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Case
Western Reserve University seeks candidates for term appointments
as SAGES Fellows for 2009-10 and beyond. These positions
are reserved for visitors who will teach small,
writing-intensive, interdisciplinary classes in SAGES—the
Seminar Approach to General Education and Scholarship—the
core academic program for all Case undergraduates.
We
welcome applications from potential
visiting faculty, postdoctoral candidates
with teaching experience, and distinguished professionals in
diverse fields. International candidates
are encouraged to apply. We anticipate that many SAGES Fellows will come to Case for one term: either the fall (September-December) or spring (January-May) of a given academic year. However, we welcome inquiries from prospective Fellows who are interested in teaching for an entire year.
Program History and Objectives
SAGES introduces students
to academic inquiry in seminars that
foster critical discussion and active
engagement.
In adopting
SAGES, Case made a commitment to transforming undergraduate
education, and we actively seek SAGES Fellows who will
be agents of this transformation. Strong candidates will
have significant experience teaching small, inquiry-based
classes, and will embrace the conception of learning inherent
in the seminar approach. They will be able to get students into the habit of engaging in intellectual conversation,
in part by fostering ethical reflection and deliberation.
They will integrate writing into their seminars by treating
it as an intellectual activity in its own right—one
that requires clarity of presentation, linguistic resourcefulness,
and the exercise of reflective judgment.
The SAGES Fellows
are valued colleagues not only to faculty members
within their disciplines, but also to faculty and fellows
from across the University who are similarly engaged in
the venerable yet evolving practice of seminar instruction.
Program Details
Each SAGES Fellow will design and teach
seminars on one of three themes:
- Thinking about the Symbolic
World
- Thinking about the Social World
- Thinking about
the Natural/Technological World
These themes are sufficiently general to allow considerable variation
in the choice of specific seminar topics.
Not every
seminar topic falls neatly (or exclusively)
under a single theme; much depends on
the course content and the instructor's intentions. An art history
seminar, for example, could be listed under Symbolic World
if it dealt with aesthetic language,
under Social World if it dealt with patronage of the arts, or under
Natural/Technological World if it dealt with art conservation. Similarly,
a seminar exploring mathematical descriptions of nature could be
listed under Symbolic World.
Like other faculty and fellows, SAGES Fellows
will:
- have the opportunity
to consult with the program director
and other members of the Case faculty
in developing a detailed course plan;
- teach at least one seminar
that meets for three 50-minute sessions
or two 75-minute sessions each week;
- meet with students outside of regular class times
to discuss course material and academic
progress;
- participate in orientation sessions before the
semester begins;
- meet regularly as
a group with the program director.
Compensation for SAGES Fellows
begins at $5,000 per course but is negotiable.
In some cases, the program will help defray the costs
of temporarily relocating to Cleveland.
Two special categories of SAGES Fellows have been created:
Samuel M. Savin SAGES Fellows will be visiting faculty who have achieved particular distinction in scholarship or teaching. Savin Fellows will receive additional compensation and be invited to present a public lecture.
SAGES Postdoctoral Fellows will typically be appointed for an entire academic year, during which they will teach 4-5 University Seminars.
Applications
Applicants to the SAGES Fellows program are asked to submit the following materials:
- a letter of interest
- a cv that includes names and email addresses of two references
- a writing sample
- a proposal for a University Seminar, outlining essential questions that the course will address, the sequence of thematic units, and major reading and writing assignments
When candidates are accepted into the program, we ask them to contact the university where they obtained their most recent degree and have a transcript or certification of completion sent directly to the SAGES office.
Inquiries about the program are always welcome. Prospective fellows should send materials electronically to arthur.evenchik@case.edu. In employment,
as in education, Case Western Reserve
University is committed to affirmative
action and equal opportunity.
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