The Department of Communication at Villanova University invites applications for the annual Harron Family Endowed Chair in Communication. The Department seeks a senior colleague whose scholarship, regardless of specialization or methodological orientation, has made a significant contribution to the discipline of Communication. This visiting, one-semester appointment is for the Fall of 2016. University-sponsored housing will be provided for the duration of the appointment. The responsibilities of the position include teaching one undergraduate and one graduate course related to his/her area of expertise, delivering a lecture to the Villanova community during the semester in residence, and mentoring faculty and students in the Communication Department. In addition to the salary generated by the Endowment and University-sponsored housing, The Harron Family Endowed Chair in Communication is eligible to receive graduate assistant support and to apply for a grant of up to $10,000 from the Waterhouse Family Institute for the Study of Communication and Society. This visiting position may be used to supplement sabbatical leave, but the Department encourages all interested, qualified candidates to apply.
THE CURRENT HARRON CHAIR
This year, the Department of Communication at Villanova University welcomed Dr. Lance Strate as the 2015 Harron Family Endowed Chair in Communication. Lance Strate is Professor of Communication and Media Studies at Fordham University. He earned a BS in Communication Arts at Cornell University, an MA in Media Studies at Queens College of the City University of New York, and a PhD in Media Ecology at New York University. He is the author of Echoes and Reflections: On Media Ecology as a Field of Study (Cresskill, NJ: Hampton Press, 2006), On the Binding Biases of Time and Other Essays on General Semantics and Media Ecology (Fort Worth, TX: Institute of General Semantics, 2011), and Amazing Ourselves to Death: Neil Postman’s Brave New World Revisited (New York: Peter Lang, 2014), as well as over 100 journal articles and book chapters. Dr. Strate’s scholarship has been devoted to the analysis and criticism of media and popular culture, the study of new media, and the development and elaboration of media ecology as a field of study, which includes the study of the nature and effects of technology and symbolic form, the history of human communication, and the relationship between communication, consciousness, and culture. Over the course of over 25 years on the faculty at Fordham University, he has served as department chair, graduate director, and undergraduate program director, as well as creating and serving as director of the Professional Studies in New Media interdisciplinary program. He has also taught graduate courses at New York University and Fairleigh Dickinson University, been a visiting professor conducting a faculty seminar at Technológico de Monterrey in Mexico, and a Disney Forum Fellow at Saint Mary’s College of California. He is a recipient of the Media Ecology Association’s 2013 Walter J. Ong Award for Career Achievement in Scholarship; the New York State Communication Association’s John F. Wilson Fellow Award in 1998, in recognition for exceptional scholarship, leadership, and dedication to the field of communication
APPLICATION PROCESS
To be considered for The Harron Family Chair, applicants should hold the rank of Associate or Full Professor of Communication or a closely related field, and have a national/international reputation for distinguished scholarship. In addition to an extensive, successful research program, candidates should demonstrate a strong teaching record and a willingness to contribute to the intellectual life of Villanova’s Department of Communication. A complete application will include:
– a letter stating the candidate’s interest and qualifications, as well as indication of availability, housing needs, area(s) of expertise, and potential courses and research projects the candidate would pursue during the appointment;
– a current curriculum vitae;
– the names and full contact information for two personal references.
Electronic versions of these materials may be sent to http://jobs.villanova.edu Review of applications will begin December 14, 2015, and will continue until the 2016 Harron Family Chair is selected.
The Department of Communication will be hosting a reception at NCA in Las Vegas to honor Dr. Strate. Applicants are strongly encouraged to attend. To attend the reception and meet with Villanova faculty at the upcoming NCA conference, please email Dr. Maurice Hall.
ABOUT THE HARRON FAMILY AND THE DEPARTMENT
The Harron family has been associated with the field of communication since the turn of the twenty-first century. Through the endowment of scholarships for students demonstrating academic achievement and financial need and support of the University’s highly regarded One Book Villanova program, the Harron family has also been a leader in philanthropic efforts at Villanova University. The Harron Family Endowed Chair in Communication honors the Harron family’s accomplishments in the field of communication, their philanthropic legacy, and the Department’s commitment to excellence in communication education, scholarship, and practice.
The Department of Communication is the largest undergraduate major at Villanova, and has a thriving M.A. program with an excellent track record of sending students to Ph.D. programs. The strength of our programs is due to our Department’s emphasis upon intellectual rigor, the teacher-scholar model, and strong collegiality. Villanova University is a Roman Catholic university sponsored by the Augustinian order, located in the ethnically, racially, and culturally diverse Philadelphia metropolitan region. An AA/EEO employer, the Communication Department values dynamic and diverse faculty members who are committed to teaching, scholarship, and service—and who can contribute to the University’s conversation regarding truth, community, values, and social justice.
NOTE: Wendy Leeds-Hurwitz, Director of the Center for Intercultural Dialogue, was the Harron Chair in 2013-14.
