Job Details

The Department of Physics at the University of California, Santa Barbara, invites applications for the position of Academic Coordinator (AC) for the 2021-22 academic year, with the possibility of renewal to work on courses in general Physics or Astronomy, depending on performance and budget constraints. Applications will be kept active for consideration until the position is filled. The position requires the physical presence of the applicant in the Santa Barbara area.

Main duties will include the development, administration, coordination of courses in general physics both in-person and remote instruction. In addition to these basic responsibilities, this appointment entails quick and flexible responses to educational obstacles in a fast-paced environment.

Course Administration
The AC performs administrative functions for the UCSB Physics Department, serving as a key contact for Instructors of Record as well as undergraduate students, TAs, UCSB faculty, staff, and the off-campus community. The AC oversees the coordination and implementation of all instructional activities, and is responsible for budgetary planning and roster organization for a wide range of courses with anywhere from 20 to 400 students. Some of the course administration responsibilities of the AC include, but are not limited to:

• Budget and equipment management
• Managing the TA roster and Gauchospace (Moodle) Webpage for each course
• Oversight of TAs including training and instruction quality
• Facilitating communication between TAs, staff, faculty
• Direct involvement with day-to-day course execution, such as dropping in and Assisting with curriculum completion and questions beyond the scope of TA expertise
• Furthermore, the AC serves as a mediator between students and faculty in lower division courses, providing helpful and timely feedback regarding administrative details, material and room availability, and additional technical support.

Instructional Lab Group
The AC is a core member of the UCSB Physics Department's Instructional Lab Group (ILG). The ILG is in charge of development, maintenance and administration of all undergraduate instructional laboratories and the associated coursework. AC responsibilities within the ILG include, but are not limited to, working both independently and also with other faculty & staff to:

• Author new and exciting in-person and remotely accessible laboratory experiences
• Update current material to reflect changing standards in physics education
• Equipment maintenance and distribution for remote courses
• Content creation, such as instructional videos, online lab manuals and similar media
• Prototype and test new experiments for a wide variety of physics subdisciplines
• Application of web development skills to build simulations, web microcontrollers, and applets for students.

Salary is based on UC salary scales and depends on qualifications.

The department is especially interested in candidates who can contribute to the diversity and excellence of the academic community.

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

As a condition of employment, you will be required to comply with the University of California SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) Vaccination Program Policy https://policy.ucop.edu/doc/5000695/SARS-CoV-2_Covid-19. All Covered Individuals under the policy must provide proof of Full Vaccination or, if applicable, submit a request for Exception (based on Medical Exemption, Disability, and/or Religious Objection) or Deferral (based on pregnancy) no later than the applicable deadline. For new University of California employees, the applicable deadline is eight weeks after their first date of employment. (Capitalized terms in this paragraph are defined in the policy.)