Assistant Professor of Horticulture

The Department of Plant Sciences in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at the University of California, Davis, is recruiting an Assistant Professor of Horticulture with a preferred emphasis in horticulture in nursery, greenhouse, or controlled environment crop production systems. This is an academic year (9-month), tenure track Assistant Professor position that includes an appointment in the California Agricultural Experiment Station (AES). Faculty members who hold an Agricultural Experiment Station appointment have a responsibility to conduct research and outreach relevant to the mission of the California Agricultural Experiment Station. Participation in outreach programs and performance of university service are also expected.

The appointee is expected to establish a competitively funded research program in any aspect of the rapidly emerging technologies around protected cultivation to 'complete control' and optimization of crop production and quality for food crops, ornamentals, and flowers. Novel horticultural research may include nursery, greenhouse or indoor crop production (CEA), floriculture, water, nutrient and light management, soilless and hydroponic production, and application of cellular, genomic, physiological and ecophysiological approaches to understand, manage and improve crop production in these systems. These crops include vegetable transplants, young orchard fruit, nut and citrus trees, berries, floricultural and landscape plants, and as such, this hire is open to a wide pool of horticultural scholars who will be able to develop a program within their own expertise of high relevance to California industry. The appointee will be responsible for teaching two undergraduate courses per year in horticulture, for example, ENH125 'Greenhouse and nursery crop production', ENH120, 'Management of container media' and PLS006, 'Flower Power', depending on the expertise of the candidate. This hire will also contribute to graduate advising and graduate student team teaching which includes teaching a protected cultivation module in the core graduate course HRT 200B 'Introduction to horticultural and agronomic cropping systems. Participation in and development of public outreach and/or community engagement programs and performance of departmental and university service is expected. This position is expected to collaborate with Cooperative Extension specialists and advisors, partners in allied industries or other appropriate public stakeholders, such as the California Center for Urban Horticulture, Foundation Plant Services and University of California Nursery and Floriculture Alliance. Candidates bringing a complementary skillset to UCD researchers are particularly welcome.

This recruitment is conducted at the assistant rank. The resulting hire will be at the assistant rank, regardless of the proposed appointee's qualifications.

The University of California is committed to creating and maintaining a community dedicated to the advancement, application, and transmission of knowledge and creative endeavors through academic excellence, where all individuals who participate in University programs and activities can work and learn together in a safe and secure environment, free of violence, harassment, discrimination, exploitation, or intimidation. With this commitment, UC Davis conducts a reference check on all first-choice candidates for Academic Senate Assistant Professor or Lecturer with Potential for Security of Employment, Steps 4, 5, or 6, or Acting Professor of Law positions. The reference check involves contacting the administration of the applicant's previous institution(s) to ask whether there have been substantiated findings of misconduct that would violate the University's Faculty Code of Conduct. To implement this process, UC Davis requires all applicants for any open search for assistant professor to complete, sign, and upload the form entitled "Authorization to Release Information" into RECRUIT as part of their application. If an applicant does not include the signed authorization with the application materials, the application will be considered incomplete, and as with any incomplete application, will not receive further consideration. Although all applicants for faculty recruitments must complete the entire application, only finalists considered for Academic Senate Assistant Professor or Lecturer with Potential for Security of Employment, Steps 4, 5, or 6, or Acting Professor of Law positions will be subject to reference checks.

UC Davis supports Family-friendly recruitments. UC Davis covers travel expenses for a second person to accompany an invited faculty recruitment candidate who is a mother (or single parent of either gender) of a breast or bottle-feeding child less than two years of age.
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UC Davis recognizes the necessity of supporting faculty with efforts to integrate work, family and other work-life considerations. To recruit and retain the best faculty, the campus sponsors a Work Life Program that provides programs and services that support faculty as they strive to honor their commitments to work, home and community. http://academicaffairs.ucdavis.edu/programs/worklife/index.html

UC Davis was ranked #1 in 2016 on Forbes Magazine list of the 13 most important STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) universities for women, and is actively seeking the U.S. Department of Education's "Hispanic Serving Institution" designation,. Davis celebrates the multi-cultural diversity of its student body by creating a welcoming and inclusive environment for students through such organizations and programs as the Center for African Diaspora Student Success; the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual Resource Center; Casa Cuauhtemoc Chicano-Latino Theme House; Asian Pacific American Theme House; ME/SA (Middle astern/South Asian) living-learning community; Multi- Ethnic Program (MEP); Chicano/Latino Retention Initiative; and Native American Theme Program.

The UC Davis Partner Opportunities Program (POP) is a service designed to support departments and deans' offices in the recruitment and retention of outstanding faculty. Eligibility for POP services is limited to full-time Academic Senate Ladder Rank faculty (including Lecturers with Security of Employment (LSOE), Lecturers with Potential Security of Employment (LPSOE), Senior Lecturers with Security of Employment (SLPSOE), and Cooperative Extension Specialists.

A. Ph.D. or equivalent degree in Plant Sciences, Horticulture or a related discipline at time of appointment.

B. Post doctoral experience preferred.
C. Evidence of leadership and organizational skills relevant to the development of a successful research, teaching and outreach program in the discipline of protected cropping horticulture.
D. Evidence of original scholarship during graduate and post-graduate activities.
E. Demonstrated ability or potential to obtain extramural support for research activities.
F. Interest, understanding, and commitment to contributing to diversity. Demonstrated ability to contribute to diversity and inclusion of groups that are underrepresented in the academy through extension education, research, and/or service would be a plus.
Statement of Contributions to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion will be assessed by their general quality and the candidates' awareness, contributions, and plans for future efforts related to diversity and inclusion.
G. Demonstrated ability or potential to develop and instruct undergraduate and graduate courses and to present information to scientific audiences.
H. Willingness and interest to advise undergraduates.
I. Demonstrated ability or potential and interest to mentor M.S. and Ph.D. students.
J. Evidence of communication skills and collegiality consistent with effective departmental, campus and professional citizenship.
K. Interest, understanding, and commitment to the objectives of a land-grant university and the Agricultural Experiment Station including mission-oriented research and a substantive outreach engagement programming.

• 4-6 required (contact information only)

UC Davis is a smoke and tobacco-free campus (http://breathefree.ucdavis.edu/).

We are an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity employer, and particularly encourage applications from members of historically underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, women, individuals' with disabilities, veterans, LGBTQ community members, and others who demonstrate the ability to help us achieve our vision of a diverse and inclusive community. For the complete University of California nondiscrimination and affirmative action policy see: http://policy.ucop.edu/doc/4000376/NondiscrimAffirmAct

Under Federal law, the University of California may employ only individuals who are legally able to work in the United States as established by providing documents as specified in the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. Certain UC Davis positions funded by federal contracts or sub-contracts require the selected candidate to pass an E-Verify check. More information is available at: http://www.uscis.gov/e-verify

The University of California, Davis (UC Davis) is committed to inclusive excellence by advancing equity, diversity and inclusion in all that we do. UC Davis celebrates the multi-cultural diversity of its community by creating a welcoming and inclusive environment demonstrated through a variety of resources and programs available to academics, staff, and students. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging are core values of UC Davis that are embedded within our Principles of Community and are tied with how to best serve our student population. Our excellence in research, teaching, and service can best be fully realized by members of our academic community who share our commitment to these values, which are included in our Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Vision, our strategic plan: "To Boldly Go," our Principles of Community, the Office of Academic Affairs' Mission Statement, and the UC Board of Regents Policy 4400: Policy on University of California Diversity Statement. UC Davis is making important progress towards our goal of achieving federal designation as a Hispanic-Serving Institution and an Asian American, Native American, and Pacific Islander-Serving Institution. The Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion offers a plethora of resources on their website, and the Office of Health Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (HEDI) has outlined similar goals in their Anti-Racism and DEI Action Plan." There are a plethora of links available on the About Us webpage where you can learn more about our Administration, Diversity and Inclusion, Rankings, Locations, Native American Land Acknowledgement, Sustainability, Visiting UC Davis, UC Davis Health, and Campus Safety.

The university is consistently ranked among the top institutions in the world for campus sustainability practices by the UI Green Metric World University Rankings. UC Davis is focused on achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions and repeatedly shown its commitment to preserving a healthy and sustainable environment for generations to come.

As a University employee, you will be required to comply with all applicable University policies and/or collective bargaining agreements, as may be amended from time to time. Federal, state, or local government directives may impose additional requirements.