On behalf of the Department of Chemistry at Willamette University I am pleased to announce a national search for a tenure track position in Biochemistry. I am writing specifically to encourage you to submit an application for this opening, and to tell you a
little bit about us and our values. Please read on for a brief introduction to the institution, to our department, and to the region in which we live. Willamette University: The College of Liberal Arts The College of Liberal Arts (CLA) at Willamette University is a community of roughly 2000 undergraduates and 150 faculty, dedicated to teaching, learning, and service. We hold dear the core values and goals of the liberal arts: that a meaningful education has not just depth, but breadth; that how you think is just as important as what you know; that vibrant intellectual relationships between faculty and students provide an ideal environment to explore and create knowledge; and, most importantly, that graduates leave our halls with the ability and motivation to make meaningful changes in our world. Chemistry at Willamette The students and faculty of the Department of Chemistry are a collection of distinct individuals – musicians, athletes, poets, painters, activists, and outdoor enthusiasts – brought together by a fascination with molecules. Our faculty are teachers and scholars, motivated not only by exploring our fields of research, but also
by sharing our knowledge with colleagues, students, and the community. Close working relationships are the norm: faculty collaborate both in the classroom and in research; small classes promote faculty-student interaction; and students bond over latenight study sessions in the Chemistry Hearth. We embrace the idea that science, at its heart, is a collective endeavor, and thus that a strong, supportive, and diverse community of teachers and learners is essential to our mission.
The Pacific Northwest We are fortunate to live, work, and play in and around Oregon’s beautiful Willamette Valley. The University is located in Salem, roughly the northsouth midpoint of the Valley and a perfect jumping-off point for exploring the region. The western edge of the Valley is defined by the mountains of the Coast Range, behind which lie the Pacific Ocean and ruggedly scenic Oregon Coast. The Cascade mountain range, to the east, separates the lush, fertile Valley from the arid, beautiful High Desert of central and Eastern Oregon. The Valley itself is a major center of agriculture – most prominently, many well-known vineyards producing award-winning wines – and is home to several mid-sized cities: Eugene, Corvallis, and Salem. Portland, Oregon’s major metropolitan area, is located 50 miles north of Salem – and offers thriving food, drink, and artistic scenes. A number of our faculty choose to live in the Portland area in order to take advantage of the array of cultural options in the city and its environs. STEM Fields at Willamette: Looking Forward This search represents an opportunity for us to welcome a colleague who will bring new ideas to campus, someone who will challenge and enrich our understanding of what it is to be a teacher-scholar in a liberal arts environment. In the past two years, tenure-track hires have been made in the Biology, Physics, and Environmental and Earth Sciences departments at Willamette. Our new Chemist in the subfield of Biochemistry will be a part of a cohort of ambitious, engaged colleagues, reinvigorating teaching and research programs across multiple fields.
Thank you for taking the time to learn a bit about us. If you have any questions at all, please feel free to get in touch with me (aduncan@willamette.edu, 503 370 6518) or my colleagues and co-chairs of our biochemistry search committee: Prof. Karen Holman (kholman@willamette.edu, 503 370 6417) and Prof. Chuck Williamson (jcwillia@willamette.edu, 503 370 6334).