The Humanities and Western Civilization Program invites applications from qualified graduate students to become half-time graduate instructors. A foundational and interdisciplinary humanities "core," the Western Civilization courses have long contributed to the reputation of the University of Kansas in undergraduate education. They have also provided a unique teaching opportunity for graduate students from a variety of departments and schools in the university.
Founded in 1945, Western Civilization is a two-semester course emphasizing direct student engagement with and discussion of some of the influential authors and writings of the Western intellectual heritage. The program is a general education requirement for undergraduates in the Bachelor of Arts, the Bachelor of General Studies, and almost all the Bachelor of Science programs in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and for students in the Schools of Journalism and Social Welfare. Among the readings for 2007-2008 are such authors as Sappho, Sophocles, Plato, Augustine, Aquinas, Chaucer, Machiavelli, Luther, Galileo, Locke, Marx and Engels, Mill, Du Bois, Darwin, Nietzsche, Dostoevsky, Freud, and Woolf. Study and discussion of the readings are organized around seven themes: the good life, work and economic life, the citizen and the state, knowledge and education, intimacy and social life, nature and the supernatural, and morality and self-realization. Within those contexts attention is also given to issues of gender, race, and the Jewish experience.
All new graduate instructors are responsible for leading three weekly discussion sections, attending two large lecture sections taught by Program faculty each week, participating in regular weekly staff meetings, attending instructional sessions on the teaching of writing, and fulfilling other duties relevant to the Program, not to exceed a total of twenty hours per week. Appointments are for one year but are normally renewable for up to five years. Staff members are required to demonstrate regular progress toward a graduate degree in one of the university's programs, and must enroll for a minimum of six hours of graduate instruction per semester. The base salary of graduate teaching assistants appointed for 2009-2010 is $12,500; annual merit increments depend upon budgetary allocation by the state legislature. All appointees receive a tuition waiver.
The university's Policy and Procedures on Out-of-Field GTA Appointments (July 6, 2007) requires explicit endorsement of applicants for HWC GTAships by their home department. It also states that "Students pursing graduate degrees that are not generally intended to prepare a student for a career that involves teaching cannot be appointed as an out-of-field GTA."
Required qualifications include: a 3.4 GPA (on a 4.0 scale); demonstrated evidence of breadth in the humanities and social sciences; application to or current standing in a KU graduate program at the time of application; official copy of complete transcripts of college or university work; three completed Humanities and Western Civilization recommendation forms. Please note that letters of recommendation are not required and cannot be accepted in lieu of the completed forms. Preferred qualifications include: demonstrated evidence of successful teaching experience (e.g., teaching evaluation summaries); 3.6 GPA in graduate coursework. A substantive interview of highly ranked candidates is an essential part of the hiring process; no position can be offered without an interview. Candidates selected for interview must cover travel expenses themselves. No candidate will be offered a position without documentation that he or she has been admitted to a KU graduate program.
Inquiries regarding graduate instructorships should be forwarded to the Director at the address below. Application packets may be downloaded at http://www.hwc.ku.edu or picked up in the program office at 308 Bailey Hall. The deadline for receipt of all application materials for the 2009-2010 academic year is February 13, 2009.
|
Humanities & Western Civilization Program University of Kansas Bailey Hall 1440 Jayhawk Blvd., Room 308 Lawrence, KS 66045-7574 Phone: 785/864-3011 Fax: 785/864-3023 Email: hwc@ku.edu |
Photos © The University of Kansas Office of University Relations. This file was modified 08/12/08 03:22:21 PM |
Email Page
Print Page