| Location | Providence, RI |
Posting Details
Position Information
Title Assistant or Associate Professor, Division of Experimental and Foundation Studies Department Division of Experimental + Foundation Studies Division Experimental + Found Studies Employment Type Full-Time Critical Review Track (similar to tenure track) Yes Position Description
The Division of Experimental and Foundation Studies at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) invites applications for a full-time faculty appointment at the rank of Assistant or Associate Professor, to commence in fall 2027. Rank will be dependent on professional status and teaching experience.
RISD recognizes principles of social equity, inclusion, and diversity as fundamental to its mission as an art and design school. These principles require sustained attention to a multiplicity of differences and call for an expansion of the forms of knowledge that shape our curricula and pedagogy. RISD is committed to the collective work of institutional transformation and values applicants whose teaching, pedagogical and professional experiences have prepared them to foster and sustain equitable learning environments. We especially welcome faculty whose pedagogy engages diverse perspectives, expands forms of knowledge, and helps foster a culture of belonging where all students, staff, and faculty can thrive.
The Rhode Island School of Design, Experimental and Foundation Studies Division (EFS) invites applications for a critical-review track Assistant or Associate Professor position to teach in the Drawing Program for first year students with an appointment to begin fall of 2027. Artists and designers enthusiastic about teaching first-year students who will go on to major in one of eighteen design, architecture, and fine arts programs at RISD are encouraged to apply. Rank will be dependent on professional status and teaching experience. We welcome applicants actively engaged with drawing either as a stand-alone practice or working within and across other disciplines. They will be able to approach the teaching of Drawing in multiple directions: as a specific method of investigating visual and spatial phenomena, as a mode of speculation and inquiry, and as an essential activity intrinsic to all artists and designers.
The First Year Drawing Program remains grounded in the study and critical exploration of observed, imagined and experienced space, form, and composition. Faculty do not teach from a fixed curriculum, but rather towards a collective inquiry of Drawing from individual perspectives.
Candidates should demonstrate a deep understanding of drawing as both a material and conceptual practice, as well as processes of observation, representation, imagination, experimentation and abstraction. Also valued is an ability to engage with diverse histories, philosophies, and cultural perspectives that shape perception, visual organization, and spatial relations. We particularly welcome candidates whose teaching and professional practices engage artistic traditions, perspectives, and forms of knowledge that have historically been underrepresented in art and design education..
Candidates will have a distinctive vision and pedagogical approach and be prepared to teach Drawing as an innovative practice, and as a powerful way to understand the world. Fostering inclusive learning environments grounded in universal design principles is central to this role, ensuring that teaching practices support accessibility and respond to the diverse backgrounds, experiences, and learning needs of students.. Faculty are encouraged to support students in developing critical, accessible, and sustainable approaches to materials and making.
Candidates will have an original professional practice. The Division welcomes artists from a range of practices whose primary mode of work includes innovative drawing and physical making. A demonstrated ability to teach and engage effectively with a diverse student population, including but not limited to international students, students from racially, ethnically, and culturally diverse backgrounds, LGBTQIA+ students, first-generation college students, and students with disabilities and neurodiverse identities is needed. Applicants should be prepared to design syllabi and lead classes and critiques that foster inclusive and respectful dialogue, supporting students' creative and intellectual growth. A commitment to creativity in both professional practice and teaching is essential.
Required Qualifications
Preferred Qualifications
RISD/ Department Description
RISD is a nonprofit college and museum of art and design founded in 1877 in the city of Providence, RI. Today 2,606 students from 62 countries engage in more than 40 full-time bachelor's and master's degree programs, supported by a committed faculty and worldwide network of more than 33,000 alumni.
By cultivating expansive and elastic thinking, RISD equips artists, designers and scholars to generate and challenge the ideas that shape our world.
RISD has a critical review process, which is very similar to the tenure process at other institutions. RISD supports faculty professional practice with sabbaticals, pre-critical review leave, conference funds, and professional development grants. For more information about RISD, please visit www.risd.edu.
The EFS Division teaches first-year students who will go on to major in one of eighteen design, architecture, and fine arts programs at RISD. Drawing, Design and Spatial Dynamics comprise the studio curriculum for all first-year undergraduate students at RISD. Each studio class meets one full day a week, in sections of approximately 20 students,with students remaining in the same cohort across all three classes.
RISD faculty and students have the opportunity to work with the RISD Museum which houses a collection containing more than 100,000 works of art and design dating from ancient times to today. In addition to works on exhibit, faculty can work with curators to request viewing of works in collection storage. The RISD Museum has online access to over 85,000 objects.
RISD faculty and students have the opportunity to work with the RISD Nature Lab, offering access to natural history specimens, while also fostering creative inquiry into biodesign, ecology, and the climate crisis. High-end microscopes, high-speed cameras, and other advanced imaging systems give members of the RISD community access to living and non-living specimens at multiple scales and provide an engaging platform for examining myriad connections between artistic and scientific study.
Faculty Responsibilities
The full-time faculty teaching load is five teaching units a year. For EFS faculty, this equates to teaching 3 to 4 courses each year for a total of 10 courses every three years. In addition to teaching, full-time faculty are expected to maintain a dynamic professional practice, serve on college committees, advise students, participate in curriculum development and other departmental and/or divisional activities and projects, and contribute to the vibrancy of the intellectual life of the college.
Union Yes Salary Information
For information about base pay for this position, please refer to Article XII "Salaries" (p. 19-22) in the Faculty Association Collective Bargaining Contract 2025-2028. The contract indicates the minimum base salary for each rank.
Pre-employment Requirement
The successful candidate will be required to meet our pre-employment background screening requirements.
Special Instructions to Applicants
RISD Faculty Search Committees comprise colleagues from within and outside of the hiring Department.
Please attach the following to to the appropriate links in the section labeled "Documents Needed to Apply":
1.) Letter of intent that addresses the qualifications and responsibilities listed above (2 pages maximum)
2.) Curriculum vitae
3.) A one page teaching philosophy that describes your approach to inclusive pedagogy and provides examples of how you have put it into practice.
4.) One syllabus that demonstrates an inclusive approach to teaching studio work
5.) Creative Work/Professional Work/Scholarship
Please provide a professional portfolio of no more than 20 images with captions, formatted into a single multipage Adobe PDF, one image per page. Image file size should be consistent: medium to high resolution is recommended (at least 1024 pixels wide). Video/audio: If you would like to include sound or video media, upload media to a sharing platform that allows content to be viewed using a web link. Please copy that link into your PDF, providing contextual information as appropriate. Video/audio files of any length can be submitted, but it may be beneficial to edit/limit submissions to 5 minutes unless there is a compelling reason to go beyond that limit.
6.) Examples of student work
Please provide a student work portfolio of no more than 20 images with captions, formatted into a single multipage Adobe PDF, one image per page. Image file size should be consistent: medium to high resolution is recommended (at least 1024 pixels wide). See directions above for including time-based work.
Applications may not be edited once they are certified and submitted.
Only materials that have been requested will be considered.
Names and contact information for three references are requested as part of the application process at the finalist stage.
Review of applications begins immediately and continues until the position is filled. Candidates who submit their materials by January 5, 2027 are assured full consideration.
EEO Statement
RISD is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetics, or any other protected characteristic as established by law.
Posting Detail Information
Posting Number F00135P Open Date Close Date Open Until Filled Yes
Supplemental Questions
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Documents Needed To Apply
Required Documents
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