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Professor (Associate/Full) in Precision Health and Environment
Joint Position the University of Tennessee Health Science
Center, College of Medicine, Knoxville (UT Graduate School of
Medicine), and the University of Tennessee College of
Veterinary Medicine, Knoxville
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville is searching for
faculty to strengthen the university’s position as a global
leader in Precision Health and Environment computational
science research. Recruitment into Precision Health &
Environment creates opportunities to build bold agendas that
advance big ideas. The successful candidate will join a team
of approximately 35 established and successful faculty with
shared and complementary research interests in artificial
intelligence (AI), health informatics, health information and
communication, epidemiology, environmental engineering,
systems modeling, natural language processing, and machine
learning and a strong desire to grow the scholarly and
educational impact of their work. For early career faculty,
the cluster also offers a unique framework for professional
development and mentorship within a rich transdisciplinary
environment.
Therefore, the University of Tennessee Health Science Center,
College of Medicine, Knoxville (UTHSC-COMK) and the University
of Tennessee, Knoxville’s College of Veterinary Medicine (UTCVM)
seek an exceptional candidate to fill a Professor or Associate
Professor, tenure-track position as part of the
university-level Precision Health and Environment (PHE:
https://phe.utk.edu)
cluster hiring initiative. This 12-month tenure-track research
faculty position will be located in Knoxville, with a joint
appointment in the UTHSC-COMK and UTCVM.
The ideal candidate for this position has a collaborative
mindset and prioritizes working with colleagues at both
UTHSC-COMK and UTCVM to realize shared research and
educational achievements, including large-scale proposals,
joint publications, and new transdisciplinary curricular
programming.
Precision Health and Environment (PHE)
is part of the “It Takes a Volunteer” cluster hiring
initiative at the University of Tennessee Knoxville.
https://provost.utk.edu/it-takes-a-volunteer-2023-2025-cluster-hiring-initiative/.
The PHE hires will work collaboratively as a team of
excellence in artificial intelligence (AI), health
informatics, health information and communication,
epidemiology, environmental engineering, systems modeling,
natural language processing, and machine learning to create a
nationally prominent program leading in this field. The PHE
team will address health-related problems, applying artificial
intelligence to health data (electronic health records,
genomics, environmental) and including environmental and other
data that show promise and offer insights toward precision
health to make people’s lives better. As part of this
institutional priority initiative, new hires will join a
dynamic community of established scientific collaborators
having complementary experience and a shared interest in
building a national reputation for excellence and innovation
in PHE. The PHE members will work together to grow the
University’s reputation in PHE through collaborative grant
proposals, publications, and innovative new curricular
programming. UTK currently has experts conducting research in
personal and population health including environmental and
biomedical research, and use of artificial intelligence and
machine learning to improve health outcomes.
The University of Tennessee Knoxville works in collaboration
with the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC),
the UT Medical Center (UTMC), and Oak Ridge National
Laboratory (ORNL). Using the One Health philosophy, PHE will
work with clinical experts and data from electronic health
records, digitized biobank data, and environmental data to
answer critical questions about the link between exposure to
environmental conditions and human health at multiple levels
including a wide range of health disorders such as
vector-borne diseases, infectious and zoonotic diseases, and
conditions including cardiac, respiratory, mental health, and
cancer, among others. This builds on UT’s strengths in
domain-specific data collection, analysis and modeling, and
decision-making. The cluster will integrate campus expertise
in community engagement and enhance UT’s capacity to study the
connections between environment and human health and wellness
through advanced data analytics and precision health. The new
hires are encouraged to contribute to the AI Tennessee
Initiative (https://research.utk.edu/oried/research-innovation-initiatives/ai-tennessee-initiative/).
The AI Tennessee Initiative is a new research and education
initiative focused on the State of Tennessee’s unique AI
strengths and opportunities. Led by the University of
Tennessee, Knoxville, this Precision Health & Environment
initiative will engage with academic, industry, and community
partners across Tennessee to leverage the benefits of AI
across all disciplines and economic sectors, including
precision health and environment.
Professor (Associate/Full) of PHE Description
The ideal candidate for this position has a collaborative
mindset and prioritizes working with colleagues at both
UTHSC-COMK and UTCVM to realize shared research and
educational achievements, including large-scale proposals,
joint publications, and new transdisciplinary curricular
programming. This unique opportunity may include joint
appointments in other participating departments. As
Tennessee’s flagship land-grant institution, UTK is
particularly interested in recruiting candidates who are
deeply connected to the organizations and communities in which
their work will have translational impact, as well as those
who will contribute to a climate that values access and
engagement. Review of applications will begin on 04/15/2025
and continue until the position is filled. This position
reports jointly to the deans of UTHSC-COMK and UTCVM. The
specific details of the appointment will be determined in
consultation with the incoming professor and these details
will inform/determine their specific academic department for
tenure/promotion reviews.
The PHE position has responsibilities in the following areas:
Research:
Lead and coordinate the pursuit of interdisciplinary research
grants within the PHE initiative, including serving as the PI
when appropriate. Ideally these efforts will lead to the
creation of externally funded research centers within the PHE
space;
Leadership:
Work collaboratively with faculty and administration to
further shape and enhance precision health and environmental
research and discovery at UTHSC-COMK and UTCVM;
Ecosystem:
Attract and retain rising and leading faculty in precision
health and environment; develop and sustain an inclusive and
supportive research environment for the PHE team and those in
related fields that may foster convergence; forge and foster
team science and create opportunities for faculty and students
to engage in globally relevant, cutting-edge research and
discovery;
Academics:
Support and promote an innovative interdisciplinary PHE
curriculum including mentoring students and trainees and
facilitating mentored research;
Engagement & Advancement:
Grow and sustain community and industry relationships; work
with university leadership and advancement as needed;
Organizational Relations & Partnerships:
Develop and sustain collaborations supporting the PHE focus
across the university system as well as nationally and
internationally; develop and sustain collaborations with other
research-intensive organizations including ORNL;
Management:
Oversight of budgets and personnel associated with funding
awards and contracts.
The
School and College
The University of Tennessee Health Science Center, College of
Medicine,
Knoxville (UTHSC COM-K) was initially established in
1956 as the UT Memorial Research Center and Hospital, which
also provided the graduate medical and dental educational (GMDE)
and research programs in Knoxville. The GMDE programs
collectively became the UT Graduate School of Medicine with
the formation of the University of Tennessee Medical Center (UTMC)
in 1991, and more recently were renamed the UTHSC-COMK with
the increased emphasis on undergraduate medical education in
Knoxville as well as the statewide presence of UTHSC. The
mission of the Knoxville Campus is to advance medical
education required to train the next generation of physicians
and dentists, deliver comprehensive and compassionate care
with our hospital partner, the University of Tennessee Medical
Center, and conduct innovative research that is meaningful for
patients and their families. Our college provides training for
third- and fourth-year Medical Students, second-year Physician
Assistant (PA) Students, as well as Graduate Medical Education
for 11 primary residency programs and 17 subspecialty
fellowships. UTHSC-COMK consists of 548 faculty (258 paid),
245 residents and fellows and hosts an average of 40-50
medical students per month. UTHSC-COMK also provides
Continuing Medical Education services for faculty, residents
and practicing physicians in our region, as well as Advanced
Medical Simulation for students, residents, and faculty.
Research on the Knoxville campus includes both Investigator
Initiated Clinical Research and Translational Research, both
of which are integral to the UME and GME missions as well as
bridging with the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, the
state’s flagship land grant institution. Investigator
Initiated Clinical Research is supported by the Office of
Research Support, which provides research coordination and
data analysis, and by the Office of Biostatistics and Research
Consultation, which provides assistance with study design and
statistics. Over the past four years, the number of open
prospective investigator-initiated trails have increased 250%
with the number of enrolled subjects expanding nine-fold.
UTHSC-COMK includes six Translational Research programs which
integrate with four academic departments and associated core
residencies as well as three fellowships. These Translational
Research programs include Regenerative Medicine, Trauma
Research, Vascular Research, Amyloid and Cancer Research,
Molecular Imaging, and Women’s Health, with collective
outcomes that include significant evidence of entrepreneurship
as well as a three-fold increase in annual extramural funding
over the past five years.
As the region’s academic medical center, Magnet® recognized
hospital and Level I Trauma Center, the UTMC serves as a
referral center for Eastern Tennessee, Southeastern Kentucky
and Western North Carolina. The 710-bed hospital also is home
to the region’s only dedicated Heart Hospital, only adult and
pediatric transplant center, the region’s first certified
comprehensive stroke center, a private neonatal intensive care
unit and serves as a regional perinatal center. UTMC offers
the following Centers of Excellence: Brain and Spine
Institute, Cancer Institute, Emergency and Trauma Center,
Heart Lung Vascular Institute, Center for Complex Medicine,
Center for Perioperative Medicine, Orthopaedic Institute,
Primary Care Collaborative, Center for Women and Infants.
For more information about the
Graduate School of Medicine, please visit http://gsm.utmck.edu/
The University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine
(UTCVM), established in 1974, is one of only 32 accredited
veterinary colleges in the nation. The College of Veterinary
Medicine is located in the Institute of Agriculture at the
University of Tennessee Knoxville. The central mission of the
college is educating students to become veterinarians, provide
support and services for veterinarians practicing in the state
of Tennessee, and advance animal health through research and
discovery. The college serves the public in providing referral
medicine services through the UTCVM Veterinary Medical Center
(VMC). In addition, the college protects public health and
enhances medical knowledge through research and education of
interns, residents, and graduate students and generates
economic benefits to the state and nation. Outreach programs
engage an array of citizens and their animals in learning
programs that explore the human animal bond and promote
wellbeing. The CVM administers the interdisciplinary graduate
program, Comparative and Experimental Medicine (CEM), which
serves faculty in the CVM as well as faculty in UTHSC COM-K,
and other related disciplines. The CEM graduate program
averages approximately 50 graduate students per year. The
professional program in the College of Veterinary Medicine has
approximately 400 veterinary students and works
collaboratively with CEM and Public Health to offer multiple
dual-degree programs including DVM/PhD, DVM/MS, DVM/MPH, and a
veterinary social work certificate program. Also, the CVM
hosts the Center of Excellence in Livestock Disease and Human
Health. The mission of this Center is to promote
interdisciplinary activities designed to improve the quality
of human life through better animal health; expand livestock
disease research capabilities; identify and characterize
animal diseases that are similar to human disease; develop new
strategies for the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of
disease. Also, the CVM jointly manages the UTIA Genomics
Center for the Advancement of Agriculture and is an active
participant in the UT One Health Initiative. Areas of research
emphasis in the CVM include infectious disease and immunology,
epidemiology and public health, regenerative medicine and
rehabilitative science, genomic science, and a growing focus
in cancer research. Faculty initiated and industry sponsored
veterinary clinical trials are conducted in the VMC utilizing
the robust animal patient caseload, particularly with animals
that suffer nutritional problems, such as obesity, and
spontaneously occurring diseases, such as cancer and
osteoarthritis.
For more information about the College of Veterinary Medicine,
please visit
https://vetmed.tennessee.edu.
The University
The University of Tennessee Knoxville is the flagship campus
of the UT system, land-grant university, and a public Carnegie
Research 1 institution. As an 1862 land-grant university and
as Volunteers, serving our state and nation is key to our
mission. UT enrolls approximately 36,000 students at its
Knoxville campus. Under united leadership across the UT
system, university campuses, and colleges, UTK is undergoing
transformational changes focused on solving some of the most
audacious, pressing problems our country and world face today.
The city of Knoxville is a hidden gem surrounded by eight
gorgeous lakes, with a beautiful and walkable downtown, a
diverse music scene including internationally recognized
festivals, active neighborhoods, unique restaurants, and a
robust offering of diverse cultural and outdoor activities.
UTK is located within easy driving distance to the Great Smoky
Mountains, Atlanta, Nashville, Asheville, Charlotte,
Louisville, and Cincinnati. It is only a day’s drive to
Memphis, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. Knoxville and the
surrounding counties have a population of more than 850,000
people.
The Community
The Knoxville region includes a vibrant ecosystem including
the Tennessee River system and the Great Smokey Mountains.
Knoxville is a vibrant city located in the foothills of the
Appalachian Mountains in East Tennessee. The city, population
of 187,000, is the third-largest city in Tennessee. Over
850,000 people live in the
Knoxville metropolitan area. This moderate-sized city has a
vibrant nightlife with numerous theaters and museums,
traditional bluegrass music, a symphony orchestra, an opera
company, world-class restaurants, many cultural festivals, and
a downtown market square. The Knoxville area boasts wonderful
year-round outdoor activities, surrounded by lakes and the
Tennessee River and within sight of the Great Smoky Mountains
National Park. Knoxville and the surrounding area are home to
leading corporations, including Pilot Flying J; Ruby Tuesday,
Bush Brothers & Company, TVA, and Alcoa and nearby Oak Ridge
National Laboratory. For more information about
Knoxville, Tennessee, visit
https://www.visitknoxville.com/.Many
leading corporations are headquartered in and adjacent to
Knoxville, including Bush Brothers & Company, PetSafe/Radio
Systems Corporation, Pilot/Flying J, Regal Cinemas, Tombras
Advertising Agency, AC Entertainment, Alcoa, and Tennessee
Valley Authority.
Required Qualifications:
Competitive candidates will have the following professional
qualifications and personal characteristics:
Ph.D. and/or doctoral degree in medicine (i.e., MD, DVM, DrPH).
Associate professors are expected to:
- Hold the doctorate or other terminal degree of the
discipline, or to present equivalent training and experience
as appropriate to the particular appointment
- Have achieved and to maintain a recognized record in
disciplinary research / scholarship / creative activity/
engaged scholarship
- Have achieved and to maintain a record of institutional,
disciplinary, and/or professional service or outreach
engagement
- Have normally served as an assistant professor for an
appropriate time period
- Have demonstrated that they work well with colleagues and
students in performing their university responsibilities
Full Professors are expected to:
- Hold the doctorate or other terminal degree of the
discipline, or present equivalent training and experience
appropriate to the particular appointment
- Have achieved and to maintain a nationally recognized record
in disciplinary research / scholarship / creative activity/
engaged scholarship
- Have achieved and to maintain a record of significant
institutional, disciplinary, and/or professional service or
outreach engagement
- Serve as mentors to junior colleagues
- Have normally served as an associate professor for a
reasonable time period
- Have shown beyond doubt that they work well with colleagues
and students in performing their university responsibilities
Preferred Qualifications:
Leadership Experience:
experience navigating complex organizational structures with
multi-faceted strategies, and especially the ability to work
effectively with diverse groups of people, the capacity to
listen, the ability to mentor the research career of junior
faculty, and the ability to gain trust and inspire others to
further the University’s missions and programs;
Required Application Materials:
-
Cover letter to address why this position is of interest and
their vision for this position.
-
Curriculum vitae that includes research, funding,
publications, teaching experiences, honors, awards,
employment, education, and certifications
-
A statement of professional goals highlighting teaching &
mentoring, research, leadership initiatives, and collaboration
and alignment with the UT’s PHE cluster. Candidates may
describe how they would help promote students’ access to and
inclusion in their teaching and research.
-
Contact information for at least three references. Reference
letters will be requested for applicants invited for an
interview.
Candidates must apply via the Interfolio system by following
this link:
https://apply.interfolio.com/164676
Informal inquiries are
welcome and may be directed to:
Elizabeth Allen
Department of Biomedical
and Diagnostic Sciences
College of Veterinary
Medicine
The University of
Tennessee
2407 River Drive, Rm A201
Knoxville, TN 37996-4546
Email:
eallen6@utk.edu
All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for
employment and admission without regard to race, color,
national origin, religion, sex, pregnancy, marital status,
sexual orientation, gender identity, age, physical or mental
disability, genetic information, veteran status, and parental
status, or any other characteristic protected by federal or
state law. In accordance with the requirements of Title VI of
the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education
Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of
1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the
University of Tennessee affirmatively states that it does not
discriminate on the basis of race, sex, or disability in its
education programs and activities, and this policy extends to
employment by the university. Requests for accommodations of a
disability should be directed to the Office of Equity &
Diversity, 1840 Melrose Avenue Knoxville, Tennessee 37996-3560
or oed@utk.edu or (865) 974-2498. Inquiries and charges of
violation of Title VI (race, color and national origin), Title
IX (sex), Section 504 (disability), the ADA (disability), the
Age Discrimination in Employment Act (age), sexual
orientation, or veteran status should be directed to the
Office of Investigation & Resolution 216 Business Incubator
Building 2450 EJ. Chapman Drive Knoxville, Tennessee 37996 or
(865)974-0717 or
investigations@utk.edu . |
