Director of the Humanitas Lab

Biola University, Inc.; La Mirada (CA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

Biola University, Inc. is seeking a Director of the HumanitasLab to guide multidisciplinary research and learning experiences at the intersection of artificial intelligence, human formation, and Christian faith.

The role leads faculty-driven inquiry and partnerships across theology, psychology, education, business, and computer science to study how AI shapes cognition, relationships, creativity, wellbeing, and spiritual formation.

Qualifications

• PhD or terminal degree in psychology, theology, philosophy, education, or related disciplines.
• Proven record of research, publication, and scholarly impact.
• Experience mentoring students and faculty in research settings.
• Commitment to integrating Christian faith and learning across scholarship and practice.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development of the HumanitasLab as a multidisciplinary center for research, dialogue, and thought leadership on AI and human formation.
• Establish and advance a coherent research agenda across core streams: learning, relationships, creativity, wellbeing, and spiritual formation.
• Recruit, convene, and support faculty researchers across disciplines to pursue interdisciplinary AI and human formation questions.
• Develop a portfolio of studies and experiments examining AI’s effects on cognition, relationships, creativity, wellbeing, identity, and leadership.
• Mentor faculty and students in research design, analysis, publication, and dissemination of findings.
• Cultivate external partnerships with universities, foundations, ministries, and tech organizations to study AI’s human implications.
• Pursue external funding and grants in partnership with leadership to support center initiatives.
• Represent Biola externally through talks, publications, conferences, and partnerships.
• Align HumanitasLab priorities with Biola’s Center for Human Formation and AI and foster scholarly excellence.

Skills

Research leadership

Interdisciplinary collaboration

Academic mentoring

Communication to diverse audiences

Grant writing / fundraising

AI & human formation literacy

Education

Doctoral degree or equivalent in related field

Job description

Director of the Humanitas Lab

The Director of the HumanitasLab serves as a thought leader, scholar, convener, and builder of transformative research and learning experiences at the intersection of artificial intelligence, human formation, and Christian faith. As a key leader within Biola University’s Center for Human Formation and AI, the Director will guide multidisciplinary research and experimentation focused on understanding how AI is shaping the cognitive, relational, creative, emotional, and spiritual dimensions of human development.

The HumanitasLab is grounded in the conviction that every person is created in the image of God and that emerging technologies should be stewarded in ways that strengthen rather than diminish human dignity and formation. The Director will help position Biola as a leading Christian voice on the human implications of AI by bringing together faculty, students, theologians, behavioral scientists, educators, technologists, and external partners to study how AI is changing us and to translate those insights into practical frameworks, curriculum guidance, design principles, and tools.

Alignment with Theological Positions:
The person who fills this position must be someone who personally agrees with Biola’s Articles of Faith and Statement of Biblical Principles and who is supportive of the positions taken by Biola as contained in its Eschatology Teaching Position. As such, this person may not speak against or act in a manner inconsistent with these positions during the course of their employment at Biola.

Department
Crowell School of Business
Supervisor
Dean, Crowell School of Business

Roles and Responsibilities

• Lead the development of the HumanitasLab as a multidisciplinary center for faculty-driven research, student-centered dialogue, experimentation, and thought leadership focused on the stewardship of AI in service of human formation.
• Establish and advance a coherent research agenda around the Lab’s core research streams, including learning and intellectual formation; social interaction and relational formation; creativity and human originality; emotional wellbeing and resilience; and spiritual formation and Christlikeness.
• Recruit, convene, and support faculty researchers from across the university, including theology, psychology, education, business, communication, philosophy, computer science, and the humanities, to pursue interdisciplinary questions related to AI and human formation.
• Develop a robust portfolio of research studies and experiments that examine how AI affects cognition, relationships, creativity, wellbeing, identity, learning, leadership, and spiritual formation.
• Use the HumanitasLab as a living laboratory, engaging students and faculty in carefully designed experiments that move beyond theoretical discussion to observe how AI influences real people in educational, organizational, ministry, and community settings.
• Mentor faculty and students in research and scholarly activity, helping move promising ideas from research questions through study design, experimentation, analysis, publication, presentation, and practical application.
• Create structured opportunities for student participation in research, dialogue, experimentation, and interdisciplinary collaboration, cultivating intellectual curiosity, discernment, critical thinking, and Humanitas.
• Translate research into actionable guidance, including design principles, curriculum recommendations, formative questions, guardrails, frameworks, and practices that influence how AI is developed and used across Biola and beyond.
• Partner closely with the AI Lab to connect research on human formation with technical experimentation and development, enabling faculty and students from both labs to co‑design and test solutions to meaningful real‑world challenges.
• Develop and oversee experiments with AI tools, agents, and learning models in classrooms, ministries, organizations, and student experiences, considering both performance outcomes and their effects on human formation.
• Help translate successful research into scalable applications, including cross‑school curriculum, faculty development, AI‑enabled practices, technical tools, and Kingdom‑centered solutions.
• Cultivate a distinctly Christian approach to AI and human formation, ensuring that biblical anthropology, theology, spiritual formation, and the integration of faith and learning remain foundational to the Lab’s research and activities.
• Create environments for meaningful dialogue and productive tension around questions of AI, human agency, dependence, relationships, authorship, creativity, judgment, and spiritual formation.
• Build external research partnerships with universities, foundations, ministries, churches, technology organizations, and other institutions interested in studying the human implications of artificial intelligence.
• Pursue external funding and grant opportunities in partnership with university leadership and Advancement to support research, student involvement, faculty projects, and broader Center initiatives.
• Represent the HumanitasLab externally through speaking, writing, conferences, partnerships, publications, media engagement, and other thought‑leadership opportunities.
• Partner with the Deans Advisory Council and Provost’s Office to establish priorities, align resources, evaluate opportunities, and ensure the HumanitasLab remains integrated with the broader strategy of the Center for Human Formation and AI. The Center’s operating model assigns those bodies responsibility for strategic oversight while the labs manage day‑to‑day research, experimentation, and student engagement.
• Serve as an accessible and visible leader within the university community, fostering a culture of curiosity, intellectual humility, interdisciplinary collaboration, theological depth, and scholarly excellence.
• Commit to ongoing scholarly and professional growth through research, publication, interdisciplinary collaboration, external engagement, and active participation in emerging conversations about AI and human formation.

Research and Formation Capabilities

The Director should demonstrate the ability to:

• Design and lead rigorous interdisciplinary research examining the impact of emerging technologies on human behavior, learning, relationships, creativity, wellbeing, and spiritual development.
• Integrate biblical and theological perspectives on the human person with insights from behavioral science, education, philosophy, organizational research, technology, and related disciplines.
• Translate academic research into practical frameworks and guidance that can shape educational practice, organizational leadership, ministry, technology design, and individual AI use.
• Guide research that examines both the benefits and unintended consequences of AI, including questions of cognitive offloading, diminished social interaction, reduced creative struggle, emotional dependence, and changes in spiritual practices. These are among the concerns identified in the Center proposal.
• Facilitate multidisciplinary teams and create productive collaboration among faculty and students with different disciplinary perspectives.
• Communicate sophisticated ideas about AI and human formation clearly to academic, Christian, organizational, and public audiences.
• Move effectively between scholarship and application, ensuring that the work of the HumanitasLab contributes both to academic knowledge and to practical solutions for educators, churches, ministries, families, leaders, and organizations.

Qualifications

• An earned doctoral degree (preferred) in psychology, theology, philosophy, education, communication, organizational studies, behavioral science, human development, or a related discipline. Exceptional candidates from adjacent fields with a strong record of relevant scholarship may also be considered.
• Demonstrated record of research, scholarship, and publication, preferably related to human formation, technology, learning, relationships, cognition, wellbeing, spiritual formation, or related fields.
• Experience designing and conducting empirical, interdisciplinary, or applied research.
• Demonstrated ability to mentor and develop students and faculty in research, scholarship, and interdisciplinary collaboration.
• Strong ability to convene diverse disciplines and translate complex research into practical implications.
• Evidence of thought leadership through publications, presentations, external partnerships, or other scholarly and professional contributions.
• Experience securing or participating in externally funded research or grants is preferred.
• Familiarity with artificial intelligence and emerging technologies sufficient to engage meaningfully with their implications for human behavior and formation; deep technical development expertise is not required.
• Demonstrated commitment to the integration of Christian faith, learning, scholarship, and practice.
• Strong alignment with the mission of Biola University and a commitment to a biblical understanding of human dignity, Humanitas, character, and spiritual formation.

About the HumanitasLab and the Center for Human Formation and AI

The HumanitasLab is one of two complementary labs within Biola’s Center for Human Formation and AI. The HumanitasLab develops insight into how AI affects human formation, while the AI Lab develops the literacy and technical capability to understand, evaluate, build, and responsibly use emerging technologies. Together, the two labs pursue the Center’s shared vision:

Develop the Humanitasand literacy to steward AI in ways that deepen what is uniquely human and glorify God.

Humanitas Lab research is intended to inform design principles, curriculum guidance, guardrails, and formative questions that shape how AI is developed and used. Faculty and students from the HumanitasLab and AI Lab then collaborate to test these insights through practical experimentation and translate what is learned into educational practices, technologies, tools, and Kingdom-centered solutions.

About Biola University

Biola University is a Christian university committed to the integration of faith and learning. Faculty are expected to support the university’s Christian mission and demonstrate a clear commitment to integrating faith into their scholarship and teaching.

Hiring Range: $110,000.00 - 125,000.00 annual