Assistant/Associate Adjunct Faculty in Liberal Education for Arts Professionals (LEAP 400) Personal and Professional Assessment (PPA)

Description

Background

Founded in 1863, Saint Mary's is a residential campus nestled 20 miles east of San Francisco in the picturesque Moraga Valley. Based in the Catholic, Lasallian and Liberal Arts traditions, Saint Mary's currently enrolls more than 4,000 students from diverse backgrounds in undergraduate and graduate programs. The De La Salle Christian Brothers, the largest teaching order of the Roman Catholic Church, guide the spiritual and academic character of the College.

As a comprehensive and independent institution, Saint Mary's offers undergraduate and graduate programs integrating liberal and professional education. Saint Mary's reputation for excellence, innovation and responsiveness in education stems from its vibrant heritage as a Catholic, Lasallian and Liberal Arts institution. An outstanding, committed faculty and staff that value shared inquiry, integrative learning and student interaction bring these traditions to life in the 21st century. The College is committed to the educational benefits of diversity.

The LEAP Program

LEAP (Liberal Education for Arts Professionals) is an internationally recognized distance education Bachelor of Arts degree program specifically designed for current and former professional dancers, with students from across the country. Given the demands of a professional dance career (training, performing, traveling), dancers have rarely been able to pursue academic education beyond high school, making it difficult to prepare for the career transition that every dancer inevitably faces. LEAP makes it possible for these working adults to receive a comprehensive liberal arts education and earn a Bachelor of Arts degree from Saint Mary's College in 3 to 4 years of part-time remote study. 

LEAP-400 Personal and Professional Assessment (PPA)

This course will be taught remotely on Mondays, 4pm - 7pm PST during the Spring 2025 term (February 3, 2025 - May 26, 2025)

Course Description: Personal and Professional Assessment (“PPA”) focuses on how we learn and develop through experience. The course looks at different theories of adult development and teaches students to reflect in meaningful ways on key events in their lives. Students are led through the exploration of the learning cycle, from reflection on experience to construction and application of knowledge. Students learn to write experiential learning papers (ELPs) which identify, analyze, and integrate knowledge from a variety of experiential sources and to develop multiple perspectives. Finally, participating in peer feedback around the ELPs develops critical thinking, analysis, and writing skills, and the ability to use feedback. This analytical and self-reflective process is recorded in an Experiential Learning Portfolio, a collection of essays and supporting documentation, which may be further evaluated for transcripted academic credit.

Responsibilities

The LEAP Program at Saint Mary's College seeks to hire an adjunct faculty member (per course) to teach LEAP-400 Personal and Professional Assessment (PPA). The successful candidate must be able to work in a highly collaborative and culturally diverse learning community, and will be expected to contribute to the mission of the College, which is informed, animated and expressed by its Liberal Arts, Catholic and Lasaillian traditions. 

Qualifications

We seek instructors who are familiar with adult development and experiential learning theories, and have experience teaching in both synchronous and asynchronous distance education modalities. 

Minimum qualifications include:

1. Advanced degree, preferably in a social science

2. A minimum of two years of Undergraduate level teaching experience

3. Experience in Prior Learning Assessment, and demonstrated familiarity with adult development and experiential learning theories

4. Experience teaching in an undergraduate Degree-Completion Program 

5. Experience teaching synchronous and asynchronous Distance-Education modalities

Candidates must perform all course-related work within the State of California.

Salary: $7,447 - $10,308 dependent on qualifications. The salary range for this position is covered by the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the College and SEIU, Local 1021, available here.

Application Instructions

Include a cover letter that specifically addresses how you meet the qualifications and are prepared to support the mission of the college. Please also include:

1. A resume or CV

2. Sample syllabus (one or more) demonstrating the required experience listed in the Qualifications section, above.

3. The name and contact information for three (3) professional references