Assistant Professor

Texas A&M University System • El Paso, TX

22h • Onsite

About The Position

Texas A&M AgriLife Research seeks an outstanding, innovative, and dynamic research faculty member in Nutrition at the rank of Assistant Professor. This appointment will be 12 months, non-tenured, 100% Research, and administratively located at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research Center at El Paso. In addition, this position will be affiliated with the Department of Nutrition within the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M University, College Station, TX. The applicant will work closely with other scientists within the department, Texas A&M University, and Texas A&M AgriLife Research to build a highly impactful, externally funded, nationally recognized, and self-sustainable research program. We are looking for an individual who will develop and maintain a robust research program investigating 1) the influence of various regenerative agricultural/processing techniques and production/processing inputs (e.g., organic, hydroponics, algae treatment, fertilizer treatment, etc.) on the nutritional value of food; and/or 2) consumer preferences and nutrition quality perceptions of food products grown using various regenerative agricultural/processing techniques and production/processing inputs. The successful candidate will work closely with faculty at Texas A&M AgriLife Research Center at El Paso , engaging in soil quality, water conservation, and horticulture research related to local crops such as pecans, pistachios, and peppers. The successful candidate may also work with existing public health nutrition faculty and agricultural economics faculty to study consumer preferences and perceptions.

Requirements

• Ph.D. in agricultural economics, economics, or related fields.
• Demonstrated basic knowledge of cost benefit analysis, market analysis, and environmental economic impact analysis as they relate to a subset of the above problem areas.
• Ability and commitment to conduct production, market, and environmental economic evaluations.
• Commitment to working in an interdisciplinary team approach to cooperatively do economic evaluation of innovative research and report results in professional, industry, and extension contexts.
• Capability in designing and conducting cooperative applied production, market, and environmental economic evaluation research on research innovations in an interdisciplinary setting.
• Capable of participating in efforts to secure external funding.
• Capable of producing high quality scholarly publications.
• Interpersonal skills to establish effective communication and working relationships with AgriLife Research and Extension scientists, staff, faculty, administration, and external contacts.
• Experience developing peer-reviewed publications as first-author.
• Experience communicating research findings to a variety of audiences.
• Experience working in interdisciplinary research teams.
• Record of peer-reviewed publications of original research.
• Valid drivers’ license/ability to obtain a valid driver’s license.

Nice To Haves

• Prior academic, post-doctoral, or professional experience.
• Experience with practical economic evaluation regarding production, market, and environmental implications of research innovations developed by interdisciplinary teams.
• Experience in reporting of such evaluations to various audiences.
• Knowledge of issues associated with more than one of the focus areas.
• Familiarity with Texas agricultural systems.
• Exposure to community impact assessment.
• Experience with grant writing to seek and/or obtain external funding.
• Experience working with producers, processors, or consumers to understand their perspectives.
• Experience working with federal agencies or in other multi-agency collaborative settings.
• Modest teaching experience that will enhance graduate student success.
• Modest outreach experience with stakeholder interaction.
• Grant writing experience and evidence of the ability to attract external funding.
• Experience mentoring undergraduate students, graduate students, and/or post docs.

Responsibilities

• Must develop a research program addressing research advances in one or more of the following focus areas: Economic analysis of various regenerative agricultural/processing techniques and production/processing inputs (e.g., organic, hydroponics, algae treatment, fertilizer treatment, etc.) Consumer preferences for foods grown with various regenerative agricultural/processing techniques and production/processing inputs (e.g., organic, hydroponics, algae treatment, fertilizer treatment, etc.) Consumers’ nutrition quality perceptions of food products grown using various regenerative agricultural/processing techniques and production/processing inputs.
• Must be able to conduct and report economic analyses addressing production, marketing, sustainability, and environmental impacts of research developments addressing issues in one or more of the focus areas.
• Must participate on interdisciplinary teams with faculty in the AgriLife Research and Extension Centers (see the list at https://agriliferesearch.tamu.edu/research-centers/) and where appropriate the Texas A&M University main campus and other system campuses.
• Must be able to participate in efforts to compete aggressively for federal, state, commodity group, and other competitive funding in focus and related research areas.
• Must publish research results in peer-reviewed journals.
• Must present research findings at national and international conferences.
• Must train and mentor current and next-generation scientists, including students and Postdocs.
• Must support Extension Specialists in the AgriLife Research and Extension Center network in developing educational materials related to research evaluations and projected/realized outcomes.
• Must serve as an advisor to graduate students and secure external funding to support graduate assistantships.
• Expected to develop working relationships with relevant industry, and commodity groups and where appropriate participate in industry and professional meetings.
• Expected to serve on unit, department, agency, and university committees as appropriate.
• Occasional travel required to participate in meetings and conduct research programs plus support related outreach.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• Health, dental, vision, life and long-term disability insurance with Texas A&M AgriLife contributing to employee health and basic life premiums
• 12-15 days of annual paid holidays
• Up to eight hours of paid sick leave and at least eight hours of paid vacation each month
• Automatic enrollment in the Teacher Retirement System of Texas
• Employee Wellness Initiative for Texas A&M AgriLife

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree