Position Title: Adjunct Professor - MFA Critical Thesis
No. of Positions to Fill 1
Department/Program: Writing & Poetics 12090
Work Location: Arapahoe Campus
Reports to: Valerie Hsiung
FLSA Classification: Exempt/Salaried
FTE: 15% (6 hrs/week)
Compensation: $4,500 per semester for 3 credit course
Application Deadline: 7/1 or until filled
Job Summary:
The Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics seeks a talented adjunct faculty member to teach WRI 875: Critical Thesis during the Fall 2026 semester.
This course serves as a foundational component of the MFA curriculum for second-year students as they prepare to undertake their Creative Thesis in the spring semester. Working in both a collective and individual mentoring capacity, the instructor will guide students through the process of conceiving, researching, writing, and revising a substantial critical thesis that articulates the intellectual, artistic, historical, and cultural contexts informing their creative practice.
The instructor will help students develop scholarly research methodologies, engage literary and theoretical texts, formulate original arguments, and articulate a personal poetics. Through seminar discussion, individual mentorship, and sustained feedback, the course supports students in producing a critical thesis that serves as both a rigorous scholarly inquiry and a foundation for the creative work that follows.
In addition, the instructor of this course is expected to organize, collaborate with JKS administration, MC (acting as panelist & moderator) for the critical thesis panel (which occurs usually at the end of the semester). This is usually a multi-hour event in the afternoon/early evening.
Course Description:
WRI 875: Critical Thesis is a weekly communal mentorship course designed to support second-year MFA students in the development of a substantial critical thesis. Positioned as a gateway to the Creative Thesis process, the course helps students identify and investigate the literary, artistic, theoretical, historical, and cultural concerns that animate their creative work.
Through research, reading, discussion, writing, peer exchange, collective and individual mentorship, students develop the skills necessary to produce an original scholarly text that situates their work within broader conversations and traditions. The course encourages students to critically examine questions of influence, lineage, aesthetics, form, genre, politics, and artistic practice while articulating the intellectual foundations of their own poetics.
Students will engage with literary criticism, poetics, theory, archival materials, and other scholarly resources as they develop, draft, and revise their critical thesis. Particular emphasis is placed on cultivating an independent critical voice and generating the intellectual framework that will support the student's Creative Thesis in the succeeding spring semester.
Job Duties & Responsibilities:
- Develop a rigorous and coherent syllabus with a full semester-long arc.
- Teach and facilitate all scheduled class meetings.
- Create a supportive, collaborative, and intellectually rigorous seminar environment.
- Guide students through the process of developing, researching, drafting, and revising a critical thesis.
- Mentor students both collectively and individually throughout the semester. Create a class structure that maps out time for group meetings in addition to one on one meetings.
- Support students in articulating a personal poetics and identifying the intellectual, artistic, and historical contexts of their work.
- Introduce students to relevant scholarly, literary, theoretical, and critical methodologies.
- Provide substantive written and verbal feedback on student writing and research.
- Facilitate peer discussion, workshop, and critical exchange.
- Assess student work and submit grades in accordance with university policies.
- Maintain regular communication with students and respond to questions in a timely manner.
- Organize, collaborate with JKS administration, MC (acting as panelist & moderator) for the critical thesis panel (which occurs usually at the end of the semester).
Minimum Qualifications:
- Terminal degree (MFA or PhD) in Creative Writing, English Literature, Poetics, Cultural Studies, Comparative Literature, or a related field.
- At least one full-length book with a reputed press published or under contract. Self-published books do not count.
- Demonstrated scholarly engagement with literary criticism, poetics, theory, or related fields.
- Demonstrated knowledge of contemporary literary culture, particularly innovative, experimental, and avant-garde writing traditions.
- Graduate-level teaching experience.
- Experience mentoring advanced student research and writing projects.
- All job candidates must demonstrate their level of understanding of the dynamics of privilege and oppression, and the impact these have on equity, access, and opportunity.
- All job candidates must demonstrate an appropriate level of understanding of and appreciation for the values of Naropa University and the capacity to demonstrate an integration and embodiment of these values as evidenced in work, communication, collaboration styles, and other general workplace behaviors.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Demonstrated expertise in contemplative education.
Physical Requirements & Environmental Conditions
Faculty members spend most of their time in their classrooms or in virtual meetings with some time in offices. In the classrooms and on campus may experience: interruptions, distractions, heat, cold, dust and/or dampness. As a faculty member, you may spend extended periods in front of students and speaking as well as:
- Reading academic texts and materials, student papers, etc.
- Operating personal computer and audio-visual equipment.
- Standing or sitting for hours at a time.
- Moving around campus for classes and meetings.
Naropa recognizes the following holidays throughout the year: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Fall Break, 4th Thursday and Friday in November, and Winter Break, the last two weeks in December encompassing the Christmas holiday as well as New Year’s.
Naropa’s health and welfare benefits include the following: medical, dental, vision, FSA, HSA, employer-paid short-term and long-term disability, employer-paid life insurance and accidental death and dismemberment, an employer-sponsored pre-tax retirement savings plan, which includes up to 2.5% employer matching, and a variety of voluntary, employee-paid supplemental insurance plans.
A comprehensive benefits package is available to full-time employees who work a minimum of 30 hours each week. Employees who work 20 – 29 hours each week are eligible for only the employer-paid short-term & long-term disability, employer-paid life insurance & accidental death and dismemberment, and the retirement plan, which includes up to 2.5% employer matching.
Employees who work fewer than 20 hours per week are eligible to participate in Naropa’s retirement plan only, which includes up to 2.5% employer matching.
All regular full-time and part-time faculty and staff, including student workers, accrue sick leave benefits. Full-time and part-time staff positions accrue vacation and personal time. All leave accrual rates vary based on the position, hours worked, and years of service.
The University recognizes the importance of including its employees in its organizational mission and values and welcomes employees into the classroom to “touch the magic.” Specifically, regular employees are provided generous tuition remission opportunities for themselves and their family members.
Naropa University participates in the Council of Independent Colleges Tuition Exchange Program (CIC-TEP). CIC-TEP is a network of CIC colleges and universities willing to accept, tuition-free, students from families of full-time employees of other CIC participating institutions (full-time as designated by the employer/institution). Additional information can be found here: https://www.cic.edu/member-services/tuition-exchange-program.
Naropa University is an equal opportunity, non-discriminatory employer and Title IX is a federal civil rights law that prohibits gender discrimination, sexual harassment, sexual and relationship violence. This law applies to all students, faculty, and staff.
