"Instructor or Assistant Professor - CRJS"

Job Details

Benefits: All full-time university staff are eligible for VCU’s robust benefits package that includes comprehensive health benefits, paid annual and holiday leave granted up front, generous tuition benefits, retirement planning and savings options, tax-deferred annuity and cash match programs, employee discounts, well-being resources, abundant opportunities for career development and advancement, and more.

Unit: L D Wilder Sch of Govt & Pub Affrs

Department: Criminal Justice

The VCU L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs Criminal Justice program, invites applications for a full-time 9-month term (teaching) faculty position. This position is non-tenure eligible faculty at the rank of instructor or assistant professor, beginning August 16, 2026. Candidates with significant career and professional work experience within the criminal justice system will be highly considered.

Successful candidates will join an interdisciplinary group of colleagues whose focus reflects the core areas in the Wilder School (criminal justice, homeland security and emergency preparedness, public administration, public policy and urban and regional studies and planning) and who work to foster improved community and government relations that promote safe, economically viable and engaged communities. The Wilder School is committed to sustainability, justice, resiliency and equity in government. We seek applicants who will contribute to the strength of our faculty who will complement and expand existing School expertise.

All candidates should show a commitment to high-quality instruction at the undergraduate and/or graduate levels. Evidence of significant career and professional work experience, as well as demonstrated teaching effectiveness is required.

We are specifically seeking an instructor who demonstrates a profound commitment to high-quality teaching and adds to the strength and skills of our faculty. Successful candidates will have expertise in criminal justice and criminology, and have the ability to teach a variety of core undergraduate and graduate courses, including courts/sentencing and corrections courses. We are interested in faculty who will demonstrate through teaching, creative expression, and/or public engagement, the richness of diversity in the learning experience through integrated intersectional approaches and perspectives. The selected candidate will complement and expand our existing expertise in the field of criminal justice and join a dedicated group of colleagues with a commitment to service and community engagement.

For additional information, please visit https://wilder.vcu.edu/programs/criminal-justice/.

The Wilder School’s mission is to:

• Engage, teach and inspire students and leaders to understand and solve challenges in our world.
• Advance research that informs public policy and decision making to improve our communities.
• Collaborate with communities through innovative partnerships to enhance quality of life.

The 2025 U.S. News and World Report rankings confirm the Wilder School among the top 15% of graduate schools of public affairs at No. 36 and tied for No.1 in Virginia. The School is also ranked No. 6 in Homeland Security Programs, and No. 33 in Public Management and Leadership. The Wilder School has over 1,400 students and more than 12,000 alumni, with an established environment where diverse perspectives thrive and where a common interest in public service and the betterment of society unites these perspectives together. Our academic excellence attracts the highest quality faculty, staff, and students, and our graduates are leaders in their professions.

Our location in Richmond, the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, combined with our proximity to Washington, DC, provides numerous opportunities for engaged scholarship, teaching and community engagement activities. A creative, interdisciplinary School with both academic programs and training/research centers in the social sciences and professional arenas, we reflect the diversity of the communities we serve providing students and faculty with the knowledge, skills, opportunities and experience necessary for success.

For additional information about the Wilder School, please visit our website at wilder.vcu.edu.

Position Responsibilities:

1. Teaching
   This faculty will teach within the core requirements of the graduate and undergraduate programs in Criminal Justice and may contribute to the Ph.D. in Public Policy and Administration. The faculty will be expected to carry a teaching load equivalent to eight 3-credit courses per year (4/4), involving both in-class, hybrid and online delivery, with the possibility of summer teaching. Strong candidates will demonstrate innovation and leadership in developing instructional approaches which meet the needs of diverse learning styles and intellectual interests.
2. Service
   Faculty member may serve on program, School, and/or University committees as necessary, as well as in a professional capacity in their field.

Required Qualifications:

• Master's degree in the field of criminal justice, criminology, or a related field, plus 5 or more years of professional criminal justice experience.
• Demonstrated ability to work in and foster an environment of respect, professionalism and civility with a population of faculty, staff, and students from all backgrounds and experiences, or a commitment to do so as a faculty member at VCU.

Preferred Qualifications:

• A career as a senior practitioner or a Ph.D. in criminal justice, criminology, or a related field (candidates with ABDs will be considered subject to demonstration of timely progress towards completion of all requirements for their Ph.D. before the start of the appointment).
• Experience teaching criminal justice courses at the undergraduate or graduate level.

Application Process/Additional Information:

Applications must include a cover letter, a detailed CV with the names and contact information of three references and evidence of teaching effectiveness. Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until positions are filled, with priority review beginning November 10, 2025.

Contact: Amy Cook, Search Chair

Email: cookak@vcu.edu