The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Florida invites applications for the full-time, nine-month position of Director of the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program, with appointment to begin August 16, 2025. The appointment requires a Ph.D. in one’s discipline and will be made at the rank of a tenured or tenure-earning assistant, associate, or full professor. All geographic fields and disciplines that fall within the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences will be considered. 

The Samuel Proctor Oral History Program (SPOHP) is an award-winning, nationally respected institution that has long been a cornerstone unit on the University of Florida campus, providing its services across disciplines and to the general public.  The director will supervise a professional staff of five, along with several undergraduate and graduate assistants, and oversee a collection that constitutes more than 150,000 transcribed pages produced from more than 8,000 interviews found in the SPOHP archives and University of Florida Digital Collections. 

The successful candidate therefore should have considerable experience in acquiring, conducting, and archiving oral histories and come with a strategic vision for the future of SPOHP in the digital age. Equally essential is the ability to manage personnel, budgets, and applying for and winning grants. The new director must also be willing to work with other units on campus, such as various area-studies programs, UF libraries, the Center for the Humanities and the Public Sphere, and the Gulf Scholars Program (a National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine-supported certificate program for undergraduates). 

The new director will have a tenure home in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and, in addition to SPOHP responsibilities, must be able to contribute to their department's intellectual growth and emphasis on interdisciplinary and collaborative research. The successful candidate will be expected to demonstrate a strong commitment to teaching a diverse body of undergraduate and graduate students in Gainesville, Florida, and maintain a robust research and publishing agenda appropriate to a Research 1 institution. Teaching responsibilities include upper-division undergraduate and graduate courses in the applicant's field. Equally important is the ability to contribute effectively to the graduate program of one’s department: mentoring graduate students, offering graduate seminars, and chairing and serving on graduate committees (including serving on committees in other departments). The position also includes service responsibilities appropriate to rank.   

UF is the state’s oldest, largest, and most comprehensive land grant university with an enrollment of over 50,000 students and was ranked 7th in the country among public universities (US News and World Report 2023 rankings), and 1st among public institutions in the Wall Street Journal 2023 survey. UF is located in Gainesville, a city of approximately 150,000 residents in North-Central Florida, 50 miles from the Gulf of Mexico, and 67 miles from the Atlantic Ocean, and within a 2-hour drive to large metropolitan areas (Orlando, Tampa, Jacksonville). The beautiful climate and extensive nearby parks and recreational areas afford year-round outdoor activities, including hiking, biking, and nature photography. UF’s large college sports programs, museums, and performing arts center support a range of activities and cultural events for residents to enjoy. Alachua County schools are highly rated and offer a variety of programs including magnet schools and an international baccalaureate program. Learn more about what Gainesville has to offer at Visit Gainesville.