How to Apply
A cover letter is required for consideration for this position and should be attached and uploaded as the first page of your CV/resume. The cover letter should address your specific interest in the position and outline skills and experience that directly relate to this position.
If you have held a GSI position at U-M, as part of your cover letter please provide the course title, number, term and faculty instructor for each course taught. Please also attach E&E summary sheets for the U-M courses where you have been a GSI.
Course Description
Sure, Africa is big. So are the histories of its expressive cultures. But by studying just a selected group of African and African Diaspora cultures, we'll be able to begin thinking about pivotal issues and stories behind the surfaces of some extraordinary objects and practices.
African people have their own stories to tell about these things: tales of mythic power expressed as living form, histories of contact with other cultures, stories of struggle, redemption, and ordinary, everyday life. And we in "the West" have also had a decisive, often disturbing hand in the framing of African peoples, objects and stories. Histories of colonialism and the Atlantic slave trade, alongside distorted views and images of what African people are and what they do, have affected us all to the core. When we look at and think critically about "African Art," then, we must also look at and think critically about ourselves. The goal is to understand aspects of African cultures in terms by which Africans understand them?to know African ideals and realities as shaped in word, sound, matter and movement. Dialogue is always key. In lectures and weekly discussion sections, in words, pictures, films, sounds, and live performance, we'll examine objects and the stories that surround them. Looking and listening closely, we'll learn to see and understand a wide range of African visual practices including architecture, textiles, body adornment, painting, graphic communication systems, photography, dance, ritual performance and, of course, sculpture?not only as these practices continue to unfold on the African continent, but also as they are transformed, and as they endure, in the African Diaspora and the world at large.
Responsibilities*
Attend lectures each Tuesday/Thursday from 10:00am-11:30pm and teach three of the following sections of HISTART 208 (sections will be chosen in coordination with the other GSI):
Th 12:00PM - 1:00PM
F 12:00PM - 1:00PM
F 8:00AM - 9:00AM
F 9:00AM - 10:00AM
F 10:00AM - 11:00AM
F 11:00AM - 12:00PM
Other duties include but are not limited to:
Evaluating and grading coursework
Holding office hours for students
Being able to help students via email
Meeting with the instructor regularly
Required Qualifications*
Have knowledge of the topic of the course. To be appointed as a GSI or GSSA, a graduate student must be in good standing in their degree program and be registered for at least six (6) credit hours for the fall term.
Desired Qualifications*
Previous experience as a GSI at the University of Michigan
LSA student enrolled in a graduate program
Modes of Work
Positions that are eligible for hybrid or mobile/remote work mode are at the discretion of the hiring department. Work agreements are reviewed annually at a minimum and are subject to change at any time, and for any reason, throughout the course of employment. Learn more about the work modes.
Contact Information
History of Art Graduate Coordinator: [email protected]
Decision Making Process
Faculty will review the applications and select a GSI. All appointments are subject to administrative approval.
Selection Process
Faculty will review the applications and select a GSI. All appointments are subject to administrative approval.
GEO Contract Information
The University will not discriminate against any applicant for employment because of race, creed, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, genetic information, marital status, familial status, parental status or pregnancy status, sex, gender identity or expression (whether actual or perceived), sexual orientation, age, height, weight, disability, citizenship status, veteran status, HIV antibody status, political belief, membership in any social or political organization, participation in a grievance or complaint whether formal or informal, medical conditions including those related to pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding, arrest record, or any other factor where the item in question will not interfere with job performance and where the employee is otherwise qualified. The University of Michigan agrees to abide by the protections afforded employees with disabilities as outlined in the rules and regulations which implement Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Information for the Office for Institutional Equity may be found at https://oie.umich.edu/ and for the University Ombuds at https://ombuds.umich.edu/
Unsuccessful applications will be retained for consideration in the event that there are last minute openings for available positions. In the event that an employee does not receive their preferred assignment, they can request a written explanation or an in-person interview with the hiring agents(s) to be scheduled at a mutually agreed upon time.
This position, as posted, is subject to a collective bargaining agreement between the Regents of the University of Michigan and the Graduate Employees' Organization, American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO 3550.
Standard Practice Guide 601.38, Required Disclosure of Felony Charges and/or Felony Convictions applies to all Graduate Student Assistants (GSAs). SPG 601.38 may be accessed online at https://spg.umich.edu/policy/601.38 , and its relation to your employment can be found in MOU 10 of your employment contract.
U-M EEO/AA Statement
The University of Michigan is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.
