St. Olaf College
Recruitment Statement
St. Olaf is a residential and coeducational liberal arts college of the church in the Lutheran tradition (ELCA). Founded by Norwegian Lutheran immigrants in 1874, it has a student body of about 3000 and a full-time-equivalent faculty of about 300. Its location in Northfield, Minnesota, is only thirty-five miles from the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, which have all the artistic, theatrical, and athletic resources of a major urban area. Northfield itself is perhaps unique among cities its size in having two well-known liberal arts colleges -- St. Olaf College and Carleton College.
St. Olaf is committed to a liberal arts education within a church-related college emphasizing a global and interdisciplinary perspective. In the conviction that life is more than a livelihood, this education focuses on what is ultimately worthwhile and fosters the development of the whole person in mind, body, and spirit. St. Olaf College strives to be an inclusive community, respecting those of differing backgrounds and beliefs. Through its curriculum, campus life, and off-campus program, it stimulates students' critical thinking and heightens their moral sensitivity; it encourages them to be seekers of truth, leading lives of unselfish service to others; and it challenges them to be responsible and knowledgeable citizens of the world.
As a private undergraduate institution, St. Olaf College makes special demands on its faculty. As teachers, they must be willing and able to work closely with students who have a wide range of interests and capabilities. St. Olaf is regularly among the top half dozen national liberal arts colleges in the number of Merit Scholars enrolled, and about 50% of St. Olaf first year students were in the top 10% of their high school classes. These are indications of the quality of students enrolled here.
To serve St. Olaf students, faculty must continue to grow professionally. This growth is to be guided by the distinctive aims of the liberal arts -- the integrated development of intellect, imagination, and will, and the cultivation of the arts of quantification, communication, analysis, and constructive criticism. Such aims require a faculty that reflects and maintains a high competence in a specific discipline, cultivates a sense of the need to transcend disciplinary boundaries, and demonstrates professional excellence in reputable scholarly and artistic activity. St. Olaf's standards for the evaluation of faculty performance put teaching first, with scholarly and artistic activity in an integral supporting role.
St. Olaf College seeks to appoint men and women who are well-qualified in their fields, who have a strong interest in undergraduate teaching, and who are concerned with the religious dimensions of life and learning. We prefer persons who have a strong appreciation of the church and the church college. While we do not insist on particular answers to religious questions or to the question of the relation of religion to learning, we do seek persons who will take such questions seriously. We believe that our students should be immersed in the liberal arts in a setting that encourages their search for meaning and for conviction.
Under the 4-1-4 academic calendar, the normal faculty teaching load is the equivalent of six courses per year. The January Interim (the "1" in the 4-1-4) affords faculty and students an opportunity to experiment with new approaches to teaching and learning, most especially in international studies and in off-campus domestic programs. The College has unusual strength in international studies, with participation at some point in their four-year career by nearly ¾ of the members of each graduating class. The College seeks faculty interested in sustaining and adding to this strength.
St. Olaf College has a generous sabbatical program and an extensive program of faculty development. Both are aimed at sustaining and building the faculty strength and vitality essential for its mission. The College seeks persons for available positions who will enthusiastically participate in this mission.
