University of Minnesota, College of Design
University of Minnesota, College of Design
About the Design Justice Cluster-Hire Initiative
Design Justice is an initiative within the College of Design, seeking to create space, policy, and
practices that support the inclusion and retention of Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC)
as well as other communities who have been historically underinvested. Design Justice is supported
by a group of individuals across design disciplines, known as the Collective, who are committed to
anti-racism, decolonized pedagogy, and the liberation of communities who have been underinvested
historically, in both design academia and the design industry. Areas of scholarship, teaching, and/or
service will involve: anti-racism, racial justice, racial disparities, and/or racial discrimination; equity,
power/privilege, and/or bias; benefits to the BIPOC, immigrant, and refugee populations;
environmental and social justice; and/or other forms of studying and countering systemic
oppression. Successful candidates for all positions will have the clear potential, demonstrated ability,
and/or related scholarship to support our BIPOC and other marginalized communities.
Position Details
The University of Minnesota’s College of Design invites applications for a tenure-track position in the
Department of Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and Interior Design (ALI), with a focus on the
history of architecture and the designed environment. We are seeking tenure-track candidates who
are committed to advancing a scholarly, pedagogic, and/or service agenda specifically focused on
design justice either through the history of architecture and the designed environment teaching,
and/or in research, practice, or service to the disciplines of architecture, landscape architecture or
interior design.
This is a 100%-time academic year (9-month) position at the level of assistant professor. Salary will
be commensurate with qualifications and experience, and will be supplemented by a start-up
package to support advancement of scholarship and teaching. The priority application deadline is
November 15, 2024. However, applications will continue to be reviewed until the position is filled.
Anticipated start date is August 2025.
We seek applicants whose work focuses on architecture and design from the mid-twentieth century
onward; but other areas of expertise will also be considered. Preference will be given to those whose
interests, especially in teaching, engage with each of the ALI disciplines. The successful candidate will
also have a strong commitment to design justice, and eventually, the opportunity to participate in
the College of Design’s Design Justice Collective. Regardless of the start date, selected candidates will
receive the cluster experience.
About the Department of Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and Interior Design
Situated within the College of Design, the Department of Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and
Interior Design (ALI) was established in 2023 to enhance interdisciplinary connections between
programs that until recently were in different departments, and in the case of Interior Design, on a
different campus. ALI’s studios, classrooms, workshop, and library are located in Rapson Hall. The
building was designed by Thorshov & Cerny in 1960, renovated with an addition by Steven Holl in
2002, and named for the former head of the School of Architecture, architect Ralph Rapson.
ALI is committed to a diverse, socially engaged, contextually sensitive, ecologically responsible, and
technologically rich vision of design. Its students, faculty, and programs are known for their history
of design excellence, and their strong relationships with an exceptional practice community. They
are well positioned to work together with culturally diverse local communities committed to race
and climate justice, through a curriculum that actively pursues engaged design, research, and
scholarship in the College, University, and beyond.
ALI enrolls over 800 students, including more than 450 undergraduates in architecture
(Pre-Architecture, BDA, and BS in Architecture), approximately 100 graduate students in the NAAB
accredited Master of Architecture degree, about 70 students in the professionally accredited BLA
and MLA programs, and 150 in the professionally accredited BS in Interior Design program. In
addition, there are approximately 40 students in the Master of Science in Architecture program (with
tracks in Sustainable Design, Applied Research Practices, and Metropolitan Design) and the Master
of Heritage Studies and Public History program. Recently, the School of Architecture has also
launched an Architecture track in the College of Design’s PhD program.
The department’s faculty includes internationally recognized experts in a range of interrelated
architectural fields: design; urban and rural design; building technology; digital design and
representation, design/build; ecological design and sustainable building design; resilient and
regenerative infrastructures; housing; heritage studies and public histories; critical practice and
representation; history, theory, and criticism; and research embedded in practice.
Responsibilities
For the ALI History Position
● Conduct teaching, research/scholarship/creative work, and/or service centered around areas
of design justice.
● Conducting undergraduate and graduate architectural history courses, some of which will
integrate landscape architecture, and interior design history. Teaching should contribute to
students’ understanding of and design for the contexts in which they will practice; and
emphasize critical perspectives and intersections among cultural and global contexts, as well
as design justice.
● Serving as a member of the Design Justice Collective for the first two years of the
appointment. Contributing to the cultivation of policies and practices that exemplify the
College’s commitment to the mission of the Design Justice Collective. While issues concerned with
design justice may inform your contributions in teaching, research, and service, they do
not need to characterize your entire body of work.
● Conducting research on the history of architecture and the designed environment.
Developing a strong record of publication and dissemination.
● Mentoring and advising students in their academic and professional development; fostering
a diverse and inclusive learning environment; and contributing to recruitment and retention
strategies of students who have been historically underinvested.
● Participating in departmental and university service, including curriculum development and
community engagement to support the land-grant mission of the University of Minnesota.
● Service in support of the Department of Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and Interior
Design, College of Design, University, and/or broader community.
● Advise/mentor undergraduate and graduate students and contribute to recruitment and
retention strategies of students who have been historically underinvested.
● Participate in faculty governance at the program, department, college, and/or university
levels.
● Contribute to and support the mission of the University of Minnesota, a public research
institution.
Required Qualifications
For the ALI History Position
● Commitment to teaching, scholarship, and/or service with a demonstrated ability, interest
and/or potential to intersect with design justice and/or antiracism.
● Experience and/or commitment to teaching and/or mentoring students who have been
historically underinvested.
● PhD in Architecture, Architectural History, History of Art, or a closely related field (ABD
candidates will be considered with the expectation of finishing the degree by the start date).
● Experience teaching at the collegiate, graduate, and/or professional level. (This may include
TA experience.)
● Ability to teach courses on the history of the designed environment that could be taught
across the design disciplines in our department.
● Potential to develop a strong record of achievement in scholarship.
Preferred Qualifications
For the ALI History Position
● A record of teaching and research in the history of architecture and the designed
environment with a focus on issues at the intersection of equity, design, representation, and
justice.
● Demonstrated potential and ability, and/or related scholarship to support our BIPOC and
other marginalized communities.
● Demonstrated experience in securing grant funding to support research related to the
history of architecture and the designed environment.
● Commitment to collaborative and interdisciplinary approaches to research and teaching.
● Evidence of collaboration with multiple disciplines.
About the College of Design
The University of Minnesota Twin Cities is located on traditional, ancestral, and contemporary lands
of the Dakota People, ceded in the Treaties of 1837 and 1851. We are committed to recognizing the
complex history of this land by honoring the truth of violence, displacement, migration, and
settlement that bring us together now. We acknowledge the need to end the violence against
missing and murdered Indigenous women– a local and national epidemic which can be traced back
to the arrival of European colonizers across Turtle Island. We acknowledge and fight against the
legacy of white supremacy and culture of anti-Black racism in our own community, which has led to
the murders of Jamar Clark, Philando Castile, George Floyd, Daunte Wright, Winston Smith, and
countless other Black Americans across this nation. Black lives matter. We stand with our Hmong,
Asian, Asian-American, and Pacific Islander communities against the rise of xenophobic violence
since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. We recognize that words are not enough and we remain
committed to the work of eradicating the injustices against all Black, Indigenous, and people of color
caused by systemic racism.
Formed in 2006, the University of Minnesota’s College of Design encompasses a full range of design
disciplines, including apparel design, graphic design, product design, human factors and
ergonomics, retail and consumer studies, and heritage studies and public history, in addition to
architecture, landscape architecture, and interior design. We offer eight undergraduate degrees,
twenty-four graduate and professional degree options, and nine centers for research, creative
scholarship, and engagement. Through rigorous commitments to creativity, equity, and advancing
technologies, College of Design educational programs and innovations address emerging issues,
identify problems, frame creative approaches, and generate solutions across all scales of human
experience. We offer rich opportunities for interdisciplinary research and public engagement,
through highly-regarded research and engagement centers, including the Center for Retail Design
and Innovation (CRDI), Wearable Product Design,Digital Design Center (DDC), Minnesota Design
Center (MDC), Center for Sustainable Building Research (CSBR), and the Goldstein Museum of
Design. For more information about the college, please visit our website at design.umn.edu.
We are located in the Twin Cities, known as a major design hub and home to design-oriented
Fortune 500 companies such as Target, 3M, General Mills, Best Buy, and Medtronic, several
international and national award-winning architecture practices, thriving local businesses, and a
strong non-profit sector. Our students have a wide range of internship opportunities, our graduates
enjoy high employment rates, and our alumni are highly engaged with current students and faculty.
We take pride in Minnesota’s designations as a Research 1 and Community-Engaged University,
which provide foundations for many of our award-winning projects.
The University of Minnesota, a Class 1 research institution, enables connections with faculty and
students in a broad range of disciplines. The Institute for Advanced Study supports interdisciplinary
collaboratives and programs. The Northwest Architectural Archives holds an extensive collection of
architectural drawings and related ephemera, and the University of Minnesota Press is known for its
architecture publications. For more information, see: https://twin-cities.umn.edu/about-us.
To Apply to the History of Architecture and the Designed
Environment Position, Submit the Following through this Link:
1. A cover letter outlining your teaching approach, research interests, and how you would
contribute to the Design Justice Collective.
2. Curriculum vitae.
If you advance to the next level of the search (Stage 2), we will reach out to you to submit additional
materials including:
1. Sample teaching and research work.
2. Three references who can speak to your qualifications and potential.
The University of Minnesota recognizes and values the importance of diversity and inclusion in
enriching the experience of its employees and in supporting the academic mission. The University is
committed to attracting and retaining employees with varying identities and backgrounds. The
University provides equitable access to and opportunity in its programs, facilities, and employment
without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, age, marital status, disability,
public assistance status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. To
learn more about diversity at the University of Minnesota, see diversity.umn.edu. To request an
accommodation during the application process, please email employ@umn.edu or call (612)
624-UOHR (8647).
Any offer of employment is contingent upon the successful completion of a background check. Our
presumption is that prospective employees are eligible to work here. Criminal convictions do not
automatically disqualify finalists from employment.