Adjunct Professor of Law (Temporary Employee Pool)

University of the Pacific; Sacramento (CA); On-site; USD 2,617,440 - 3,719,520; Part time

Job summary

The University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, in Sacramento, California, seeks a law professional to teach classes on a part-time basis. Adjunct faculty bring real-world experience from the region's jurists and practitioners to enrich the curriculum with specialized courses across day and evening sections.

As an adjunct, you will prepare syllabi, use TWEN or Canvas, assess student work, hold office hours, and coordinate with administration to schedule make-up classes.

Qualifications

• Must hold a Juris Doctorate (J.D.) degree.
• Three (3) years post-J.D. work experience in related field.

Responsibilities

• Prepare for your course, including the syllabus, materials, and assessments.
• Provide a classroom environment conducive to learning and adhere to policies.
• Teach the assigned course(s) as published, using effective teaching methods.
• Track student attendance and refer students for issues as needed.
• Use learning platforms (TWEN, Canvas) to post assignments and communicate.
• Read submitted student work and provide timely written feedback.
• Meet with students during office hours for progress assessment.
• Schedule make-up classes with Administration for cancelled sessions.
• Grade mid-term and final exams and submit grades for approval.
• Review student evaluations to improve teaching.

Education

Juris Doctorate (J.D.)

Job description

Primary Purpose and Essential Functions

The University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, an ABA-accredited law school in Sacramento, California, seeks a law professional to teach classes to students on a part-time basis. The law school’s adjunct faculty, drawn from the region’s most distinguished jurists and practitioners, offers a wealth of practical experience and special expertise to our students. The school uses adjuncts to enrich the curriculum with specialized courses, unique perspectives, and more choices than the school might otherwise offer. With adjunct faculty, students can experience different pedagogical approaches and gain access to leading practitioners and judges. Adjunct faculty are also valuable in teaching about newly emerging or rapidly changing areas of law. Providing a wide variety of elective courses, both during the day and evening sections, would be impossible without the use of qualified adjunct professors. Adjunct professors are part-time, non-tenure/tenure track employees, contracted via mutually-signed offer letters, to teach specific classes during specific semesters as outlined in the offer letter.

Responsibilities

• Complete all employment documentation and any required trainings, and submit employment documents such as signed offer letters in a timely manner.
• Prepare for your course, which includes preparing the syllabus, selecting and submitting for printing any unique teaching materials, selecting books for student purchase, and preparing course materials and assessment/exam text. Syllabi include course descriptions, learning objectives, exam dates, teaching and exam policies, text and readings, and other policies and student deliverables.
• Provide a classroom environment conducive to learning.
• Adhere to all University and law school policies.
• Teach the assigned course(s) as published in the Academic Schedule and noted in the offer letter, using pedagogical and other teaching methods fairly and effectively.
• Track student attendance using tools provided, and refer students to the Administration if required for attendance and/or performance issues.
• When appropriate, use the institution’s learning management platforms (TWEN, Canvas, etc.) to post assignments, syllabi and other reference materials, and to communicate with students.
• Read submitted student work and assessments/exams, and provide written comments to students in a timely manner to provide feedback on performance.
• Meet with students during office hours to provide individualized direction and assessment of progress.
• In order to ensure the proper number of teaching hours is completed, work with Administration to schedule make-up classes for any cancelled classes.
• Grade all mid-term and final exam papers, and other assessments as appropriate, and submit those grades per timelines to the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Experiential Learning for approval.
• Review student-completed course evaluations conducted online at the end of each semester to analyze student perceptions of your teaching and to provide insight into possible teaching improvements.

Teaching Areas

• Civil Pretrial Litigation
• First Year Legal Research and Writing
• Second Year Legal Research and Writing
• Capital Lawyering and Policy Making
• Criminal Pretrial Litigation
• Expert Testimony Using Technology
• Land Use Planning
• Taking and Defending Depositions
• The Legal Profession

University of the Pacific recognizes that diversity, equity, and inclusion is foundational to the success of our valued students and employees. We prioritize policy and decision-making that demonstrates awareness of, and responsiveness to, the ways socio-cultural forces related to race, gender, ability, sexuality, socio-economic status, etc. impede or propel students, faculty, and staff.

Minimum Qualifications

• Must hold a Juris Doctorate (J.D.) degree.
• Three (3) years post-J.D. work experience in related field.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior teaching experience is desirable, but not essential. Must, however, demonstrate evidence of teaching potential.
• Three years working in the substantive legal field is preferred.
• Lead and function in an active change environment.
• Inspire excellence.
• Experience and sensitivity in working with people of diverse backgrounds and cultures.
• Demonstrated experience in advancing social justice, equity, and inclusion in a university setting.
• Ability to engage and integrate culturally responsive practices and knowledge in their work.

Physical Requirements

The physical demands described here are representative but not definitive of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Work Environment / Work Week / Travel

Work entails travel in Sacramento, primarily at the Sacramento Campus. Work may require evenings and/or weekends to perform duties, based on class schedule. Requires extended periods of sitting and repetitive hand/wrist motion while using a computer keyboard and phone. Occasional standing, walking, climbing stairs, bending, stooping, and reaching. Occasional lifting up to 25 pounds.

Compensation

Hiring Range $2,304.00 per unit. We consider factors such as, but not limited to, scope and responsibilities of the position, candidate’s qualifications, internal equity, as well as market and organizational considerations when extending an offer.

Anti-Discrimination/EEO Policy Statement

University of the Pacific is an equal opportunity employer dedicated to workforce diversity across backgrounds, experiences, and viewpoints. Pacific does not unlawfully discriminate in its hiring of faculty and staff, or in the provision of its employment benefits to its faculty and staff on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, genetic information, sex/gender, marital status, military and veteran status, sexual orientation, medical condition, pregnancy, gender identity, gender expression, or mental or physical disability, or other legally protected characteristics or combination of such characteristics. While we strive to attract a broad and representative pool of candidates, all hiring decisions are made based on merit, selecting the most qualified individual for each position.