Senior Director, Writing Programs (Department of English) (Associate/Full Professor, Tenured) Posting Number req27434
Department English
Department Website Link https://english.arizona.edu/
Location Tucson Campus
Address Tucson, AZ USA
Position Highlights The College of Social and Behavioral Sciences (SBS) and its Department of English invite applications for the position of Senior Director, Writing Programs, starting Fall 2027.
The successful candidate will have a distinguished record of scholarship and academic achievement, demonstrated leadership and administrative skills, and demonstrated commitment to collaboration and engagement with a broad range of scholars and stakeholders. As a faculty member, the candidate will be expected to maintain a strong and productive research program at University of Arizona, and national and international standing in their field; effectively mentor and advise graduate students, exhibit excellence in graduate and undergraduate teaching; and demonstrate commitments to service to the university and public engagement and outreach. The candidate will also help to develop innovative approaches to enhancing student engagement and expanding collaborations through community, state, and international interaction and outreach.
Review of applications will begin on November 30, 2026. Applications will be accepted until the position is filled. The Sr. Director of the Writing Programs (WP) provides leadership for the WP's curriculum, instructional faculty and graduate teaching assistants, staff, and students. Consistent with expectations for all SBS Heads and Directors, the Director is expected to build on the program's strengths in undergraduate writing education, support scholarship and professional growth, foster engagement across campus, provide effective stewardship of program resources, and cultivate a culture of belonging within the program.
The areas below describe core responsibilities and competencies. In each area, the Director works in collaboration with the WP Assistant, Associates, and area Directors (e.g., Online and Second Language Writing), WP staff, the English Department Head and Program Directors, and the SBS Dean's Office, practicing shared governance and consultative, transparent decision-making.
The Sr. Director will be expected to hold a tenured appointment at the level of Associate Professor or Professor in the Department of English with expertise in fields of Rhetoric, Composition and Teaching of English (RCTE) or Professional and Technical Writing (PTW) and should have an academic record commensurate with such an appointment.
Duties & Responsibilities 1.Program Leadership, Planning, and AdvocacyVisionand Strategic Planning: Advance a clear vision for thefuture of the WP and lead strategic planning for the program on a multi-year(ideally five-year) horizon, in alignment with English Department, SBS, andUniversity priorities. Initiate and facilitate the collection of data thatexplains the impact of WP practices beyond assessment of student learningoutcomes (for example, the effects of class size or Graduate Teaching Assistant(GTA) workload), and use that evidence to inform planning and decision-making.
Policiesand Governance: Create avenues for sharedgovernance within the WP. Oversee the development and periodic revision ofprogram policies and core documents, such as the Students' Guide,course descriptions, and syllabus templates, and ensure they are disseminatedclearly to instructors and students.
Hiring: Lead hiring for the WP, including chairing search committees forcareer-track faculty and staff positions, in coordination with the Dean'sOffice and English Department and in accordance with College and Universityhiring policies and processes.
Evaluations,Reviews, and Workload: Ensure timely and fair evaluationsand reviews in accordance with unit, College, University, and Arizona Board of Regentspolicies. This includes finalizing Annual Performance Review scores for WPfaculty, reporting results to the College and Department, and meeting withfirst-year faculty and any others who wish to discuss their reviews; conductingadministrative reviews of WP Assistant, Associate, and Full Directors; andconducting annual evaluations and Career Conversations with WP staff.
Mentoringand Professional Development: Support the professionalgrowth of WP faculty and staff. Coordinate career-track promotion committeesand write letters of support for WP faculty seeking promotion. Advise facultyinterested in Career-Track Faculty Professional Refresh, coordinate applications,and provide supporting letters.
Advocacy,Culture, and Belonging: Foster a productive and supportive program community. Advocate for WP staff, instructors, andadministrators at the department, College, and University levels on matters ofsalary, workload, working conditions, promotion, and equity, and promoteequitable processes and opportunities for growth.
Communicationand Conflict Resolution: Keep WP faculty, staff, and GTAsinformed, and communicate changes in WP positions, curriculum, administration,or awards to the English Department Head and Program Directors when they affectthe broader department. Report to the SBS Dean and Provost on the WP as needed.Serve as the final point of resolution for student and faculty concerns thatare not resolved by course directors or other directors.
Reporting: Prepare the WP annual report and other reports and self-studies asneeded (for example, Academic Program Review self-studies or reports on classsize changes).
2.Educational ExcellenceCurriculumand Instruction: Oversee the WP curriculum,including changes, approvals, maintenance, articulation, and instructortraining. Advocate for the conditions that best support teaching and learning,including classroom space, class size, appropriate curricular control and assessmentpractices, and connection to rhetoric and composition faculty in English. Incollaboration with the English Director of Undergraduate Studies and DepartmentHead, review new course proposals across campus for potential conflicts withEnglish or WP offerings.
EnrollmentManagement and Scheduling: Lead scheduling and enrollmentmanagement for the WP in collaboration with WP staff and Directors,coordinating with SBS Academic Affairs & Student Success to align courseofferings with student demand and College expectations.
Assessment: Hold final responsibility to the Provost's Office for the WP'sannual program-level outcomes assessment report, working with the WP'sdesignated assessment coordinator.
Placement: Oversee placement forincoming students into Foundations Writing.
StudentSuccess and Academic Integrity: Promote student success infoundational writing courses. Review and approve or deny grade change requestsfor WP courses and respond to grade appeals referred by the Dean's Office witha recommendation, handling all student matters within FERPA guidelines.
GraduateTeaching Assistants: Support a strong GTA teachingexperience in partnership with English graduate programs. Provide WP consultationon GTA extensions within available budget, refine that process in consultationwith Program Directors and department staff, and share updated information onGTA positions with Graduate Program Directors.
GeneralEducation: Serve as the General EducationFoundations Writing representative or assign a replacement.
3.Research and ScholarshipModelingSuccess: Maintain an active research and scholarly profile consistent withthe Director's 20% research allocation.
SupportingScholarship: Encourage WP faculty and GTAs topursue scholarly and professional opportunities, including research on writingand the scholarship of teaching and learning, and share relevant resources fromSBSRI and other campus offices. Use program data and assessment results tocontribute to knowledge about writing instruction.
4.Constituency RelationshipsDepartment: Represent the WP within the English Department by participating inProgram Directors' meetings and department events. Maintain regular dialoguewith instructional constituencies, meeting with English Graduate Unionrepresentatives and attending lecturer meetings at least once per semester torespond to questions and concerns.
Collegeand University: Participate in SBS Heads andDirectors meetings and campus HeadsUp meetings. Represent the WP in campusinitiatives and University-wide efforts (for example, strategic planning andGeneral Education discussions), ensuring the appropriate director is involvedwhere relevant, particularly for online instruction, international students,and GTAs.
CampusWriting Partnerships: Build and maintain relationshipswith other sites of writing on campus, including the Writing Center, Writing AcrossCurriculum initiatives, CATS athletics tutoring, and central student successinitiatives. Participate in annual Articulation Task Force and campus transferupdate meetings, together with the Assistant Director of Placement andAssessment, to support articulation and transfer pathways.
5.Fiscal Affairs and Resource DevelopmentResourceOversight: Manage WP resources, includinginstructional staffing, GTA positions, and space, ethically, prudently, andtransparently, in consultation with SBS Finance & Administration staff.Ensure responsible use of instructional resources through effective enrollmentmanagement and staffing within available funds.
Development: Identify opportunities to support the WP through external fundingor charitable giving, in collaboration with the SBS Development Office asappropriate.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities- Strong communication and interpersonal skills, including the ability to collaborate across constituencies, support shared governance, and address conflicts constructively.
- Demonstrated commitment to student success and to fostering a supportive working and learning environment.
Minimum Qualifications - An earned doctorate in rhetoric and composition, professional and technical writing, or a closely related field.
- A record of scholarship, teaching, and service sufficient for appointment with tenure at the rank of Associate or Full Professor in the University of Arizona Department of English, in Rhetoric, Composition and the Teaching of English or Professional and Technical Writing.
- Demonstrated administrative or leadership experience in a college or university writing program.
- Demonstrated experience teaching writing at the college or university level and contributing to writing curriculum development and assessment.
Preferred Qualifications - Experience supervising, evaluating, or mentoring writing instructors and supporting their professional development.
- Demonstrated ability and/or experience managing program resources, including instructional staffing, scheduling, or budgets.
- Experience leading a large or complex writing program serving students across multiple disciplines.
- Experience developing and implementing strategic plans and using program, enrollment, and assessment data to guide decisions.
- Experience with faculty and staff hiring, performance evaluation, workload allocation, and career-track faculty promotion.
- Experience preparing, mentoring, and supervising graduate teaching assistants in collaboration with graduate programs.
- Experience with writing placement, transfer articulation, and general education writing requirements.
- Experience supporting multilingual writers and writing instruction across in-person and online settings.
- Experience building partnerships with writing centers, writing across the curriculum initiatives, and other campus programs.
- A record of scholarship in writing program administration, writing pedagogy, writing assessment, or related areas.
- Experience navigating organizational change and advocating effectively for instructional quality, fair working conditions, and program resources.
- Experience securing external funding or developing philanthropic support for academic programs.
Rank To be Determined
Tenure Information Tenured (T)
FLSA Exempt
Full Time/Part Time Full Time
Number of 
