University of Michigan Seeks Professor in Indigenous North American History

The Department of History at the University of Michigan invites applications for an open-rank tenured or tenure-track position (Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor) in Indigenous North American History, 1500-1860 as part of the Provost’s Anti-Racism Hiring Initiative (ARHI).  This program intends to build community among scholars whose work is reshaping our understanding of race and racism in the United States and the world. They specifically seek a historian whose scholarship and teaching challenges the racial, social, and/or legal categories that constrain the visibility – or deny the existence – of Indigenous histories in North America. This is a university-year appointment with an expected start date of August 26, 2024.

The application deadline for full consideration is November 1, 2023, 11:59 p.m., Eastern Standard Time.

The ideal candidate will contribute to the intellectual vitality of the History Department and will work collaboratively with other faculty members hired through the ARHI’s interdisciplinary cluster on “Indigeneity, Race, and American Belonging in the United States” in Michigan’s Departments of American Culture, Anthropology, and the Law School. Applicants must have Ph.D. in hand or expected by July 1, 2024, preferably in history, Native American studies or a related field of inquiry.  

The department has a 2/2 teaching load. Areas of teaching responsibility include introductory, upper division, and graduate classes on Native American history; U.S. history surveys; courses on the colonial, revolutionary, or early national period; and other upper division courses in their area of specialization.  

Michigan’s Department of History has undertaken a number of initiatives intended to increase the range of perspectives and experiences within our unit and the larger field. These include recruitment and mentoring programs for prospective graduate students which both give access and reasons to want to attend Michigan; building new programs to train current graduate students for multiple career paths, including public facing scholarship; and community partnerships which expand the circle of people involved in discussions about the past. Additionally, the department remains committed to rigorous archival research and publishing individually and collectively. This candidate would therefore join an intellectual community in History and Native American Studies committed to anti-racist scholarship, service, and teaching that uncovers disparities, agency, and belonging from different vantage points.

Applicants must demonstrate evidence of excellence in teaching and research. Candidates who have experience working with a diverse range of people, and who can contribute to the climate of inclusivity and anti-racism are encouraged to identify their experiences in their cover letter.  Access additional information about the ARHI and the cluster.

Learn more about Michigan’s Native American Studies Program.

Learn more about Michigan’s Department of History.

Qualified persons should submit preliminary application documents as email attachments to [email protected] under the subject line “Native American History ARHI Position.”

Please include the following components (each submitted as a separate PDF file):

1. Cover Letter addressed to the Chair, Native American History Search Committee. Please be sure the cover letter includes: Your name and address; your email address and phone contact information.    
2. Curriculum Vitae    
3. Writing Sample (limit to 25 pages)

Persons whose applications are selected for further review will be individually asked to provide additional documents, including, but not limited to,: evidence of teaching excellence, a statement of teaching philosophy and experience, a diversity statement, additional writing, letters of recommendation, and a statement of current and future research plans.

Learn more on the AFS Career Center.