Submit a resume with a cover letter specifying your past experience at supervising or preparing students for engaged learning experiences, internships, or similar. Describe your teaching philosophy for a course of this nature and, if relevant, your prior experience teaching at the college level.

Teacher Seminar where LEAPS students learn skills and mindsets needed for future engaged learning, a core component of the LEAPS program. Students will be introduced to different contexts for engaged learning and participate in planning and debriefing discussions with other LEAP students. The instructor will coordinate with an engaged learning specialist staff member in the LEAPS program. This is a 4-credit course. The work expectation is 4 contact hours with students per week and 13 hours of total effort per week. There is a possibility of being hired to teach 2 sections of this course (total appointment effort .66), or of two positions being offered.  This instruction will take place in Detroit at Marygrove Conservancy, 8701 W. McNichols.

This is a draft description of the course for winter 2026. Please use this description in preparing your application, but note that it is subject to change.

The goal of this course is to ensure that students in the Learning, Equity, And Problem Solving for the Public Good (LEAPS) program are prepared for their engaged learning experiences. In LEAPS, engaged learning experiences include a range of placements that could include community organizations, nonprofits and educational organizations, government agencies, and businesses. This course will introduce and provide supervised opportunities for students to experience, identify, analyze, and discuss issues that are likely to arise in engaged learning settings.

Key textbook: The Student Companion to Community-Engaged Learning: What You Need to Know for Transformative Learning and Real Social Change (2018). Donahue and Plaxton-Moore.

Other readings about working in community or working in organizations drawn from various literatures. The instructor will have input on the selection of articles.

The course will proceed in four segments across the Winter term:

Segment One: Classroom-based (Weeks 1-4)
In this segment, students will:

• Learn about potential placement opportunities in LEAPS
• Examine and practice professionalism in different contexts
• Examine their interests and developing skills in relation to placement opportunities
• Study rotation sites to learn more about their history, mission, and work
• Set goals for rotations

Segment Two: Rotation 1 (Weeks 5-7)
In this segment, students will:

• Join an organization to serve as a volunteer
• Observe how the organization works 
• Learn from members of the organization
• Prepare reflection documents and personal notes to guide future learning

Segment Three: Rotation 2 (Weeks 7-9)
In this segment, students will:

• Join an organization to serve as a volunteer
• Observe how the organization works 
• Learn from members of the organization
• Prepare reflection documents and personal notes to guide future learning

Segment Four: Rotation 3 (Weeks 10-12)
In this segment, students will:

• Join an organization to serve as a volunteer
• Observe how the organization works
• Learn from members of the organization
• Prepare reflection documents and personal notes to guide future learning

Segment Five: Final Reflections and Debrief (Week 13-14)
In this segment, students will:

• Reflect on their placement experiences overall
• Create group presentations about placement experiences
• Begin to plan for future engaged learning experiences

• Bachelor's degree or higher
• Experience supervising or working with undergraduate college students or students of a similar age in internships, practical experiences, or similar
• Excellent communication and technology skills with tools like course management systems
• Direct experience in partnership development and partnership-based or community-engaged learning
• A commitment to community engagement and development
• Familiarity with Detroit-based organizations and the context for these organizations in Detroit
• A spirit of collaboration with organizations and colleagues
• Ability to supervise placements and meet with students during required course hours in person (Fridays between 10 and 4) on the campus of the Marygrove Conservancy at 8701 W. McNichols, Detroit

• Familiarity with literature or teaching materials to prepare students for working at partnership sites
• Experience teaching in an undergraduate setting, including with assessing student learning.

Fridays between 10am and 4pm (could be one or two sections during this time).

Positions that are eligible for hybrid or mobile/remote work mode are at the discretion of the hiring department. Work agreements are reviewed annually at a minimum and are subject to change at any time, and for any reason, throughout the course of employment. Learn more about the work modes.

This position is covered under the collective bargaining agreement between the U-M and the Lecturers Employee Organization, AFL-CIO, which contains and settles all matters with respect to wages, benefits, hours and other terms and conditions of employment.

The University of Michigan conducts background checks on all job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent offer and may use a third party administrator to conduct background checks. Background checks will be performed in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Job openings are posted for a minimum of ten calendar days. This job may be removed from posting boards and filled anytime after the minimum posting period has ended.

• Match with required and desired qualifications.
• Prior experience with the learning goals of this course.
• Familiarity with Detroit and organizations in Detroit.

The University of Michigan is an equal employment opportunity employer.