Presidential Postdoctoral Fellowship in Promoting Access to Inclusive Educator Education Programs through Faculty Diversification

Description

The Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College (MLFTC) at Arizona State University (ASU) invites applications for up to two postdoctoral scholar positions in the area of educator preparation (teacher education) with a focus on inclusive excellence related to clinical experience, community engagement, school-university partnerships, technology in educator preparation, systemic equity in educator preparation, educator preparation policy and other related areas.

ASU was founded as a normal school committed to preparing high quality educators locally and nationally. Since its inception, MLFTC has had a reputation as a top educator preparation preparer. Today, we are approximately 8000 students strong and over the past 8 years, have been innovating in the educator preparation space, creating programs that are flexible, accessible, and transformative. We have imagined a new kind of workforce for schools and are moving quickly to redefine the roles of educators, how they work together in teams with distributed expertise, and how these teams can create new and engaging learner experiences.  We have embraced multilateral partnerships and found ways to break long standing barriers towards entry, specialization, and advancement for educators. We no longer talk about teacher shortages as a recruitment and retention issue but believe that this is a workforce design challenge that schools/colleges of education have a responsibility to help solve.

The Division of Teacher Preparation, part of MLFTC, is hiring two Presidential Postdoctoral Scholars to address the critical need to examine inclusive excellence in educator preparation. Faculty Scholars will join MLFTC’s nationally prominent tenured educator preparation faculty as researchers, educators, and leaders to identify and disrupt patterns of marginalization and exclusion and to actualize ASU’s vision for inclusive excellence. Specifically, we are interested in scholars in educator preparation with a focus on inclusive excellence who bring scholarly and practical expertise in educator preparation to prepare future educators to work in new ways and effectively create learner-centered experiences for children and youth with varied needs, backgrounds and experiences. Accordingly, these Scholars may focus on addressing issues in educator preparation such as (1) increased access to educator preparation with an emphasis on inclusive practices within educator preparation, (2) equitable interventions and systemic reforms to support diverse teacher candidates in inclusive environments, and, (3) underrepresentation of Black, Latina/o/x, Native, and disabled educators in PK-12 settings and educator preparation programs and/or, (4) systemic reform within the current policy context.

In addition to conducting full-time research and participating in national service activities with faculty who lead journals and large-scale funded projects, the Scholars will teach one course per year and contribute directly to the development of a more inclusive and culturally responsive, and sustaining educator preparation curriculum and will be provided concentrated time for integrated research and scholarly networking and mentorship activities.

The postdoctoral scholars selected will join the 5th cohort of postdoctoral scholars at ASU as part of the Presidential Postdoctoral Fellowship Program with a start date of July 2025. The goal of the program is to support the career development of outstanding Ph.D. recipients from underrepresented populations with great potential for advancing the ASU Charter. After successful completion of the program, scholars will have an opportunity to transition to a tenure track appointment at ASU.

The program seeks applicants whose professional preparedness, experience, and accomplishments are informed by experiences working with and within groups historically underrepresented or underserved in higher education in the United States. Where pools of qualified applicants are strong, priority will be given to applicants who demonstrate, through prior actions and achievements, intentional and actioned commitment to inclusive excellence.  Examples of such contributions are research, teaching, mentorship, service, or creative activity focused on empowering underserved populations that increase equitable access and inclusion in fields where historically excluded populations are underrepresented.

MLFTC has committed to providing individualized mentorship and career development to ensure each candidate is well prepared to succeed in a future tenure track appointment. Career development and community building will also occur through programmatic support through the Office of Inclusive Excellence in partnership with the ASU Graduate College’s Postdoctoral Affairs Office. Scholars will hav