Application Deadline:

Until filled. Review of applications will begin 09/01/2023.

Position Details:

This full-time faculty position is on-campus and in-person.

Texas Christian University, Department of Religion invites applications for a full-time, associate or full professor of religion in the field of Hebrew Bible to begin August 2024.

The ideal candidate will have training in the broader study of religion and expertise in the Hebrew Bible and its reception histories. They will be conversant with the broad range of historical and contemporary exegetical trends in the field and across subfields.

Candidates should also demonstrate an ability to critically assess the Hebrew Bible documents within their historical, social, and cultural contexts. Proficiency in the relevant languages and a proven ability to teach effectively are required.

Research and teaching approaches to the Bible and its reception may include: archaeology, the Bible as literature, contextual hermeneutics, ethics, ethnicity and identity studies, gender and sexuality studies, interreligious relations, liturgical and ritual studies, patristics, postcolonial and decolonial interpretations, rabbinics, theology, translation, and others.

We seek candidates who will enhance the department’s academic profile, engage robustly with undergraduates, and who value collaboration and citizenship in our diverse academic community.
As an undergraduate department within the AddRan College of Liberal Arts, we especially seek a dynamic teacher-scholar who will be eager to make the study of religion and the Bible come alive for our students (i.e., majors and minors, and general undergraduates) and who will provide them with the interpretive tools to understand religion’s role in the world. The ideal candidate’s teaching will connect the study of the Bible to modern life, both constructively and critically.

Candidates must have a Ph.D or its equivalent. TCU embraces the teacher-scholar model: excellence in teaching and published scholarship will be expected. Teaching responsibilities typically include five courses a year (3/2), generally one section of an upper-level undergraduate Religion course in an area of specialization per semester, alongside introductory (10000-level) courses that fulfill the Religious Traditions component of TCU’s Core Curriculum, such as an introductory survey of the Bible.

We encourage applicants to demonstrate how they will engage a diverse learning community through their teaching and research, and how they will strengthen the course offerings of the Religion Department. Demonstrated understanding of and ability to teach from diverse methodological and pedagogical perspectives will be valued as well as interest in developing and implementing curricular materials relating to culturally and religiously diverse populations.
The successful candidate is expected to play an active role in the life of the department, which will include the advising and recruitment of students.

The successful candidate will also be expected to contribute to the work of any of the interdisciplinary curricular initiatives in the AddRan College of Liberal Arts: the African American and Africana Studies minor, British Colonial/Postcolonial Studies minor, Compassionate Awareness and Living Mindfully (CALM) group, Classical Studies minor, Human-Animal Relationships minor, Jewish Studies, Middle East Studies minor, the Latina/o Studies minor, the Asian Studies minor, the Comparative Race and Ethnic Studies Department, as well as the TCU Women and Gender Studies Department.

Department Details:

Committed to the liberal arts and its diverse disciplinary perspectives, the Religion Department fosters an inquiring, critical, and intersectional approach to the study of religion, enabling students to become informed and engaged interpreters of religious communities, texts, ideas, artifacts, and practices in their cultural and historical contexts.

Religion majors pursue a range of careers including ministry, chaplaincy, law, social work, medicine, and other fields.

In recognition of TCU’s Christian heritage, the University offers substantial tuition discounts to students who choose to major in Religion and pursue a career in religious leadership.

School/College Description:

Named for TCU’s founders, Addison and Randolph Clark, the AddRan College of Liberal Arts is home to the core academic disciplines of the humanities and social sciences. The College includes approximately 155 full-time faculty members, 13 departments (Comparative Race & Ethnic Studies, Criminology and Criminal Justice, Economics, English, Geography, History, Modern Language Studies, Philosophy, Political Science, Religion, Sociology & Anthropology, Spanish and Hispanic Studies, and Women & Gender Studies), and two units of Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (Army and Air Force). AddRan College departments confer 17 Bachelor of Arts and 7 Bachelor of Science degrees, a Bachelor of General Studies, an online master’s degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice, a Master of Liberal Arts degree, and master’s and Ph.D. degrees in History, English, and Rhetoric and Composition.

University & Fort Worth Description:

ABOUT TCU

Founded in 1873, Texas Christian University sits on 302 acres nestled in a primarily residential part of Fort Worth, just minutes away from downtown. The University includes seven schools and colleges, in addition to the John V. Roach Honors College and the Burnett School of Medicine.

Currently, TCU enrolls more than 10,200 undergraduates and 1,700 graduate students. Twenty-eight percent of students self-identify as a member of a minority group, five percent are international students, and forty-five percent are from out-of-state. Our students are supported by more than 2,200 faculty and staff. The University has more than 700 full-time faculty members and is a top 100 National University as classified by US News and World Report and has a Carnegie Classification of R2: Doctoral Universities – High Research Activity.

At TCU, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are an educational imperative directly tied to the University mission, vision, and strategic plan. Fulfilling TCU’s mission to develop ethical leaders and critical thinkers in a global community depends on the University’s ability to attract and retain students, faculty, and staff from diverse backgrounds. A diverse and inclusive campus leads to innovation, broadened perspective, and understanding—values that are foundational aspects of higher education. For the fourth consecutive year, TCU has earned the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award, which highlights ongoing commitment to build a comprehensive DEI strategy that aligns with core values and creates a campus culture where everyone is respected and included.

ABOUT FORT WORTH

Like TCU, Fort Worth has the approachable, friendly charm of a smaller town, but offers the amenities, cultural activities, diversity and unique personality of a much larger city. Fort Worth, Texas, is the 13th largest city in the United States with an ever-growing population nearing 1 million. Fort Worth and TCU have grown together in a nearly 150-year relationship. You’ll find that many Horned Frogs remain here after graduation, thanks to the region’s thriving job market. Fort Worth is part of the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area, the fourth largest metropolitan area in the United States, and the number 1 tourist destination in Texas. In 2018, bizjournals.com ranked Fort Worth the 7th most affordable city to live and work in the United States and U.S. News and World Report named Fort Worth one of the Best Places to Live. Fort Worth, Dallas and Arlington all rank among the top 25 most diverse cities in the country.

Fort Worth is known for its vast array of cultural, educational and entertainment opportunities. The city boasts three world class art museums—the Kimbell Art Museum, the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth and the Amon Carter Museum of American Art. The Bass Performance Hall is one of the premier performance venues in the country. Concerts, film festivals and other events are held regularly at Sundance Square, Panther Island and Near Southside venues.

Required Application Materials & Application Instructions:

Interested applicants should apply online at https://jobs.tcu.edu/jobs/associate-or-full-professor-of-religion-tcu-main-campus-texas-united-states

The applications will consist of the following materials:
● A Cover Letter (addressed to Dr. Antoinette DeNapoli, Search Committee Chair)
● A Curriculum Vitae
● A Writing Sample (approximately 9,000-11,000 words) representative of current scholarship
● The Names of Four References who will be contacted after a preliminary review of applications ● A Research Statement that discusses current interests, future research plans, and ways that one’s research might inform teaching and/or provide opportunities for collaboration with students and faculty
● A Teaching Statement on the applicant’s approach to teaching and learning in a robust liberal arts community.
● A DEI Statement that shows a candidate’s commitment to building an inclusive campus community that is welcoming and respectful of all, in pursuit of the university’s mission of developing ethical leaders and critical thinkers in a global community (for more information on TCU’s plan to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion, please see TCU’s diversity, equity, and inclusion plan)

Preliminary interviews with selected candidates via Zoom will begin on October 1st. A second round of semi-finalist interviews will be conducted in November at the AAR/SBL Annual meeting in San Antonio, Texas. Semi-finalists will be notified via email by the Search Committee Chair by November 1st.

AA/EEO Statement:

As an AA/EEO employer, TCU recruits, hires, and promotes qualified persons in all job classifications without regard to age, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, ethnic origin, disability, genetic information, covered veteran status, or any other basis protected by law.