Assistant/Associate Professor of Plant Disease Resistance

University of Florida•Gainesville, FL

2d•Onsite

About The Position

This is a 12-month tenure-accruing position that will be 20% teaching (College of Agricultural and Life Sciences), 80% research (Florida Agricultural Experiment Station) available in the Department of Plant Pathology, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, at the University of Florida in Gainesville. This assignment may change in accordance with the needs of the unit. Within their research appointment, the faculty member will develop an internationally recognized, externally funded program using contemporary methods to explore and improve genetic resistance of plant species to pathogens. The overarching goal is to understand plant resistance and susceptibility and to develop genetically improved plants for crop production, ecosystem restoration or other applications. Fundamental research may focus on naturally occurring molecular and biochemical mechanisms and/or the genetic architecture of plant resistance and tolerance to pathogens. Translational research may involve selection, breeding or engineering of new genetic lines of disease resistant plants of ecological, economical, or other societal importance. The faculty member will be expected to synergize their program with faculty in the Department of Plant Pathology and to explore collaboration opportunities with faculty in UF/IFAS Plant Breeding Working Group, the Crop Transformation Center, the Global Food Systems Institute, other units on campus and Research and Education Centers, government agencies, private, and non-profit organizations. Within the teaching appointment, the faculty member will develop and teach a course aligned with plant disease resistance at the graduate level and participate in teaching other formal courses at the graduate/undergraduate level. Graduate student mentorship is expected to be an integral component of the faculty members teaching and research program. The faculty member will actively participate in graduate education not only through formal teaching but also by serving on and chairing graduate committees, supervising thesis and dissertation research, supervising undergraduate research, and publishing results with graduate students and postdoctoral associates. Tenure will accrue in the Department of Plant Pathology. The faculty member will seek contract and grant funding actively to support their program. The faculty member will engage in Extension activities in their program area. The successful candidate will engage in scholarly activities related to instruction, including teaching undergraduate and/or graduate courses, advising and mentoring undergraduate and graduate students, participating in curriculum revision and enhancement, seeking funding for the teaching program, supervising undergraduate and graduate research and creative work, publishing teaching-related scholarship, producing learning tools, and engaging in professional development activities related to teaching and advising. Faculty are encouraged to support and participate in the CALS Honors Program, distance education, and international education. Because of the IFAS land-grant mission, all faculty are expected to be supportive of and engaged in all three mission areas—Research, Teaching and Extension—regardless of the assignment split specified in the position description.

Requirements

A doctorate (foreign equivalent acceptable) in Plant Pathology, Genetics or a closely related discipline.
Demonstrated skills in publication of peer-reviewed research.
Demonstrated verbal communication skills.
Demonstrated interpersonal relationship skills.
Demonstrated procurement of extramural funding.
The ability and desire to lead as well as work effectively within interdisciplinary teams.
Must be supportive of the mission of the Land-Grant system.
Must have a commitment to UF core values.

Nice To Haves

Experience in plant physiology, plant genomics, plant breeding, host/parasite interactions, and/or other aspects of plant health and genetics.
Quantitative analytical and molecular skills.
Postdoctoral experience.

Responsibilities

Develop an internationally recognized, externally funded research program using contemporary methods to explore and improve genetic resistance of plant species to pathogens.
Understand plant resistance and susceptibility and develop genetically improved plants for crop production, ecosystem restoration or other applications.
Focus fundamental research on naturally occurring molecular and biochemical mechanisms and/or the genetic architecture of plant resistance and tolerance to pathogens.
Conduct translational research involving selection, breeding or engineering of new genetic lines of disease resistant plants.
Synergize research program with faculty in the Department of Plant Pathology and explore collaboration opportunities with other units and organizations.
Develop and teach a graduate-level course aligned with plant disease resistance.
Participate in teaching other formal graduate/undergraduate courses.
Mentor graduate students as an integral component of the teaching and research program.
Actively participate in graduate education by serving on and chairing graduate committees, supervising thesis and dissertation research, and supervising undergraduate research.
Publish research results with graduate students and postdoctoral associates.
Seek contract and grant funding actively to support their program.
Engage in Extension activities in their program area.
Engage in scholarly activities related to instruction, including teaching undergraduate and/or graduate courses.
Advise and mentor undergraduate and graduate students.
Participate in curriculum revision and enhancement.
Seek funding for the teaching program.
Supervise undergraduate and graduate research and creative work.
Publish teaching-related scholarship.
Produce learning tools.
Engage in professional development activities related to teaching and advising.
Support and participate in the CALS Honors Program, distance education, and international education.
Be supportive of and engaged in all three mission areas—Research, Teaching and Extension.