School of Arts and Communication Post Doc Visiting Research Associate

Floridatech Open · verified Sep 10, 2026

Florida Institute of Technology Full-time Junior Communications

Entry-level Communications role at Floridatech. Florida Institute of Technology · full-time.

Role brief

Growth Roles summary, based on the employer's posting.

What you'll do

Teach core undergraduate courses while aligning instruction with the character education framework
Help faculty and students through workshops, mentoring, classroom sessions, and follow-up support
Coordinate colloquium planning, project meetings, outreach, and university-wide advocacy
Plan and review assessments, then manage diagnostic data collection and interpretation
Build Canvas modules with support staff and assistants while contributing to teaching scholarship

What you bring

A PhD in a humanistic field, awarded or with a formally scheduled defense, focused on character education or virtue theory
Clear commitment to teaching and demonstrated teaching ability
Strong communication, relationship-building, and organizational skills
Capacity to work independently and collaborate professionally across university levels

Who this fits

You’ll suit this role if you want to combine your own research with teaching, training, assessment, outreach, and program development rather than focus only on scholarship. The appointment is a twelve-month position beginning in January 2027 and continuing through the grant term in July 2029 at Florida Institute of Technology. Official transcripts are required before employment, with additional evaluation and translation requirements for international degrees.

From the employer

The School of Arts and Communication at Florida Institute of Technology seeks a Postdoctoral Research Associate as an active participant in the project “Cultivating Core Character through the General Education Core,” funded by Wake Forest University and the Lilly Endowment Inc. under co-PIs Lars Jones, Andrew Aberdein, and Heidi Hatfield Edwards. Beyond pursuing their own research agenda, the successful candidate will work under the supervision of project PIs and is expected to begin the 12-month annual position in January 2027 and continue through the end of the grant term in July 2029. Funds available for approved grant-related travel. Salary supplements may also be available.

Specific responsibilities will include: 

· Teaching up to or the equivalent of two core undergraduate courses directly tied to our character education framework, ensuring pedagogical fidelity and integration with project goals.

· Partnering with the PIs to support faculty and student virtue-education training, including workshops, mentoring, classroom sessions, and follow-up engagement. 

· Supporting the PIs in university-wide advocacy and outreach to other colleges as well as to the broader public. 

· Assisting the lead PI in designing and leading the biweekly character colloquium (topic selection, readings, integration with curriculum). 

· Attending weekly project team meetings. 

· Contributing to assessment planning, execution, and review to enable a rigorous evaluation of student and faculty outcomes. 

· Coordinating implementation and analysis of the project’s diagnostic framework, ensuring consistent data collection, interpretation, and integration across participating courses. 

· Collaborating on pedagogical scholarship tied to project activities and outputs, in addition to advancing their own research agenda. 

· Working with in-house support units, as well as student assistants, to help the PIs develop four Canvas LMS modules for scalable character education use in the University and beyond. 

Qualifications 

The successful candidate must have: 

· A PhD (either awarded or submitted and with defense formally scheduled) in a humanistic discipline, with a research specialization related to character education and/or virtue theory. 

· Demonstrated strong interest and ability in teaching. 

· Excellent communication, interpersonal, and organizational skills. 

· Ability to work both independently and as part of a team that must deal professionally with people at all levels. 

Preference will be given for those candidates who have applied character education experience and/or a substantive specialization in virtue theory, complemented by demonstrated pedagogical skill.  

The successful candidate will participate in implementing and expanding our program across the instructional, developmental, and scholarly domains rather than acting only as a pure research scholar. 

Informal queries should be directed to character@fit.edu 

Equal Opportunity

Florida Institute of Technology does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, disability, age, genetic information, marital status, citizenship status, veteran status, and other legally protected characteristics in its activities and programs. In accordance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Florida Tech does not discriminate on the basis of sex. Inquiries concerning the application of the Non-Discrimination and Anti-Harassment policy may be directed to the Equal Opportunity Director and Investigator at 150 West University Blvd, Melbourne, FL 32901, or email equalopp@fit.edu, or +1 321-674-7153; or to the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights.

Americans with Disabilities Act

Please notify us at least five days in advance if a reasonable accommodation for a disability is needed by calling the Office of Human Resources at 321-674-8100.

Annual Security & Fire Safety Report

The federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act) requires colleges and universities, both public and private, participating in federal student aid programs to disclose campus safety information, and imposes certain basic requirements for handling incidents of sexual violence and emergency situations.

Florida Tech’s 2025 Annual Security and Fire Safety Report includes statistics for the previous three years concerning reported crimes that occurred on campus; in certain off-campus buildings or property owned or controlled by Florida Tech; and on public property within, or immediately adjacent to and accessible from, the campus.

The numbers provided include crime statistics that were reported to local law enforcement agencies, campus security and other Campus Security Authorities.

The report also includes institutional policy statements regarding campus safety and security measures; descriptions of prevention and awareness programs; related university procedures and important guidance; and other essential safety information.

You can obtain a printed copy of this report at the Department of Security Welcome Center located at 3126 Panther Place, during normal business hours, or by accessing the following website 2025 Annual Security and Fire Safety Report.

Official Transcripts

Official transcripts of all collegiate work must be sent directly from the attended institution to the Office of Human Resources prior to the first day of employment. All international degrees must have a course-by-course official evaluation and translation sent to the Human Resources Office directly from an evaluation company affiliated with the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services, Inc. (NACES).

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