Assistant Professor of English: Creative Writing Poetry

Working Title: Assistant Professor of English: Creative Writing Poetry

State Role Title: N/A

Position Type: Instructional / Teaching Faculty

Position Status: Full-Time

FLSA Status: Exempt: Not Eligible for Overtime

College/Division: College of Arts and Letters

Department: 100020 - English Department

Pay Rate: Commensurate with Experience

Specify Range or Amount:

Is this a JMU only position? No

Is this a grant-funded position? No

Is this a Conflict of Interest designated position? No

Beginning Review Date: 10/19/2025

About JMU:

Mission
We are a community committed to preparing students to be educated and enlightened citizens who lead productive and meaningful lives.

Vision
To be the national model for the engaged university: engaged with ideas and the world.

Who We Are
Located in the heart of Virginia's beautiful Shenandoah Valley, the city of Harrisonburg is approximately 120 miles from Washington, D.C. and Richmond, VA. With a population of just over 53,000, Harrisonburg is one of the most diverse communities in the Commonwealth of Virginia. JMU is a selective, public institution with a growing national reputation for offering experiences that lead to an outstanding education and inclusive environment for students, faculty and staff. The student body includes approximately 20,000 undergraduate and 1,900 graduate students, with over 1,000 full-time instructional faculty.

JMU offers thriving programs in the liberal arts, science and technology, and professional disciplines at the undergraduate, master's and doctoral levels. JMU has achieved national recognition for the high quality of its academic programs, focus on maintaining strong student/faculty interaction, and innovative faculty research.

General Information:

The Department of English at James Madison University invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professorship in Creative Writing Poetry, to begin August 2026.

The Department offers a B.A. and an M.A. in English and contributes to the university's General Education program. English houses the University's thriving Creative Writing minor, and our faculty teach in many interdisciplinary minors, including African, African American and Diaspora Studies; Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies; Queer Studies; Disability Studies; Environmental Humanities; Digital Humanities; Film Studies; Latin American, Latinx, and Caribbean Studies; and World Literature.

The College of Arts and Letters, in which the Department of English is located, enrolls over 3100 undergraduate majors and about 150 graduate students across ten academic units in the humanities, social sciences, and communication studies. Home to several interdisciplinary centers and institutes, the College employs 270 full-time faculty. We embrace the teacher-scholar model, and encourage excellent applicants within our particular disciplines, as well as scholars and teachers eager to work across them.

Duties and Responsibilities:

The successful candidate will be expected to teach introductory and advanced Creative Writing Poetry courses as well as special topics courses in the General Education curriculum. English faculty members do not teach freshman composition. This position carries a 3/2 teaching load and will come with one course release and a service exemption in the first year of appointment.

Qualifications:

Required:
* An MFA or PhD in Creative Writing, specializing in Poetry, in hand by August 2026
* Excellence in publishing poetry and/or scholarship on poetry
* Expertise or potential for excellence and innovation in teaching creative writing in poetry
and literature in other genres
* Expertise and potentially significant contributions to the fields of poetry, creative writing, and literary study

Additional Considerations:
* Some research and/or teaching expertise in global and diasporic studies, transatlantic and/or transnational studies, women's and gender studies, queer studies, medical humanities, disability studies, religious studies, digital humanities and/or poetics, docupoetry, or bookmaking

Additional Posting Information:

Applicants will complete a faculty profile and submit the following:
* A cover letter summarizing the candidate's writing, research, and teaching interests
* A curriculum vitae
* Evidence of teaching effectiveness (as Other Document #1). This may include course
syllabi, assignments, and summaries of course evaluations, if available.
* A sample of the candidate's poetry, 20-30 pages in length (Professional Writing Sample)
* Contact information for three references

Conditions of Employment:

Employment is contingent upon the successful completion of a criminal background check.

E-Verify Notice: After accepting employment, new hires are required to complete an I-9 form and present documentation of their identity and eligibility to work in the United States. James Madison University uses the E-Verify system to confirm identity and work authorization.

EEO Statement:

James Madison University is committed to creating and supporting a diverse and inclusive work and educational community that is free of all forms of discrimination. This institution does not tolerate discrimination or harassment on the basis of age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, genetic information, national origin, parental status, political affiliation, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation or veteran status.

We promote access, inclusion and diversity for all students, faculty, staff, constituents and programs, believing that these qualities are foundational components of an outstanding education in keeping with our mission. The university is interested in candidates whose experience and qualifications support an ongoing commitment to this core quality.

Anyone having questions concerning discrimination should contact the Office for Equal Opportunity: (540) 568-6991.

Reasonable Accommodation:

If you are an individual with a disability and need assistance searching or applying for jobs please contact us at (540) 568-3597 or jobs@jmu.edu. You may also visit the JMU Human Resource Office, located at 752 Ott Street, Harrisonburg, VA 22807 and we will be happy to assist you.