional Practice
  
• World View
  
• Anti-Racist Pedagogy

PNCA's commitment to Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion

As a learning community, we value, respect, and appreciate difference-in gender, sexual orientation, religion, race, ethnicity, national origin, disability, class, and age. We strive to create a safe and supportive environment that is enriched by variety in voices, work, and perspectives. We know that we are a better community of learners and educators when we have space for a multiplicity of worldviews and experiences. Thus, diversity and inclusion at PNCA are crucial to our intellectual and aesthetic inquiry.

Guided by the principles of ethics and mutual respect, PNCA's policies and procedures strive to ensure equity and social justice within our community of students, educators, and staff. A platform for experimentation and expression in the arts, PNCA is also a laboratory for critical reflection and dialog that nurtures better, more informed, critically engaged citizens while it educates emerging artists and designers. An important aspect of our curriculum is building an awareness of, and critical culture around, issues of power and privilege in order to decolonize our curriculum and our world.

Believing that diversity contributes to academic excellence and to rich and rewarding communities, WU is committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse faculty, staff and student body. We seek candidates, particularly those from historically under-represented groups, whose work furthers diversity and who bring to campus varied experiences, perspectives and backgrounds.

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