Urban Child Institute Endowed Professorship in Child Health and Well-Being-Social Work-Fall 2026

Urban Child Institute Endowed Professorship in Child Health and Well-Being-Social Work-Fall 2026

Location : Nashville, TN

Open Date : Sep 8, 2025

Description :

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville College of Social Work (UTCSW) is seeking a highly regarded scholar to fill the position of Urban Child Institute Endowed Professorship in Child Health and Well-Being on our Nashville campus. The successful candidate will also be the founding director of a new center broadly focusing on research, education, and engagement around topics related to child and family well-being. This position provides a unique opportunity for a visionary leader to help us shape the mission and vision of the center and provide leadership and oversight to the center activities.

This endowed professorship offers an outstanding opportunity for an experienced researcher to pursue their program of research in child health and well-being. Topic areas around child health and wellbeing are open, though scholars with expertise in early childhood are especially welcome. Research programs founded within the social determinants of health framework along with intervention models to promote health and well-being with children and families will find significant potential for collaboration with creative colleagues and doctoral students.  The ideal candidate will bring an interprofessional lens to community-engaged research and education; a strong record of scholarly activity; experience as a mentor to graduate students, and / or post-docs and pre-tenure faculty; and the ability to contribute in meaningful ways to the access and engagement goals of the University. They also will meet the requirements for appointment at the appropriate rank for the University of Tennessee. To this end, the candidate should have an established record of substantial extramural funding (for professor level) or intramural and some extramural funding and indication of future potential for a sustained record of extramural funding (for associate level).

As an endowed professor, the candidate must commit to a collaborative partnership with the Urban Child Institute and to nurturing existing and building new collaborations with community and research agencies in Shelby County, TN and the surrounding area. The successful candidate will help the UTCSW move forward our mission .

Candidates for this position must have earned their Ph.D. in social work or related field. Successful candidates would need to meet the qualifications in order to be eligible to pursue tenure upon initial appointment. The positions will be located on the Nashville campus. This is a 9-month position.

The University and the College of Social Work

The University of Tennessee Knoxville is a land-grant, flagship research institution, that imagines “a world enriched by our ideas, improved through action, and inspired by the Volunteer Spirit of service and leadership.” ( https : / / chancellor.utk.edu / vision / ). The university is in the midst of unprecedented growth, with current enrollment of approximately 37,000 students. The University is one of 38 land-grant universities with Carnegie Foundation classification as both a Research 1 : Very High Spending and Doctorate Production, and the elective Classification for Community Engagement. Forbes Magazine recently ranked UTK as one of the best places to work in the US, including ranking it ninth among public higher education institutions in the United States. UTK offers a competitive benefits package, and 9-month tenure-track faculty are eligible for additional summer salary.

The University of Tennessee Knoxville College of Social Work (UTCSW) has almost 1,000 students enrolled in undergraduate, MSSW, DSW, and PhD programs in Knoxville, Nashville, and online. Ranked 24th nationally by the US News and World Report (2024), the college prepares highly skilled and culturally sensitive social workers to address areas of need across the state, the country, and the globe. UTCSW is home to four research centers and several individual faculty research labs. The college’s research-active faculty conduct interdisciplinary research in in partnership with faculty from other UTK colleges / departments (e.g., the Tickle College of Engineering, the College of Nursing, and Departments of Public Health, Child and Family Studies, Kinesiology, Nutrition, and Psychology, among others), the  UT Health Science Center  in Memphis, and UT Extension. UTCSW also has community-based partnerships with numerous state and community agencies.

Campus Location

Nashville is an action-packed and vibrant metropolis with so much more to offer than its famous Country Music Hall of Fame and Grand Ole Opry. As the state capital, Nashville is home to state government, multiple statewide child-serving nonprofit agencies, and 16 colleges and universities, including Vanderbilt University and several HBCUs (Tennessee State University, Fisk University, and Meharry Medical College) with whom our college regularly partners. It is currently listed as #50 on the U.S. News and World report’s best Places to Live (2024) and offers events such as the CMA Festival, the Nashville Film Festival, Live on the Green, Tomato Art Fest, and the Nashville Pride Festival. Outside of Nashville’s busy downtown Broadway scene, there are lots of unique neighborhoods filled with fantastic ethnic food options and cultural events, with unlimited opportunities to explore gorgeous parks and greenways, both inside and outside the city limits. Nashville is a short distance away from national parks that are great for camping and hiking.

Qualifications :

Required Qualifications

• Ph.D. in social work or related field
• An established, active program of research in child health and well-being, with a priority for early childhood and the social determinants of health, along with intervention models to promote health and well-being with children and families.
• Evidence of a commitment to social work values in alignment with CSWE accreditation standards in their practice and research
• Evidence of high-quality teaching at the graduate level, and across modalities
• Evidence of commitment to mentoring graduate students, pre-tenure faculty, and / or post-doctoral fellows who are developing programs of externally-funded research
• Evidence of commitment to creating a welcoming, an inclusive, supportive positive climate in classroom and research settings, in alignment with where all participants students can succeed and thrive
• Experience leading large research projects and / or research teams with evidence of ability to assume responsibilities of a Director
• Candidates for Associate Professor should have evidence of external funding and clear potential for sustained external funding.
• Candidates for Full Professor should have evidence of successful, sustained external funding and experience leading research teams.

Preferred Qualifications

Application Instructions :

Interested individuals should provide : (1) a cover letter addressing research, teaching, and practice experience, initial vision for a Center for Child and Family Health and Well-being,  and experience relevant to each required and preferred qualification, (2) curriculum vitae, (3) three sample publications, and (4) contact information for three professional references. In your letter, pay specific attention to your experiences that are not easily found on your CV. Priority consideration will be given to applications submitted by October 1, 2025 though review may continue until an appointment is made. Materials should be submitted electronically to https : / / apply.interfolio.com / 173444 . Inquiries may be addressed to the search committee chair, Dr. Bridget Freisthler at bfreisth@utk.edu .

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement :

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 accommodation of a disability should be directed to the ADA Coordinator at Equal Opportunity and Accessibility, 1840 Melrose Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37996-3560, by email to  eoa@utk.edu , or by phone at 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 and Resolution, 216 Business Incubator Building, E J. Chapman Drive, Knoxville, TN 37996-3560, by email to  investigations@utk.edu , or by phone at 865-974-0717.