[Candrama] Tenure-Track Position in Contemporary Dance at SFU: Deadline Dec 1

[Peter Dickinson]

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF CONTEMPORARY DANCE, SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY

The School for the Contemporary Arts at Simon Fraser University invites applications for a tenure-track position in Contemporary Dance, at the Assistant Professor level, starting July 15, 2023.

To reaffirm our commitment to increasing diversity and confronting institutional underrepresentation, we are limiting this opportunity to applicants who identify as Black, Indigenous, a person of colour, or as a member of a racialized group, as permitted by Section 42 of the B.C. Human Rights Code. Applicants are requested to self-identify in their application.

The Dance Area in the SCA is committed to a practice-based research approach, developing embodied knowledge and its translation in an interdisciplinary academic context.  Our preference will be for someone with an expanded practice in contemporary dance creation and performance, a strong studio practice, a deep understanding of the movement forms that emerge from their research and the cultures, traditions, and practices that support them, and an ability to rearticulate these within a contemporary interdisciplinary context. We are looking for a candidate who will help us educate and support the next generation of dance artists and launch individual voices in dance.

A continuous record of excellence in teaching and engaging in critical discourses related to contemporary art, and a record of established relationships with communities, organisations and institutions nationally and internationally is required. An interest in new technologies in teaching and research will be a bonus.

Responsibilities
With exciting new curricular developments in the Dance Area, we are looking for a versatile individual, someone who can integrate theory and practice in both their teaching and research, mentor graduate and undergraduate students, as well as stage choreographic and performance works for a varied student body.  Teaching will include classes in dance technique, composition, interdisciplinary collaboration and improvisation. We invite applications from artists who have experience incorporating historical, socio-cultural and decolonization approaches into their pedagogy. All faculty in the Dance Area share responsibilities in producing the mainstage productions.

Additionally, this position will include committee responsibilities, supervision of graduate students, and some graduate level teaching. The candidate will be expected to maintain a robust artistic practice and work with SCA to advance the concepts of contemporary performance.

Qualifications
A graduate degree is preferred in a field or discipline of demonstrated relevance and an established artistic practice in dance. He, she, or they will demonstrate excellence in creative research and post-secondary studio teaching. Prior activities demonstrating leadership, service, and commitment to diversity and dance as a research practice is required.

Candidates are asked to submit:

•       a cover letter of application outlining creative and scholarly background, with an indication of your legal status to work in Canada

•       an up-to-date, full curriculum vitae

•       a statement of teaching and mentorship philosophy

•       links to samples of creative work and writing

•       the names and email addresses for three confidential referees (letters of reference may be requested at a later date)

Submit all application materials by email to Elspeth Pratt, Director, c/o Samantha Diamond, scasec at sfu.ca<mailto:scasec at sfu.ca>. Review of applications will begin on December 1, 2022 and continue until the position is filled. To ensure full consideration applications should be submitted by this date. Please note that materials submitted will not be returned.

Contexts
We acknowledge the Squamish (Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw), Musqueam (xʷməθkʷəy̓əm), Tsleil-Waututh (səlil̓ w̓ətaʔɬ), Katzie, and Kwikwetlem (kʷikʷəƛ̓əm) peoples, on whose traditional territories Simon Fraser University’s three campuses stand. By recognizing the Unceded Traditional Coast Salish territories, we aspire to create space for reconciliation through dialogue and decolonizing practices.

The School for the Contemporary Arts, situated in downtown Vancouver, offers a unique curriculum in which studio classes are integrated with the historical and theoretical study of the arts. This is rooted in attention to critical contemporary issues as well as our commitment to interdisciplinary collaboration both within the classroom and beyond. The SCA offers BFAs in Dance; Film; Music and Sound; Theatre Performance; Production and Design; Visual Art; a BA in Art, Performance and Cinema Studies; as well as an interdisciplinary MFA, and a MA and PhD in Contemporary Arts.

Dance
The SCA Dance Area provides the unique opportunity to study, create and perform dance within a collaborative, interdisciplinary department. Our students are challenged in studio and lecture courses to be versatile and articulate, to interact with new technology, and to understand that the collaborative process is crucial to their development as contemporary artists. An engagement with contemporary issues is fundamental to their training. We also believe in a versatile approach to training and, to this end, offer a variety of dance techniques in addition to the standard modern, contemporary, and ballet courses.  Our creative set of courses in improvisation, composition and choreography are designed to encourage student-led research and creation.  Additionally, courses in experimental anatomy and body conditioning introduce students to the fundamental principles of movement. Our courses complement a wider set of studio and lecture courses offered by the Film, Music, Theatre Performance, Theatre Production and Design, Visual Art, and Art, Performance and Cinema Studies Areas.

Faculty
Faculty in the SCA value interdisciplinary art-making that is grounded in disciplinary training, an integration of creative and scholarly education, and we care deeply about where our students come from, as well as their continued success.  We therefore maintain a significant presence in the local, national, and international arts communities. Whether as choreographers, theoretical and applied practice scholars, performing artists, composers, filmmakers, production technology and design artists, visual artists, directors or dramaturges, our faculty are internationally recognized for research excellence in their individual fields.

The position of Assistant Professor of Contemporary Dance is subject to availability of funding and final approval by the SFU Board of Governors. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens and permanent residents will be given priority.

Simon Fraser University is an institution whose strength is based on our shared commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion. Diversity is an underlying principle of our Strategic Vision, which pledges SFU to “foster a culture of inclusion and mutual respect, celebrating the diversity reflected among its students, faulty staff and our community.” SFU is committed to ensuring no individual is denied access to employment opportunities for reasons unrelated to ability or qualifications.  Consistent with this principle, SFU will advance the interests of underrepresented members of the work force, including Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, racialized persons and women; embrace gender and sexual diversity; ensure that equal opportunity is afforded to all who seek employment at the University; and treat all employees equitably. Candidates that belong to underrepresented groups are particularly encouraged to apply.

Under the authority of the University Act, personal information that is required by the University for academic appointment competitions will be collected. For further details please see the Collection Notice<http://www.sfu.ca/vpacademic/Faculty_Openings/Collection_Notice.html>.
___________________
Peter Dickinson, PhD
Professor, Associate Director, and Graduate Chair
School for the Contemporary Arts | SFU
Director, Institute for Performance Studies | SFU
T:  604-908-0993
W: http://www.sfu.ca/~ped

At Simon Fraser University, we live and work on the unceded traditional territories of the Coast Salish peoples of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.

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