• Economic Development/Workforce Demand
  

  EWL requests 3-year terminal line, with possibility of renewal and/or upgrade to tenure line, for a Ph.D./AB.D in Spanish (preferred), French, or German (possible, in that order), with specialty in the pedagogy of language (not literature) instruction and delivery, and with experience (instructional and/or administrative) in translation/interpretation studies (T/IS), to fill a new position instituted in the current restructure. Primary responsibilities are 1) to weld the present disparate languages into a coherent, single unit capable of developing instruction in languages other than English into training programs targeting workforce needs in the expanding global economy; 2) to establish and develop a viable translation/interpretation studies (T/IS)component capable of placing UWF graduates in jobs in the public and private sectors upon graduation.

• Florida Board of Governors Areas of Strategic Emphasis      
  

  Languages and T/IS especially respond directly to two of the BOG's Areas of Strategic Emphasis: "Critical Workforce--Education" and "Economic Development--Global Competitiveness." Regionally, Spanish, French (Louisiana businesses and industries), and German (looking ahead to the German-led and German-supplied Airbus plant outside of Mobile) have strong potential for clear and emphatic impact. Moreover, with the addition of on-campus instruction in Chinese through the Confucius Institute, this position as Co-ordinator of Languages will provide outreach into the fastest-growing economic region on the planet.

• Accreditation Requirements
  

  Currently despite regular and ongoing instruction in French, German, Spanish, Japanese, Arabic, with intermittent instruction in Chinese and Portuguese, THERE IS NO Ph.D. involved PRIMARILY with instruction in ANY language at UWF. (Two are partially so employed: Allen Josephs, who teaches one section of Spanish 1, and the new Director of the Japan Center, whose duties are primarily administrative and community-oriented.) All remaining language instruction, in multiple sections, is taught by holders of the M.A. degree; all but one--Laura Arguea, an Instructor/Lecturer--as adjuncts. The entire program at UWF suffers from want of a trained professional, up-to-date with pedagogical best practices in language instruction. No one currently is able to plan/administer a T/IS program, although this is perhaps the most likely to have broad workforce and local/global competitiveness impact.

• Community/Visibility
  

  The presence of UWF graduates with polished language skills in high-visibility jobs such as nursing, manufacturing, the justice and court systems, international communication (print, video and internet)will only have a significant and highly visible impact in a state and an area of multilingual population, with a governor's office actively recruiting business connections in Europe and in Latin America. (To quote Rick Harper, in private conversation: "Don Gaetz sure wished he could speak German!") In addition--a T/IS program at UWF would attract students--and hence attention--from across the region and the nation,since there are only two such functioning programs in the Southeast.

Many of these are covered in sections above. In terms of quality: it is worth emphasizing that the immanent SACSCOC review will undoubtedly find cause to comment on the present disarray of languages, with decentralized administrations, multiple-unit reporting, dearth of trained, doctoral-equipped instructoral staff. In terms of online courses: clearly, one of the longer-term goals of the T/IS program (and languages generally) is to develop online capacity. This has been tested and proven workable with the Arabic program offered through the collaboration of Continuing Education and the Department of EWL. Ideally the person hired would expand this capacity in additional ways.

This request is for a three-year, terminal position with the POSSIBILITY of renewal at either the 3-year terminal or conversion to tenure-earning position. Success in the task(s) outlined above will be the determining factor. (N.B.: maintaining the POSSIBILITY of tenure-earning conversion will be critical in attracting top-notch candidates for what must be described as a large and demanding assignment.)

The Co-Ordinator of Languages (COL--a working title)will be responsible for 1) establishing a coherent, unified home for all languages and language-related instruction (e.g., T/IS) at UWF, including course planning, hiring, scheduling, and supervision of instructional staff; 2) developing and implementing a program in T/IS beginning with Spanish but with expectations /structures for growth; 3) teaching a maximum of two courses per semester (possibly a 2 + 1, depending on delineation of administrative responsibilities, to be determined later)in the language of expertise (Spanish, French, or Germa; EXPECTED: NEW COURSES IN T/IS); 4) taking part in the normal workload of committees, etc. expected of a UWF faculty member. The COL will report directly to the Chair of the Department of EWL, until such time as the languages can stand alone.

The position of COL does not exist currently; hence, it is not covered. Clearly those language classes in whatever language taught by the COL will replace language classes currently taught by adjuncts, with the exception of new courses in T/IS, as this program is initiated and developed.

Does not apply in relation to the requested COL position.

There is no graduate degree specialization in any language, nor is there any requested or projected.

* Does not include non-degree specializations (indicated with a † above)