Description

Open Rank Position in Black Digital Studies 

 The Department of Black Studies and the Frederick Douglass Institute at the University of Rochester invite applications for an open rank position in Black Digital Studies. The Department is interested in exceptional applicants whose research and teaching focuses on the relationship between Black Studies and Digital Studies with a social science emphasis. The Department is seeking to hire a scholar whose work demonstrates a deep commitment to understanding how digital technologies intersect with structures of power, race, and gender. We are interested in applicants whose research and teaching moves beyond representation to consider the epistemological nature of digital technologies and the relationship between the digital and the construction of Blackness. 

 We are interested in a scholar working in areas that may include (but not limited) the following:

•      Algorithmic oppression, bias, and racism (i.e., health, education, criminal justice system) 
•      AI, race, and questions of the human 
•      AI, eugenic infrastructures, and racism 
•      Black digital studies and approaches to technofascism 
•      Intersections between Black digital studies and Black game studies 
•      Virtual reality and other immersive technologies (VR, AR, XR) 
•      Robotics, machine bias, and racism 
•      Data ethics and practices  
•      Data justice and digital democracy 
•      AI and African and/or Black language models  
•      Black digital studies/technologies and the environment 
•      GIS, and geospatial analysis, visualizing, and mapping technologies and techniques 
•      Black feminist digital studies  
•      Black digital studies, health, and medicine 
•      Black digital archives and scholarly approaches to digital archiving practices 
•      Network analysis and text mining
•      Inequality and Digital Access
•      Behavioral economics and digital life

Successful candidates will be trained in social science theories and methodologies including, but not limited to, digital ethnography, text mining, web scraping, word frequency analysis, and other qualitative and quantitative methods in Digital Studies. We are particularly interested in scholars trained in Black Studies and who bring new inter-and multi-disciplinary perspectives to Digital Studies within US and/or African Diaspora, which includes Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean.

The department seeks a scholar who has a strong record of publication, teaching, and service. We seek a scholar who is committed to the field of Black Studies and who has a demonstrated commitment to mentorship at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. 

The University of Rochester is committed to identifying scholars doing path-breaking research on Blackness that will enhance the university’s strategic direction in this area. Though this position is 100% in Black Studies, we are particularly interested in applicants who can forge cross-campus collaborations with other academic programs and community partners, and scholars who will lead the development of curricula and programming in Black Digital Studies across the University.

We are open to candidates with a Ph.D. in any Social Science discipline, including Black Studies, Africana Studies, African Studies, Anthropology, Sociology, Economics, Pschology, Political Science, Geography, Communication Studies, Information Sciences, History, Environmental Studies, Health, Economics, Political Science, Social Work, Linguistics, Computer Science, Urban Studies and/or Planning, etc. 

The term of appointment is expected to begin on July 1, 2026. Review of applications will begin on December 19.  

Salary Range (accounts for disciplinary differences, market competitiveness, and candidate experience): 

• Assistant Professor           (90, 000-160,000) 
• Associate Professor          (115,000-250,000) 
• Full Professor                     (135,000-390,000) 

Interested candidates should submit applications via Interfolio, https://apply.interfolio.com/177985, by January 2, 2026. The dossier should include: 

 Assistant Professor: 

PhD must be in hand by July 1, 2026, for appointment at this rank.

•  Cover letter that describes candidate’s research agenda, overview of teaching experience and pedagogical practice, and commitment to interdisciplinary/multi-disciplinary research. 
•  Curriculum vitae 
•  Writing sample (20-30 pages) 
•  Names and contact information for three letter writers  

Associate and Full Professor: 

•  Cover letter that describes candidate’s research agenda, overview of teaching experience and pedagogical practice, evidence of curriculum development and programming specific to Black Digital Studies, and commitment to interdisciplinary/multi-disciplinary research. 
•   Curriculum vitae 
•   Names and contact information for three letter writers 

For more information about The Frederick Douglass Institute and Department of Black Studies, please visit the departmental website https://www.sas.rochester.edu/aas/, or contact the chair of the search committee, Jordache A. Ellapen, jellapen@UR.Rochester.edu.