Wanted—16 new faculty members needed—the most openings at one time in John Brown University’s history.
“There are several different reasons why faculty members are leaving,” said Ed Ericson, vice president of academic affairs. “A few have just left, some are retiring and others are not returning based on their one-year contract.”
Usually they fill spots throughout the year, Ericson explained. “There are usually a few spots that open up, but never so many at one time.”
With over 300 inquiries for only 16 spots, the Academic Affairs office has been busy screening candidates for the job and searching for the “perfect fit” for every opening.
“It’s important for us to go through a series of interviews to make sure that the candidates are what we are looking for in a new faculty member,” Ericson said.
The interviewing process is preceded by position descriptions being sent out to various networks and some alumni. The applicants participate in an extensive interview and are invited to campus for an additional interview before the final decision is made.
Jobs in the engineering, counseling and business departments are harder to fill rather than in the humanities department.
“In job fields like engineering and counseling, people can find much higher paying jobs rather than teaching at a university,” Ericson said.
Patti Hutto, Ericson’s administrative assistant, stated that the last time this many job openings were available was in the late 1990s.
“But even then, when there were 19 openings, they were not all at once,” Hutto said.
“The growth of the school is why more jobs are becoming available, too,” Ericson said. “There has been a major growth in the graduate business and a large growth in the area in general. We have to add some jobs and find people to fill other spots during this growth.”