The Learning Sciences Research Institute (LSRI) at the at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) invites applications and nominations for the position of Director. The successful candidate will provide leadership for the institute and a vision for its continued excellence in research, teaching, service, and community engagement.

LSRI is dedicated to the support of multidisciplinary research on learning and teaching, and to the development and evaluation of learning environments, curriculum materials, teacher professional development, and educational practices appropriate for 21st century learning, including research and development focused on aspects of disciplinary teaching, learning, and assessment. One of the primary functions of LSRI is to facilitate the development of proposals for extramural research support and to administer and support those projects that successfully secure such funding. Most of the proposals developed in LSRI involve collaborations among multiple investigators representing various departments and units at UIC.

LSRI brings together a group of UIC researchers from three colleges (Liberal Arts and Sciences, Education, and Engineering) and over a dozen academic departments in an interdisciplinary program of research in the learning sciences. The research and development work at LSRI spans the space of activity from fundamental understandings of how people learn to the design of environments and technologies to promote learning. The Institute has generated over $100M of external research funding, is the former editorial home of the Journal of the Learning Sciences, and provides hundreds of professional development opportunities for educators from the Chicago Public Schools and other districts. 

LSRI houses a PhD program in the Learning Sciences with a specific focus on the education of a new generation of researchers with dual expertise in the science of learning and a distinct disciplinary focus of their choosing. Students with expertise in fields as disparate as literacy, computer science, music, urban planning, chemistry, geography, and mathematics study together, bringing their unique disciplinary experience to challenge and broaden each other’s perspectives on the nature of learning and the implications for teaching and design.

The Director is the chief administrative officer of the institute with responsibility for instructional programs and for administrative, budgetary, promotion, and recruitment matters. The position also entails appointment as a faculty member in LSRI and in another academic unit that reflects the Director's disciplinary specialization. The successful candidate will have a PhD, a distinguished record of scholarship, evidence of excellent teaching, and appropriate academic administrative experience. A demonstrated ability to foster collaboration among a diverse group of scholars is desirable, as is a strong record of external funding and exemplary awards. The ideal Director will work with key units and communities at UIC and the Chicago metropolitan area to enhance the mission of the Institute, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and the University.

The successful candidate must be a Full Professor or must possess a record of publication, teaching, and service that would merit promotion to Full upon hiring and academic appointment at UIC.

The desired appointment date is August 16, 2020. Salary is competitive based on qualifications. To apply, complete an on-line application and upload a cover letter, full curriculum vitae, and the names and full contact information of five references at https://jobs.uic.edu. Please click on the Job Board and then the position. For information about the application processes please contact Edward Drogos at edrogo2@uic.edu. For further information about LSRI see the institute’s website https://lsri.uic.edu/. Applications should be received by October 4, 2019 to receive full consideration. Nominations for the position may be submitted to Edward Drogos at edrogo2@uic.edu by no later than September 11, 2019. 

UIC is a Carnegie Doctoral/Research-Extensive University located in the heart of one of the nation's largest metropolitan areas. It is a comprehensive public university with a diverse student body of more than 29,000 undergraduate, graduate, and professional students. UIC is federally recognized as a Minority Serving Institution (MSI) through its status as an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution (AANAPISI) and a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI), fully funded by the U.S. Department of Education.

The University of Illinois at Chicago is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer, dedicated to the goal of building a culturally diverse, pluralistic faculty and staff committed to teaching in a multicultural environment. We strongly encourage applications from women, minorities, individuals with disabilities and covered veterans. The University of Illinois may conduct background checks on all job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent offer. Background checks will be performed in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act.