Associate Professor, (Tenure track) Indigenous Scholar and Principal Research Chair, Tier 2

Job Category
Faculty Bargaining

Job Title
Associate Professor, (Tenure track) Indigenous Scholar and Principal Research Chair, Tier 2

Department
UBCO | Faculty | School of Nursing | Faculty of Health and Social Development (Jacqueline Denison)

Posting End Date
December 6, 2023

Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the day prior to the Posting End Date above.

Job End Date

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR (Tenure track) INDIGENOUS SCHOLAR AND PRINCIPAL RESEARCH CHAIR, TIER 2

The School of Nursing at the University of British Columbia’s Okanagan campus, located on the unceded territory of the Syilx (Okanagan) Peoples, invites applications for a Principal Research Chair (Tier 2) in Indigenous Nursing Scholarship.  The successful candidate will be eligible to hold a full-time tenure-track appointment at the rank of Associate Professor. The anticipated start date for this position is July 1, 2024.

We seek a nurse scholar who will contribute significantly to building capacity in Indigenous health scholarship in the School of Nursing by drawing on an strong track record of: a) respectful collaboration with, or connections to, Indigenous communities, organization and/or institutions; b) mentorship and training of Indigenous learners including undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and early career researchers; and c) success in research scholarship and research funding focused on topics related to Indigenous health. This Chair will support research and scholarship centred on Indigenous health priorities connected to all aspects of emotional, mental, physical and spiritual wellbeing, including enhancing community wellbeing and responding to the need for Indigenous approaches to the promotion of Indigenous wellbeing. In partnership with Indigenous peoples, communities, and/or associations, the Chair will employ Indigenous approaches, protocols, and methodologies to their research, and will seek transformation of health systems and/or determinants. The Chair will embrace decolonizing approaches, responsive to their own positionality and attentive to legacies and enduring injustice of colonialism, and the inequities that persist as a result. The Chair will show a demonstrated potential to lead in their field as a role model, ally, and advocate for broader efforts in the health professions and sciences to listen for direction from Indigenous communities; and to both demonstrate and invite others to take up Calls to Action outlined in the Truth & Reconciliation Report (specific to health, education, equity, justice and reconciliation). Supervision of graduate students, especially to enhance research training opportunities for Indigenous students, will be an important focus for the Chair. The Chair will be joining a community of scholars in the School of Nursing where the focus is on four areas of research excellence: innovations in person-centred care and caregiving, technologies for health and wellbeing, supportive environments for health equity, and maternal, child and family health.

Applicants must meet the eligibility requirements for a Tier 2 Principal Research Chair (PRC) position. PRC are tenable for five years and renewable once, and are for exceptional emerging researchers, acknowledged by their peers as having the potential to lead in their field. PRC Tier 2 Chairs will receive an annual honorarium of $7,500 and an annual research allowance of $20,000.  Tier 2 PRCs normally receive a teaching release from their home faculty, but must maintain a course load of 1.0. 

Applicants require a relevant PhD and eligibility for registration with the British Columbia College of Nurses and Midwives (BCCNM), for which they are expected to begin the process of registration within the first year. It is expected that registration is maintained for the duration of employment. The successful candidate must have a record of achievement in research and publication appropriate for their stage of career, and strong potential to support externally funded research that will contribute to building research capacity as well as improvements in health and wellbeing and healthcare services for Indigenous peoples. Applicants must also demonstrate strong potential for teaching and mentorship related to building research capacity in Indigenous and nursing scholarship. This position is dedicated to nursing scholars who have verifiable connections to Indigenous communities in formal affiliation and/or established relationship. Indigenous nursing scholars with a background related to the health of Indigenous populations, and demonstrated experience in collaborative research partnerships with Indigenous communities in Canada are encouraged to apply. 

UBC is one of the world’s leading universities and is consistently ranked in the top 40. The university has two distinct campuses, one in Vancouver and one in Kelowna. UBC’s Okanagan campus, located in the city of Kelowna, has over 11,000 students in nine faculties and schools, with strong undergraduate and graduate programs. UBC’s relationship with the Syilx Okanagan Nation, in whose traditional, ancestral and unceded territory the Okanagan campus is situated, is central to the university. We are committed to an ethos of local involvement, global engagement, and intercultural awareness, and we provide a positive, inclusive, and mutually supportive working and learning environment for all our students, faculty, and staff. UBC’s Indigenous Strategic Plan (ISP) includes areas of action to promote Indigenous research and curriculum and to support Indigenous faculty and students; see https://isp.ubc.ca/ . It is an action plan which is meaningfully advancing the human rights of all Indigenous people and Peoples connected to the university.  In implementing Indigenous human rights as a university community, we are building an environment in which students, faculty and staff will share intercultural understanding, empathy, and mutual respect for the rights of all peoples.

The School of Nursing [see https://nursing.ok.ubc.ca/ ] is housed within the Faculty of Health and Social Development at UBC’s Okanagan campus. The faculty also houses schools of Social Work and Health & Exercise Science. The School of Nursing offers undergraduate, master’s and PhD programs in nursing. In addition to active partnerships with our surrounding communities, including Indigenous, and rural and remote, and Interior Health, our school has international partnerships with schools in Ghana and Zambia. The School of Nursing currently has 64 full-time faculty members and instructors, over 650 undergraduate and graduate students, and offers undergraduate, masters, and doctoral degrees in nursing. We are implementing UBC’s Indigenous Strategic Plan and providing a supportive environment for our Indigenous students and faculty members. Building on a long-standing commitment to curricular initiatives that include cultural safety practices and their contribution to positive health outcomes in our undergraduate program, we are engaged in curriculum revision across all nursing programs to enhance culturally respectful nursing practice with First Nations, Metis, and Inuit peoples. Indigenous nursing students also receive joint support from the School of Nursing and Aboriginal Supports and Services in the form of peer mentorship, peer tutoring, academic advising, etc.

UBC Okanagan offers an intimate learning environment and excellent opportunities for regional, national, and international scholarly activities. For more information about UBC resources and opportunities, please visit https://hr.ubc.ca/working-ubc. Information about working at UBC can be found at: https://hr.ubc.ca/careers-and-job-postings/why- work-ubc.

How to Apply:

To apply for this position please visit the link - https://ubc.wd10.myworkdayjobs.com/ubcfacultyjobs

The preferred format for application materials is Adobe Acrobat (.pdf). Application materials should include:

Cover letter describing your interest in the position and how your skills, experience, and research align with its requirements. A description of your program of research clearly showing a highly developed knowledge and understanding of Indigenous cultures and health-related issues with a proven ability to engage with Indigenous communities A statement of teaching accomplishments and philosophy, including experience in mentoring and supporting trainees and early career researchers (up to two pages. A statement describing your experience working with and supporting a diverse student body and your contributions to creating/advancing a culture of equity, diversity and inclusion on campus or within your discipline (up to one page) A Curriculum Vitae that includes:

• Personal information
• Education including post-doctoral research experience
• Professional employment experience including research and teaching experience
• Present and prior research projects and funding sources
• Experience with undergraduate and graduate student research supervision
• Publications
• Awards and honours
   

Names of three referees who are able to comment on the applicant’s suitability for the position including objective examples of the applicant’s research and teaching potential or established excellence. Additional relevant materials, including up to two letters from Indigenous community groups/organizations you have worked with (along with names and contact information of community references).

Shortlisted candidates will be asked to provide evidence of their ability to collaborate with Indigenous communities through examples of previous collaboration, or a letter of support from an Indigenous community, if not already provided.

All positions are subject to budget approval. Review of applications will begin in January 2024, and continue until the position is filled. Salary will be commensurate with experience and scholarly record

All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents of Canada will be given priority. Candidates with a PhD in nursing are preferred.

Equity and diversity are essential to academic excellence. An open and diverse community fosters the inclusion of voices that have been underrepresented or discouraged. We encourage applications from members of groups that have been marginalized on any grounds enumerated under the B.C. Human Rights Code, including sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, racialization, disability, political belief, religion, marital or family status, age, and/or status as a First Nation, Metis, Inuit, or Indigenous person.