Director, Cornell Soil Health Lab

Career Placement; Town of Ithaca (NY); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Cornell University’s School of Integrative Plant Science (SIPS) in CALS seeks a Director to lead the Cornell Soil Health Laboratory in Ithaca, NY. This nationally recognized lab advances soil health assessment, research, and outreach.

The Director will oversee high-throughput soil testing, innovate lab protocols, ensure QA, and expand the Cornell Assessment of Soil Health framework, collaborating with research, teaching, and extension programs.

Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Soil Science, Agronomy, Environmental Science or related discipline.

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership for a national soil health laboratory.
• Manage high-throughput soil testing operations.
• Lead development and implementation of lab protocols and analytical services.
• Guide the Cornell Assessment of Soil Health framework development and expansion.
• Integrate with Cornell’s research, teaching and extension programs.

Skills

Project management

Organizational skills

Laboratory leadership

Quality assurance

Education

Ph.D. in Soil Science or related discipline

Job description

The School of Integrative Plant Science (SIPS) in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) at Cornell University welcomes applications for a Director of the Cornell Soil Health Laboratory.

The Director of the Cornell Soil Health Laboratory provides leadership for a nationally recognized laboratory dedicated to advancing comprehensive soil health assessment, research, and outreach. Building on the Laboratory’s mission to deliver integrated measurements of soil physical, chemical, and biological properties to support sustainable land management, the Director manages high-throughput soil testing operations, leads innovation and implementation of laboratory protocols and analytical services, and guides the continued development and expansion of the Cornell Assessment of Soil Health framework. The Director will integrate with the broader soil health ecosystem at Cornell, including research, teaching, and extension programs.

The ideal candidate will have a Ph.D. in Soil Science, Agronomy, Environmental Science or a related discipline, with strong experience related to the measurement of soil physical, chemical, and biological properties and processes. The candidate will have experience with laboratory methodologies, analytical protocols, and quality assurance systems. The successful candidate will have strong project management and organizational skills.