Curator, Donald R. Dickey Endowed Chair in Vertebrate Biology | The Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections

University of California, Los Angeles

Position overview

Position title: Donald R. Dickey Chair in Vertebrate Biology

Salary range: The posted UC salary scales (https://www.ucop.edu/academic-personnel-programs/compensation/index.html ) set the minimum pay determined by rank and step at appointment. See Table 1. The salary range for this position is $78,200–$205,400. “Off-scale salaries”, i.e. a salary that is higher than the published system-wide salary at the designated rank and step, are offered when necessary to meet competitive conditions.

Review timeline: September 27, 2024 – November 8, 2024

Application Window

Open date: October 18, 2024

Next review date: Friday, Nov 29, 2024 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time)
Apply by this date to ensure full consideration by the committee.

Final date: Wednesday, Dec 18, 2024 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time)
Applications will continue to be accepted until this date, but those received after the review date will only be considered if the position has not yet been filled.

Position description

The Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (EEB) at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), in partnership with UCLA’s DataX Initiative, is seeking to fill a faculty position (open rank) who will also serve as the Donald R. Dickey Chair in Vertebrate Biology, an endowed position to steward and maintain the Donald R. Dickey Bird and Mammal Collection. The Dickey Collection houses nearly 64,000 specimens from North and Central America and the Pacific Islands, including an extensive collection of photographs, books, and field notes. Candidates with expertise in ecology or evolutionary biology, broadly defined, are encouraged to apply.

The posted UC salary scales (https://www.ucop.edu/academic-personnel-programs/compensation/index.html ) set the minimum pay determined by rank and step at appointment. See Table 1. The salary range for this position is $78,200–$205,400. “Off-scale salaries”, i.e. a salary that is higher than the published system-wide salary at the designated rank and step, are offered when necessary to meet competitive conditions.

Necessary qualifications include a Ph.D. degree in a relevant discipline. Strong candidates will have an integrative collections-oriented research program that harnesses the power of new technologies in data acquisition and analysis of natural history collections, experience with the curation and collection of museum specimens and data, and a record of competitive extramural funding. The Dickey Chair will be responsible for the supervision of the Collections Manager, for developing an externally funded research program, including grants to increase the impact of the collection, and for the active use of the Dickey collection in teaching. We are especially interested in candidates whose research complements existing departmental strengths in organismal biology, and who will contribute to our teaching mission in inclusive education and diversity.

Application packages should be submitted online through [https://recruit.apo.ucla.edu/apply/JPF09874] and include the following individual documents: 1) a cover letter briefly summarizing qualifying experience and fit for this position (2 pages max); 2) curriculum vitae; 3) research statement including future directions (2 pages max); 4) teaching statement that describes teaching interests and experience, particularly use of evidence-based inclusive teaching practices (1 page max); 5) statement of contributions to equity, diversity, and inclusion that includes previous and planned efforts that advance EDI through formal and/or informal mentoring, research or education activities (1 page max); 6) a vision statement for the Dickey collection and its potential role in the larger university, regional, and museum communities (1 page max); and 7) name and contact information for three reference writers. Letters of recommendation will be solicited for select candidates after initial screening. Review of applications will begin on November 8th, 2024, and continue until the position is filled. Inquiries about the position should be sent to the search committee chair, Professor Morgan Tingley (mtingley@ucla.edu).

The EEB Department at UCLA is a vibrant and expanding department of 29 current faculty members with ecological and evolutionary strengths in conservation, field, genomic, quantitative, and behavioral biology. The department is part of a dynamic interdepartmental research community in computational biology, bioinformatics, genomics, conservation, and marine biology across the greater UCLA campus. EEB features a large graduate program, three undergraduate majors (Biology; Ecology, Behavior, and Evolution; Marine Biology), and two undergraduate minors (Conservation Biology and Evolutionary Medicine). EEB is closely associated with the UCLA La Kretz Center for California Conservation Sciences, the Stunt Ranch Reserve and broader UC Natural Reserve System, the Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden, the Congo Basin Institute, the Center for Tropical Research, and the Center for Education Innovation and Learning in the Sciences. EEB faculty have affiliations or close ties with the Institute for Quantitative and Computational Biosciences and the Institute of Environment and Sustainability, the David Geffen School of Medicine (Departments of Human Genetics & Computational Medicine), the Samueli School of Engineering (Department of Computer Science), and the Fielding School of Public Health.

We strongly encourage applications from individuals who are underrepresented in STEM faculty, including in national origin, physical ability, gender, and sexual identity. UCLA is home to a diverse student body of 46,000 undergraduate and graduate students and is a top U.S. public research university and a top ranked school for social mobility out of the top 20 national universities. UCLA also aims to achieve designation as a Hispanic Serving Institution by 2025. We encourage applications from individuals with a demonstrated history of commitment to teaching and mentoring students from groups that are underrepresented in the sciences.

The University of California is committed to creating and maintaining a community dedicated to the advancement, application, and transmission of knowledge and creative endeavors through academic excellence, where all individuals who participate in university programs and activities can work and learn together in a safe and secure environment, free of violence, harassment, bullying and other demeaning behavior, discrimination, exploitation, or intimidation. With this commitment as well as a commitment to addressing all forms of academic misconduct, UCLA conducts targeted employment reference checks for finalists to whom departments or other hiring units would like to extend formal offers of appointment into Academic Senate faculty positions. The targeted employment reference checks involve contacting the finalists’ current and prior places of employment to ask whether there have been substantiated findings of misconduct that would violate the University’s Faculty Code of Conduct. To implement this process, UCLA requires all applicants for Academic Senate faculty positions to complete, sign, and upload the form entitled “Authorization to Release Information” into RECRUIT as part of their application. If the applicant does not include the signed authorization to release information with the application materials, the application will be considered incomplete. As with any incomplete application, the application will not receive further consideration. Although all applicants for faculty recruitments must complete the entire application, only finalists (i.e., those to whom the department or other hiring unit would like to extend a formal offer) considered for Academic Senate faculty positions will be subject to targeted employment reference checks.

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or protected veteran status. For the complete University of California nondiscrimination and affirmative action policy, see: UC Nondiscrimination & Affirmative Action Policy (http://policy.ucop.edu/doc/4000376/NondiscrimAffirmAct)

Department: https://www.eeb.ucla.edu

Qualifications

Basic qualifications

a PhD degree in a relevant discipline

Additional qualifications

Preferred qualifications

Preferred qualifications include: (1) an integrative collections-oriented research program that harnesses the power of new technologies in data acquisition and analysis of natural history collections; (2) experience with the curation and collection of museum specimens and data; (3) a record of competitive extramural funding; (4) evidence of excellence in teaching, including the use of inclusive educational methods; and (5) previous and planned efforts to advance EDI through formal and/or informal mentoring, research or education activities.

Application Requirements

Document requirements

Curriculum Vitae – Your most recently updated C.V.
Cover Letter – 2 page max
Statement of Research – 2 page max
Statement of Teaching – 1 page max
Statement on Contributions to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion – An EDI Statement describes a faculty candidate’s past, present, and future (planned) contributions to equity, diversity, and inclusion. To learn more about how UCLA thinks about contributions to equity, diversity, and inclusion, please review our EDI Statement FAQ document, and Sample EDI Statements.
Reference check authorization release form – Complete and upload the reference check authorization release form
Vision Statement – Vision statement for the Dickey collection and its potential role in the larger university, regional, and museum communities. ( 1 page max)

Reference requirements

3 required (contact information only)

Include contact information for three recommenders. Letter of recommendation will be requested at a later date from applicants who progress to a later stage of review.

Apply link: https://recruit.apo.ucla.edu/JPF09874

Help contact: jcastellanos@lifesci.ucla.edu

About UCLA

As a University employee, you will be required to comply with all applicable University policies and/or collective bargaining agreements, as may be amended from time to time. Federal, state, or local government directives may impose additional requirements.

For the University of California’s Affirmative Action Policy, please visit https://www.ucop.edu/academic-personnel-programs/_files/apm/apm-035.pdf.

For the University of California’s Anti-Discrimination Policy, please visit https://policy.ucop.edu/doc/1001004/Anti-Discrimination.

Job location

Los Angeles, CA