Valade Family Endowed Chair in Studio Art and Craft

CCS•Detroit, MI

11h•Onsite

About The Position

The College for Creative Studies (CCS) seeks an exceptional practicing artist and educator to provide academic and creative leadership for its Studio Art & Craft program. This endowed program leadership role leads Studio Art & Craft and reports to the Division Chair of Studio Art, Craft & Interdisciplinary Art + Design. The program spans Ceramics, Drawing, Fibers and Textiles, Glass, Metalsmithing and Jewelry, Painting, Performance, Print Media, Sculpture, Digital Fabrication, and Digital Media. The Chair works with faculty to strengthen these disciplines, evolve the curriculum, recruit and support students, and sustain the program’s distinctive role in a CCS education. The Chair also develops opportunities for collaboration across art, design, media, technology, and other creative fields, while keeping the needs, resources, and disciplinary depth of Studio Art & Craft majors central. The position stewards Valade Family Endowed resources supporting creative research, visiting artists and practitioners, exhibitions and programming, interdisciplinary initiatives, and distinctive opportunities for students and faculty. The appointment is full-time, with a 2:2 teaching load and a Program Chair stipend. It is a calendar-year leadership appointment, requiring appropriate oversight of program operations throughout the year, including summer programming and academic planning, in coordination with the Division Chair. The Chair supervises Studio Art and Craft faculty and adjunct instructors. Candidates must hold a terminal degree (MFA or doctorate) or demonstrate equivalent professional experience in visual art, craft, design, or a related field. They must have at least five years of full-time college teaching experience and demonstrated academic, curricular, or program leadership. The successful candidate will bring significant creative and professional accomplishment, excellence in teaching, deep disciplinary expertise, intellectual curiosity, and a collaborative vision for the future of Studio Art & Craft.

Requirements

Terminal degree (MFA or doctorate) or professional experience in visual art, craft, design, or a related field equivalent to a terminal degree.
At least five years of full-time college teaching experience.
Demonstrated experience providing academic, curricular, or program leadership.
Sustained record as a practicing artist and/or maker, evidenced by exhibitions, commissions, publications, collections, residencies, awards, or other professional recognition.
Excellence in college-level teaching and ability to engage, challenge, and mentor emerging artists and makers and early-career faculty.
Deep expertise in one or more Studio Art & Craft disciplines and broad engagement with contemporary art, craft, material practices, technologies, and evolving forms of making.
Experience strengthening curriculum and academic programs, supporting student recruitment, and fostering experimentation, rigor, and high expectations for student work.
Collaborative, forward-looking leadership approach and ability to build multidisciplinary relationships.

Nice To Haves

Experience connecting traditional and contemporary modes of making with sustainability, digital fabrication, emerging technologies, community-engaged practice, creative entrepreneurship, preservation, or other emerging areas.
Experience fostering a practice-led research culture that leads to disseminated outputs.
Experience in community engagement.

Responsibilities

Provide academic and creative leadership for Studio Art & Craft, strengthening its disciplines while supporting experimentation and new directions in contemporary art, craft, materials, technologies, and making.
Serve as the program’s primary content-area expert and work with faculty and the Division Chair to advance curriculum and identify faculty, facility, resource, and program needs.
Lead curriculum development with faculty, balancing disciplinary rigor and technical mastery with experimentation, emerging practices, and new opportunities for students.
Lead student recruitment in partnership with Enrollment Services, faculty, students, and alumni, communicating the program’s distinctive value and opportunities.
Support student success through mentoring, faculty connections, visiting artists and makers, exhibitions, experiential learning, and professional practice opportunities.
Build relationships with graduates and alumni to strengthen the program and support recruitment, professional connections, and opportunities for current students.
Champion making, materials, craft, and hands-on creative practice within the program and across CCS.
Develop collaborations across CCS that apply Studio Art & Craft expertise in materials, processes, fabrication, and making to cross-college student and faculty work.
Lead the development of Artisan Trades, connecting traditional craft and material knowledge with contemporary making, fabrication, and evolving professional practices.
Steward Valade Family Endowed resources to support creative research, visiting artists and practitioners, exhibitions, programming, and opportunities for students and faculty.
Cultivate relationships with artists and makers, cultural institutions, creative industries, community organizations, and other partners to expand the program’s reach, visibility, and opportunities.
Oversee Studio Art & Craft operations throughout the calendar year, including summer programming and academic planning, in coordination with the Division Chair.