NOTICE OF FULL TIME, TENURE TRACK BIOLOGY FACULTY
OPENING
About Oakton Community College:
Oakton Community College, a caring community of educators dedicated to excellence in teaching and learning, seeks faculty with Biology expertise to join our College.
Founded in 1969, Oakton is a two-year community college offering associate's degree programs and non-credit courses in northern Cook County, Illinois. Oakton's 147-acre main campus sits in a forest preserve in Des Plaines, Illinois. A second campus in Skokie serves residents on the eastern side of the District and is home to the Art, Science, and Technology Pavilion. The College also offers continuing education classes at off-campus locations throughout the region, and many students pursue studies at home through our distance learning program.
Oakton is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association. The College is recognized by the Illinois Community College Board and is a member of the American Association of Community Colleges, as well as numerous professional organizations.
Oakton's 700 full- and part-time faculty members' true passion is teaching. In small classes, our faculty engage students as individuals and guide their learning experience.
Job Description:
Oakton Community College seeks to fill two full time, tenure track Biology faculty positions beginning with the 2012-13 academic year. One position will primarily teach General Biology I and II. The other position includes teaching Environmental Science and General Biology courses. The positions would begin in August 2012.
Applicants must be strong communicators and effective classroom facilitators who enjoy teaching in a student-centered environment.
Candidates committed to working in a culturally competent environment are especially valued at Oakton. Cultural competence integrates and transforms knowledge about individuals and groups of people into specific standards, policies, practices, and attitudes used in appropriate cultural settings to increase the quality of services.
Applicants should be current and skilled in their use of evolving technologies, active in promoting critical thinking, and committed to challenging our students to be knowledgeable, ethical, and capable global citizens. Oakton is seeking enthusiastic faculty who are committed to innovation in college-level teaching and learning, and interested in non-traditional delivery of instruction. The College expects full time faculty to be professionally competent, have strong leadership qualities, participate in professional development activities, and to engage in institutional and departmental service. Prior undergraduate teaching experience is preferred.
We encourage applications from candidates who reflect the increasing diversity of Oakton's student body and community, who will enhance and promote engagement with other cultures and have a demonstrated commitment to working with and as part of a multicultural faculty and diverse student body and community.
The full time faculty member's workload during the nine month academic year is 30 lecture hour equivalents (LHE's). The average teaching load is 15 LHE's in the Fall and Spring semesters.
The academic calendar consists of 169 working days; instructional days total 153 of the working days within the academic calendar. Four days are used for instruction, final student evaluations, or course culminating activities. Two days are designated for grading, and one day is associated with commencement. The remaining nine days are designated for staff development, course preparation, student orientation, advising, registration, and/or college or departmental activities.
The faculty member is expected to have a minimum of 10 regular office hours per week during the Fall and Spring semesters.
The College expects full time faculty to participate in professional development activities, and to engage in institutional and departmental service.
Requirements:
A master's degree in Biology, Ecology, or a related field and undergraduate teaching experience are required. Teaching responsibilities may be at both the Des Plaines and Skokie campuses.
Preferred Characteristics:
A doctorate in Biology, Ecology, or related field is preferred. A strong background in molecular biology is an asset. Also preferred are a demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with sensitivity and tact, and be sensitive to the dynamics of differences in race, gender, disability, religion, sexual orientation, national origin and other types of cultural difference; development and delivery of courses using instructional technologies such as D2L, and participation in departmental and institutional service.
Additional Information:
Compensation
The hiring range for full time faculty is based on a 9 month, no overload contract. Faculty receive additional pay for teaching overloads and summer assignments. The minimum salary in the hiring range is $43,100 and the maximum is $63,394. A new collective bargaining agreement that will begin with the 2012-2013 academic year has not been reached.
Full-Time Faculty Benefits
Medical and Dental Insurance: Individual or family (including domestic/civil union partner) coverage is available.
Flexible Spending Account: Pre-tax dollars can be set aside to cover eligible medical or dependent care expenses.
Term Life Insurance: Available at 2 times annual salary rounded upwards. Optional life and dependent insurance available.
Tuition Waivers and Reimbursement: Tuition for Oakton credit-courses waived for employees, their spouse or domestic/civil union partner and children. Reimbursement for course tuition at other educational institutions is available.
Retirement: Full-time faculty are required by state law to join the State Universities Retirement System (SURS), as the State of Illinois withdrew from the Social Security system. The College also offers 403(b) and 457 tax-deferred annuity plans.
Observed Paid Holidays: 6 paid holidays are observed during the regular teaching calendar.
Sick Days: Full-time faculty receive 15 per academic year, with an additional .5 sick day awarded per LHE for summer employment (up to a maximum of 3). Up to five sick days may be used for personal business.
Sabbatical Leave: After six years of full-time teaching, faculty are eligible to apply for sabbatical and can be paid at half pay for one academic year or full pay for one academic semester.
Four-Day Summer Work Week: The College adopts a four-day summer work week beginning with the Friday following Memorial Day and continuing until the Friday of the week two weeks preceding the beginning of the academic year.
On campus screening interviews will be conducted by the search committee with selected applicants, and are anticipated to be held in February 2012. A teaching demonstration is part of the interview. Finalists will participate in a second round of on campus interviews with the Dean and the Vice President for Academic Affairs. Finalist interviews are expected to be conducted in early March 2012.
Appointment to a faculty position is contingent upon approval by the College's Board of Trustees. It is anticipated that this appointment will be taken to the Board of Trustees for approval at the April 2012 Board of Trustees meeting.
Interviewees will be reimbursed for expenses associated with travel in excess of 50 miles to the interviews.
Required documents for a complete application file include an application, cover letter, resume/cv, official transcripts for all degrees earned, and 2 recommendation letters or college placement/credential file. Interested applicants submit their application, cover letter, and resume/cv on the Oakton website. Please indicate the position code (BIO-12) on the cover letter.
The recommendation letters may either be original documents with signature or e-mailed directly from the reference to facultysearch@oakton.edu. The transcripts can either be printed as official transcripts or accessed through an e-mail link from the Registrar's Office. The Registrar's Office would supply the e-mail link to facultysearch@oakton.edu.
Documents submitted through postal mail would be sent to:
Oakton Community College
Faculty Search BIO-12
c/o Human Resources
1600 East Golf Road
Des Plaines, IL 60016
Full consideration will be given to applications received by November 11, 2011. Required transcripts and letters of recommendation are also to be submitted by November 11, 2011.
Oakton Community College is an equal opportunity employer.
