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Health & Wellness Design Chair Position

Health & Wellness Design Chair Position

The Indiana University School of Public Health–Bloomington (SPH‐B) invites applications for the position of Chair for a newly reorganized department, Health & Wellness Design. This exciting opportunity is well suited to a visionary and a dynamic leader who will work with the school to achieve a revitalized vision of the department to promote health by design and then work with the university to bring that mission and ethos to fruition. In this context, design refers to all those macro-level elements humans create, from businesses, to parks, to transportation systems, to buildings and cities, to policies, to online spaces, and yet other elements still that can affect health. This forward-thinking individual will contribute multidisciplinary perspectives, conceptual and methodological diversity, research leadership, and mentoring strengths to the department's efforts toward academic excellence in research, as well as teach approaches for human-centered design that contributes to disease prevention to improve public health in Indiana and beyond. The successful candidate is a leader who will elevate the department into rigorous science, attract new hires, and generate enthusiasm among his or her faculty. Located on the flagship campus of the Indiana University system, SPH-B has more than 200 faculty in five departments. Indiana University is a member of the prestigious Association of American Universities (AAU) and boasts numerous resources available to SPH-B faculty. This 12-month appointment would ideally start January 1, 2021, although the starting date is negotiable. For best consideration apply prior to August 1, 2020; however, applications will be accepted until the position is full.

The Department of Health & Wellness Design focuses on processes aimed at infusing health, happiness, and well-being into organizational structures, programs/interventions, and experiences through research, education, and service. As health needs and challenges evolve, the power of design to enhance human health have never been more relevant. The world in which we live contains many factors that affect our health, by intentional design or lack thereof. The department studies innovative approaches, methods, and strategies to enable optimal quality of life for all through the covenants of public health including a commitment to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion, as well as population level impacts. Areas of emphasis include behavioral health economics; policy; empathetic leadership, human-centered design and management; lifestyle technology and informatics; and social entrepreneurship. The Department of Health & Wellness Design strives to educate and prepare the next generation of leaders who will act as change agents in a variety of settings where people live, work, govern, play, and learn with an end goal to maximize the human experience and empower people to live-well. For example, the department's tourism, hospitality, and events management program helps to prepare students for business-oriented fields with a health promotion lens. We aim to contribute to the design of communities for healthy aging. Similarly, other curricula of the department prepare students to lead and manage multiple settings, such as parks, community spaces, and government to enhance health and wellness. This may include subjects such as health policy and financing, experience management, program and facility design, wellness education, quality of life, sustainability, etc. Students earning degrees from the Department of Health & Wellness Design will go on to work in fields as diverse as businesses, health care management, tourism and hospitality management, state and local parks and recreation, government public health, nonprofit organizations, universities, and research centers. Central to their work will be the knowledge, skills, and abilities to create a positive impact on population health through chosen systems of delivery.

Responsibilities: The chair will provide inspirational and practical leadership for research, teaching, and service; manage the budget and secure financial resources to meet program objectives; actively assist with fundraising activities; represent the department on external committees and to groups; oversee the department’s undergraduate and graduate teaching programs; recruit and mentor outstanding faculty, staff, and graduate students; and facilitate productive interaction among faculty, staff, students, and alumni. The successful candidate will work closely with the dean to further the school’s goals and research mission.

Qualifications: Candidates must hold a doctoral degree in public health or closely related field, ideally from an accredited school of public health or related educational institution. Candidates must also demonstrate a record of scholarly achievement appropriate for a senior career level, including extramurally funded research as a principal investigator, current funding or strong potential to secure external funding, the ability to collaborate across disciplines, and a positive team spirit. The candidate is expected to be appointed as a tenured full professor, but need not be a full professor at the time of application. Finally, candidates are expected to reside in Bloomington, Indiana, to permit full engagement with the department, school, campus, and community.

Resources: The department has 10 tenured and tenure track faculty members, 11 non-tenure-earning faculty, and 9 staff members. Currently, the department’s degree offerings include a bachelor’s degree in Recreation with about 400 students, Master of Public Health (MPH) degree in Recreation with 6 students, a Master of Science (MS) degree in Recreation with 60 students, and a doctoral degree in Leisure Behavior with 18 students enrolled.

Application Procedure: Please provide a 1) curriculum vitae, 2) cover letter including managerial and leadership philosophy, managerial and leadership experience, and managerial and leadership training in preparation to Chair a Department, 3) a research statement 4) a statement of teaching interests, and 5) a diversity statement. Additionally, please provide a list of six (6) references; references will be contacted if you are selected for an interview. Interested candidates should submit applications at Faculty Careers at IU. Questions pertaining to the PeopleAdmin application procedure may be directed to malockha@indiana.edu or via postal mail at SPH-B Search & Screen Committee, School Public Health-Bloomington, Indiana University, 1025 East 7th Street, Room 115A, Bloomington, IN 47405-4801. Questions regarding the position may be directed to Carrie Docherty, Executive Associate Dean, or David B. Allison, Dean.

Indiana University is an equal employment and affirmative action employer and a provider of ADA services. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ethnicity, color, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, national origin, disability status or protected veteran status.

Health & Wellness Design Chair Position

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