Opportunities

VL2 Seeking Science Director

The Center for Visual Language and Visual Learning (VL2) is seeking a Science Director to lead a large collaborative effort in research involving visual language and visual learning. The ultimate goal of VL2 is to gain new understandings that will improve the education of Deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals, as well as contribute to transforming the science of learning.

VL2 is a Science of Learning Center (SLC), one of six SLCs funded by the National Science Foundation. The purpose of VL2 is to gain an improved understanding of the biological, cognitive, linguistic, socio-cultural, and pedagogical conditions that influence the acquisition of language and knowledge through the visual modality. Funded in 2006, the VL2 Center currently supports over 30 interdisciplinary research projects, located across 10 different universities, including two international universities. The VL2 Center's budget is approximately $4 million per year; next year we will submit our renewal application for an additional five years of Center funding (2011-2016).

The VL2 research center is headquartered at Gallaudet University, the world leader in liberal education and career development for deaf and hard-of-hearing undergraduate students. The University enjoys an international reputation for the outstanding graduate programs it provides deaf, hard-of-hearing, and hearing students, as well as for the quality of the research it conducts on the history, language, culture, and other topics related to deaf people.

We are seeking a Science Director who will bring an established agenda of ground-breaking research to the Gallaudet Campus and the VL2 center in an area that is compatible with the ongoing work of VL2. The Science Director will work alongside the Principal Investigator in overseeing the scientific activities of the Center. Having adopted a shared governance model, the Science Director will work closely with the VL2 Center's Scientific Management Team and Affiliated Researchers to ensure that the scientific achievements of the Center are of the highest caliber and consistent with the evolving theoretical framework of the Center.

We invite you to browse our VL2 Center website to learn more details about the stimulating research and educational activities of our Center (http://vl2.gallaudet.edu). Briefly, the VL2 Center Research Initiatives include: 1) Visual Language Acquisition and Socialization; 2) Inter-language Mapping, Bilingualism, and Literacy; 3) Linguistic and Communicative Forms in the Visual Modality; and 4) Neurocognitive Foundations for Vision in Language and Communication. Organizational Initiatives include: 5) Research-Practice Integration; 6) Diversity; and 7) Mechanisms of Center Infrastructure.

As a tenure-line faculty member of Gallaudet University, the new Science Director will also play an integral role in the educational activities of VL2 and the University promoting the scholarly and professional development of deaf and hard-of-hearing researchers. This exceptional leader will actively contribute to University efforts to realize an increased level of research and knowledge creation, as mandated in Gallaudet University?s recently adopted Strategic Plan. The position will entail an academic appointment to an approipriate department at Gallaudet.

Qualifications
The new Science Director, a mid to senior career-level individual, must have a PhD. or equivalent in Linguistics, Psychology, Education, Cognitive Neuroscience or related field; a distinguished record of research publications and of grant funding; experience in center-based research activities, and a commitment to collaborative, inter-disciplinary, team-based research. Also essential is first or second language fluency in ASL and knowledge of Deaf culture.

This outstanding scholar must want:

- To lead an exceptional group of scholars who conduct their science in a collaborative, bilingual (ASL/English), and Deaf-friendly research community

- To continue building a scientific agenda that has the primary aim of understanding language and learning through visual means, and promoting new scientific breakthroughs that arise from the interdisciplinary perspectives and research efforts contributed by both Deaf and hearing scholars.

- To represent our Center?s scientific accomplishments to multiple audiences including Officers and Staff of the National Science Foundation, the community of researchers, the Gallaudet community, the Deaf community, and administrators, educators, and students in Deaf Education settings.

The search committee anticipates beginning its review of applications on August 1, 2009. The review of applications will remain open until the position is filled.

Gallaudet University serves deaf and hard-of-hearing students from many different backgrounds and seeks to develop a workforce that reflects the diversity of its student body. Gallaudet is an equal employment opportunity/affirmative action employer and actively encourages deaf and hard-of-hearing persons, members of traditionally underrepresented groups, people with disabilities, women, and veterans to apply for open positions.

The formal position announcement appears in the attacehd PDF file

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The is material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under grant number SBE-0541953. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.