Academic Life ~ Desmond Tutu Education Center ~ Job Posting for Director
Job Posting for Director
Position Description
Director of the Center for Peace and Reconcilation in the Herbert Thompson, Jr., Chair of Church and Society
This unique and innovative position will require visionary leadership for societal transformation, ability to connect the Seminary with the wider world, and distinguished teaching and scholarship. Through study and practice, the Center for Peace and Reconciliation will equip the people of God with tools for attaining justice, reconciliation, and peace in communities throughout the world. The Director will be responsible for leadership and scholarship that will catalyze the fulfillment of that mission.
The position of Director and Professor is fulltime, with administrative and academic duties taking roughly equal time. The Director will focus on outreach, program development, and advancing the public profile of the Center. Support staff of the Desmond Tutu Education Center, consisting of a program assistant, a conference coordinator, and a communications assistant, will carry out routine administrative tasks. As the Thompson Professor the Director will teach one course per semester in the seminary, teach as occasion arises in the Center for Peace and Reconciliation, and pursue scholarship and publication. Responsibilities are detailed further below:
As visionary leader, the Director will:
- articulate the contribution that the church can and must make to the needs for justice, reconciliation and peace in the contemporary world;
- convene leaders in academy, church and society to speak prophetically and plan innovatively for how the church can and must respond to contemporary needs;
- marshal his/her own scholarship and that of others for study, research and proclamation that reaches audiences beyond the academy; and
- position the Center for Peace and Reconciliation, the Tutu Center, and General Seminary with other institutions on the forefront of contemporary thinking about action in the area of peace and reconciliation.
As administrative leader, the Director will:
- network and nurture a constituency of individuals and organizations in the USA and abroad who are dedicated to justice, peace and reconciliation;
- invite from such a constituency leaders and groups to lead conferences, workshops and other programs at the Center for Peace and Reconciliation on an ongoing basis;
- develop a three-year planning cycle of Center offerings;
- work entrepreneurially to build the Center for Peace and Reconciliation program and pursue fund-raising (in concert with the Office of Institutional Advancement) so that after three years the Director's position is supported by income from the Center together with the Thompson endowment;
- work collaboratively with the directors of the other learning centers in scheduling and joint programming;
- collaborate with other unit directors in the supervision of the Education Center staff; and
- build and monitor the Center for Peace and Reconciliation budget.
As scholar and Professor of Church and Society, the Director will:
- teach one course per term in the seminary's degree programs, addressing alternately general concerns of Church and Society and the Professor's own specialty;
- contribute to the field of Church and Society through scholarship and public lectures;
- participate in the advancement of the field of Church and Society through attendance and leadership in scholarly guilds and conferences;
- develop an intellectual framework linking fields of study relevant to the work of the Center; and
- participate in the deliberative life of the Faculty in committee and plenary meetings and undertake the liturgical and advising responsibilities of a faculty member.
The appointment will begin as soon as possible. Professorial rank at appointment will be commensurate with skills and experience. On account of the significant administrative role, the Thompson Professorship is not tenure-track. This position reports to the Sub-Dean and Vice President for Academic Affairs, who will arrange regular meetings. As with other faculty and administrators, there will be an annual review.
Applications are encouraged immediately and should include letter of application, curriculum vitae, and three or more academic and professional references. Materials should be sent to: Chair of the CPR Director/Thompson Chair Search Committee, The General Theological Seminary, 175 Ninth Ave., New York, NY 10011. Nominations and expressions of interest prior to formal application are welcome.
