Position Title: Adjunct Professor - WRI-449E-A Writing Workshop Embodied Poetics
No. of Positions to Fill 1
Department/Program: Writing & Poetics 12090
Work Location: Remote
Reports to: Valerie Hsiung
FLSA Classification: Exempt/Salaried
FTE: 15% (6 hrs/week)
Compensation: $1200 per credit
Application Deadline: 8/1 or until filled
Job Summary:
The Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics seeks a talented adjunct faculty member to teach WRI-449E-A: Embodied Poetics during the Fall 2026 semester.
This undergraduate online creative writing course introduces students to the creative, critical, and contemplative foundations of writing through somatic inquiry. Working across poetry, prose, multigenre writing, literary criticism, and interdisciplinary practices, students explore how embodiment shapes language, perception, imagination, and artistic expression. The instructor will guide students in developing original creative work while cultivating an understanding of writing as both an aesthetic practice and a mode of embodied inquiry.
Working within a discussion- and project-based learning environment, the instructor will support students in the development of original writing projects grounded in somatic experimentation, close reading, and reflective practice. Particular emphasis is placed on writing that demonstrates artistic rigor, curiosity, and thoughtful engagement with questions of consciousness, identity, ecology, and the lived experience of the body.
Course Description:
WRI-449E-A: Embodied Poetics is an online undergraduate creative writing course exploring the relationship between writing practice and somatic inquiry. Through close reading, contemplative exercises, creative writing experiments, and critical discussion, students investigate how literary forms emerge through embodied attention and lived experience.
Drawing upon poetry, prose, multigenre composition, literary criticism, and interdisciplinary texts, students examine selected literary and compositional issues as they relate to embodiment. Topics may include somatic psychology, nervous system studies, animal ethologies, performance-based approaches to posture and gesture, and film and media as they intersect with contemporary writing practices.
Throughout the semester, students engage in a series of somatic writing experiments and creative projects that ask, in the words of Akilah Oliver, "What are the limits of the body?" Readings span historical and contemporary literary works alongside theoretical and interdisciplinary texts, providing students with multiple approaches to understanding embodiment as both subject matter and compositional method.
Through online discussions, writing workshops, reflective assignments, creative exercises, and peer critique, students develop original creative work while cultivating an embodied approach to literary practice. The course culminates in a final portfolio that reflects each student's creative development, critical engagement, and sustained exploration of embodied poetics.
Job Duties & Responsibilities:
- Develop a rigorous and coherent syllabus with a full semester-long arc.
- Teach and facilitate all scheduled online course activities and discussions.
- Introduce students to the creative, critical, and contemplative foundations of embodied writing practice.
- Guide students through a range of somatic writing experiments and creative projects in poetry,prose, and multigenre forms.
- Facilitate close reading and discussion of literary, theoretical, and interdisciplinary texts.
- Foster an inclusive and supportive online workshop environment that encourages creative risk-taking, thoughtful dialogue, and constructive peer feedback.
- Support students in developing original creative work that demonstrates artistic growth and critical engagement.
- Provide timely written and verbal feedback on student writing throughout the semester.
- Assess student work and submit grades in accordance with university policies.
- Maintain regular communication with students and respond to questions in a timely manner.
Minimum Qualifications:
- Terminal degree (MFA, PhD, or equivalent professional experience) in Creative Writing, Literature, Poetics, Performance Studies, Interdisciplinary Arts, Somatic Studies, or a related field.
- Demonstrated record of creative, scholarly, or professional work in creative writing, literary arts, interdisciplinary arts, or related disciplines.
- College-level teaching experience.
- Demonstrated knowledge of contemporary creative writing pedagogy, literary studies, and workshop practices.
- Experience facilitating creative writing workshops and mentoring student writers.
- Experience teaching in online learning environments or familiarity with online instructional practices.
- All job candidates must hold a commitment to co-create a diverse and inclusive community and actively participate in related JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion) professional development regarding the dynamics of privilege and oppression and the impact these have in the workplace.
- 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 and pedagogy.
- Experience teaching creative writing, poetics, literary studies, or interdisciplinary arts.
- Active creative practice as a poet, writer, scholar, performer, or interdisciplinary artist.
- Familiarity with somatic studies, embodied cognition, contemplative practice, or performance-based approaches to writing.
- Experience facilitating online writing workshops and mentoring undergraduate writers.
- Interest in the intersections of writing, embodiment, consciousness, ecology, performance, and interdisciplinary creative practice.
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.Physical Requirements & Environmental Conditions
