Professor, Austin J. Fagothey, S. J. Chair (Philosophy Department)

The Department of Philosophy at Santa Clara University, a Jesuit, Catholic university, invites applications for the Austin J. Fagothey, S.J. chair in Philosophy. Santa Clara University is a welcoming and inclusive community of teacher-scholars whose work is built on the university’s fundamental values: Academic excellence, The search for truth, goodness, and beauty, Engaged Learning, Commitment to students, Service to others, Community and diversity, and Jesuit distinctiveness. Santa Clara University draws on the many resources of the greater Bay Area including Silicon Valley where we are located.

This is a tenured faculty position at the rank of Professor to begin in Fall 2026. The area of specialization (AOS) is Philosophy and Law.

A successful candidate with this AOS will be able to teach introductory and advanced undergraduate courses related to philosophy and law potentially including (disjunctively) PHIL 30: Ethics and the Law; PHIL 43: Religion and American Law; PHIL 44: Free Speech, Hate Speech, and Civil Discourse, PHIL 45: Civility and Democracy; PHIL 117: Bioethics and the Law; PHIL 118: Ethics and Constitutional Law; PHIL 119: Ethics and Criminal Law; PHIL 123: Philosophy of Law; and PHIL124: Natural Law Tradition. We also invite the successful candidate to help the department develop new courses over time that are associated with philosophical, legal, and public policy  issues. We also expect the candidate to teach courses in the University’s current Core curriculum such as PHIL 11 and 12, Cultures & Ideas (with a law-related theme), and to develop new courses for the Core in line with their areas of expertise. The successful candidate will have a primary research and teaching focus in philosophy and law as it engages the conceptual, ontological, epistemological, normative and political questions, and problems pertaining to philosophical and legal matters.

Successful candidates must have a strong commitment to both teaching and research and must have, and maintain, an active research program commensurate with the rank of Professor. SCU is on a 10-week quarter system, and faculty are expected to teach 6 courses per year (2 each quarter), assuming they are engaged in an active scholarship program. The successful candidate will have a reduced teaching load of five courses in their first year of appointment. Faculty members who hold the Austin J. Fagothey, S.J. Chair in Philosophy will also have access to a pool of funds dedicated to advancing their research.

Qualifications:

1. The successful applicant will have demonstrated expertise at the intersection of Philosophy and Law. This may be shown in several ways including:

• Candidates with a Ph.D. in philosophy and a J.D. or a postgraduate degree in law (J.S.D, L.L.M., M.S.L.)
• Candidates with a Ph.D. in philosophy who have strong training and experience in the law
• Candidates with a J.D. or a postgraduate degree in law (J.S.D, L.L.M., M.S.L.) with strong training and experience in Philosophy
• Candidates with a Ph.D. in a humanities field other than philosophy with strong philosophical and legal training and experience

All candidates must have a demonstrated record of research and scholarship that is philosophically oriented and sophisticated and commensurate with the rank of Professor.

2. Area of Specialization (AOS) in Philosophy and Law. Area(s) of Competence (AOC) is open, but we are especially interested in candidates who can broaden or diversify the department's current course offerings especially in areas of the law and minority groups.

3. Experience and demonstrated excellence in teaching undergraduates.

4. Strong record for publication in peer-reviewed venues commensurate with the position of Professor along with a clear agenda for future research.

5. Applicants must hold the rank of Associate Professor or Professor to apply. The successful candidate will be hired at the rank of Professor with tenure.

6. Ability to foster scholarly intradepartmental and interdepartmental connections.

7. Ability to serve (at some point) in the leadership role of Department Chair.
 

Salary Range:

The salary range for this position is $155,264-$172,530, depending on the successful candidate's years of teaching experience at the college level. The position comes with generous benefits (scu.edu/hr/benefits), including medical, dental, vision, and life insurance, and University contributions toward retirement. Recognizing the high cost of housing in the local area, there are two University housing assistance programs: Rental assistance to ease the transition into the local housing market, and housing purchase assistance for tenure stream faculty.

Responsibilities:

Tenured faculty at SCU are teaching scholars who are expected to balance teaching, research and service. This is an in-person position. More specifically, duties include but are not limited to:

TEACHING

1. Teach lower- and upper-division courses in the major and University Core curriculum, as assigned by the chair, including courses like PHIL 30. Ethics and the Law; PHIL 43: Religion and American Law; PHIL 44: Free Speech, Hate Speech, and Civil Discourse, PHIL 45: Civility and Democracy; PHIL 11 & 12, Culture & Ideas (with a law-related subject); PHIL 117: Bioethics and the Law; PHIL 118: Ethics and Constitutional Law; PHIL 119: Ethics and Criminal Law; PHIL 123: Philosophy of Law; and PHIL124: Natural Law Tradition. SCU is on the quarter system and a typical load is two courses per quarter. Teaching responsibilities include, but are not limited to the following:

• Conducting and appearing at all assigned class meetings in a timely and prepared manner that demonstrates a command of the discipline and skill in presenting it effectively. We prefer candidates who demonstrate interest and competency in inclusive pedagogical practices.
• Assigning and evaluating written work, projects, and exams that align with course or core learning objectives and providing timely feedback to students.
• Holding in-person weekly office hours at times reasonably convenient to students.
• Assigning and submitting student grades that are appropriate, accurate, and fair measures of student performance to the Office of the Registrar by the designated deadline.
• Administering numerical and narrative evaluations in each section for all courses.

2. Develop and teach courses that contribute to curriculum development in the relevant degree program and/or the university Core. Faculty teaching university Core courses should follow an approved syllabus or work with the chair to design an appropriate syllabus for submission for approval from the relevant Faculty Core Curriculum Committee.

3. Participate in the assessment of student learning for courses in the department.

4. Provide informed advice and mentoring to undergraduate students especially with respect to Pre-Law advising.

5. Fulfill other instructional or academic duties as may be assigned by the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences or by the Chair of the Philosophy Department.

Teaching will be evaluated according to the Teaching Effectiveness Standards and Evaluation (TESE) document developed by each department. These standards include things such as,compassion and respect for students, passion for the discipline, active learning, inclusion,multiple opportunities for demonstrating learning, clear feedback, and transparent course design. Jesuit education at Santa Clara University concerns the whole person--mind, body, and spirit--and reflects our faculty commitment to building diverse communities of belonging. We define effectiveness in teaching as respectful and professional, challenging and supportive, inclusive and diverse, relevant and engaging, prepared and purposeful, fair and equitable, and evidence based

RESEARCH

1. Maintain a research program at SCU that will result in the publication of high impact peer-reviewed publications, monographs, and/or creative work per the department scholarship standards and commensurate with the rank of Professor.

2. Candidates with a research program that can accommodate participation of undergraduates are especially attractive. 

SCU offers significant support to early career faculty in the development of their program of research or creative work. All new faculty will be assigned mentors, placed into a cohort learning community with other new faculty, offered faculty retreats, workshops and numerous professional development opportunities to build their programs of research/creative work.

SERVICE

Provide effective service to the Department of Philosophy, the College, the University, and profession through contributions other than teaching and scholarship such as service on committees, participation in professional organizations and activities, leadership, and community service performed by virtue of professional expertise or association with the University as appropriate to rank and experience. Visa assistance is available for this position.

Candidates for this position should submit the following:

1. Curriculum vitae
2. Sample syllabi
3. Student evaluations of teaching and other indications of teaching effectiveness, including original and unedited institutional summaries of numerical evaluations and unedited student comments on teaching (as are found in narrative evaluations of teaching) if at all possible. Please include a brief explanation of numerical scales or relevant comparisons used.
4. A cover letter that carefully addresses the candidate's research, teaching philosophy, and experience working with a diverse population of students.
5. At least one example of distinctive scholarship, e.g., published article or book chapter.
6. Finalists for the position will be asked to provide three letters of reference.