Assistant Professor of Urban Education

Metropolitan State University • Minneapolis, MN

3d

About The Position

Metro State University, a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System, is seeking to hire an Assistant Professor of either Urban Elementary Education and/or Urban Special Education which includes teaching, program coordination, and advising among other responsibilities . This is a full-time, probationary, tenure-track position within the School of Urban Education and will start on August 17, 2026. Description of College/School/Unit: The School of Urban Education and its Urban Teacher Program has a rich history of nearly 25 years. We offer nine undergraduate and seven graduate programs, and have approximately 400 students enrolled in these programs who bring a wealth of personal and professional experiences to their studies as post-traditional learners. The School is the most racially and ethnically diverse teacher preparation unit in Minnesota with two-thirds of all teacher candidates being from BIPOC communities as well as a majority 11 full-time faculty and staff. Approximately 110 students are majoring and enrolled in the Urban Elementary Education program, and approximately 75 are majoring and enrolled in the Urban Special Education undergraduate or graduate program. The faculty are committed to and inspired by our students, and anchored in their fields of expertise with various forms of scholarly activity that contribute to the knowledge base in their fields. The School of Urban Education takes pride in working in partnership with both PreK-12 schools and community organizations that are stakeholders towards achieving our mission. The mission of the School of Urban Education is twofold: (1) To increase the number of well-prepared teachers of color in Minneapolis, St. Paul and surrounding suburbs so that the urban teaching workforce reflects the ethnically diverse population of preK-12 students and their communities; and (2) To empower all teacher candidates to become urban teachers with the content knowledge, pedagogical skills, urban field experiences, and professional dispositions needed to improve the educational achievement of historically and currently underserved urban learners and to advocate for their right to receive a high quality education. The School of Urban Education is embedded on the campus of Minneapolis College. For more information, visit our website at https://www.metrostate.edu/academics/urban-education .

Requirements

• A master’s degree in Elementary Education or Special Education, with enrollment in a doctoral program in a closely related field. Doctoral program must be successfully completed within 5 years to meet the requirement for tenure.
• Three (3) or more full-time years of licensed elementary education and/or special education teaching experience in an urban school in the U.S.
• Demonstrated potential for success in teaching and professional service activities.
• A plan for scholarly activity, creative achievement, and/or research in the specified discipline(s), or related disciplines.
• Effective Communication skills (written & verbal) to communicate with a variety of persons and groups.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively in an institution with a culturally, economically, and linguistically diverse workforce and student population.
• Demonstrated ability and desire to work collegially with faculty and staff from diverse cultural backgrounds.

Nice To Haves

• A completed terminal degree (i.e., PhD, EdD) in Elementary Education or Special Education or closely related field in education.
• Five or more years of full-time teaching experience in urban schools in the U.S.
• Demonstrated effectiveness teaching at a post-secondary level.
• Professional development and/or Expertise in culturally responsive pedagogy, anti-racist pedagogy, and/or universal design.
• Experience developing course curricula at a post-secondary institution.
• Experience effectively coordinating programs (e.g., designing, organizing, managing, overseeing, collaborating, problem-solving, strengthening, growing) to meet program, partnership and community-based needs in the K-12 system.
• Demonstrated organizational, time management, communication and collaborative leadership skills with colleagues and internal/external partners needed to effectively manage, grow and support the continuous development of urban education licensure programs for teacher candidates.
• Experience leading program continuous improvement and state accreditation efforts.
• Demonstrated use of current educational technology platforms or tools that diversify and support the learning experiences for K-12 students.
• Demonstrated contributions to assessment of student learning at a post-secondary institution.
• Experience as an academic advisor for students at post-secondary institution.
• Experience writing, securing and administering grants.

Responsibilities

• Demonstrate the ability to teach Urban Elementary Education and/or Urban Special Education courses effectively to a post-traditional student population and contribute to meaningful assessment of student learning.
• Coordinate and manage either the Urban Elementary Education or Urban Special Education licensure program with collaboration skills that will further strengthen and grow these programs with colleagues and stakeholders.
• Curriculum development in urban elementary education and/or urban special education programs that are aligned to state licensure standards
• Teaching in BS and MS programs
• Teach in-person and distance education courses as needed by the department, college, or university
• Contribute meaningfully to the assessment of student learning at program and institutional levels.
• Engage in scholarly activity, creative achievement, and/or research.
• Provide evidence of continuing preparation and study.
• Contribute to student growth and development through advising and assistance.
• Engage in service to the university and community.
• Demonstrate a commitment to serving a diverse student body by delivering a student-centered education and using approaches that support equitable outcomes for all students.
• Provide excellent learning environments through in-person online, and/ or hybrid course modalities.
• Work regularly from the campus where the School of Urban Education office suite is located in ways that result in frequent opportunities for effective, in-person meetings and collaborative engagement with colleagues and students as an instructor, advisor and program coordinator; some work involves attending other meetings at other university campuses or in the community.

Benefits

• Our generous benefits include 11 paid Holidays, Vacation Time, Sick Time, six weeks of Paid Parental Leave, low cost medical and dental insurance with low deductibles ($250 - $1500), a Pension Plan, 457(b) and 403(b) retirement plans and other retirement investment options, pre-tax medical and dental expense (with roll-over option) and dependent care accounts, employer paid life insurance, short and long term disability, as well as professional development and a tuition waiver program for employees and their dependents, etc.
• We promote the health and well-being of our employees and take work/life balance seriously.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees