Presidential Endowed Chair in Health for Community-Driven Assistive Technologies

The Center for Community-Driven Assistive Technologies (CDAT) invites applications for a tenured endowed professor position as Presidential Endowed Chair in Health for Community-Driven Assistive Technologies with an anticipated start date of July 1, 2026.

The individual hired will be expected to teach courses in the jointly appointed department at level(s) appropriate for that department, engage in scholarly activities, and participate in center, departmental, college, and university service. The successful candidate will have expertise and a grant funding track record in community-based participatory research with individuals with disabilities and/or with aging populations. The individual must have experience conducting implementation science or related research that involves interagency (e.g., schools, healthcare) and/or interprofessional (e.g., medical, psychological, educational) collaboration. Experience conducting research in assistive technologies is required. We are also interested in researchers engaged with disability studies. Of particular interest are applicants who can lead research investigations in one or more CDAT primary research areas to develop, evaluate, and disseminate assistive technologies for persons with disabilities (PwDs) that: (a) enable successful transitions between various stages of life (e.g., high school to post-secondary education); (b) enhance mobility and increase access to spaces they live and visit; and/or (c) assist with activities of daily living within spaces they work, learn, live, and thrive.

The Center for Community-Driven Assistive Technologies aims to positively impact the lives of PwDs across the lifespan by creating, evaluating, and disseminating assistive technologies. CDAT faculty conduct research that promotes health and well-being of youth and adults with disabilities in the Lehigh Valley region and beyond; fosters integration of disability-related interventions across systems (e.g., health care, industry); develops, evaluates, and widely disseminates new technologies that prevent, diagnose, monitor, and modify health challenges to improve the quality of lives of PwDs; and, addresses the increased risks experienced by PwDs throughout their lifespan (e.g., education attainment, physical and mental health, employment).

The individual hired will have a joint appointment between CDAT and one of the following departments: Department of Community and Global Health, Department of Education and Human Services, Department of Population Health, Department of Psychology, or Department of Sociology and Anthropology.

Founded in 1865, Lehigh University has combined outstanding academic and learning opportunities with leadership in fostering innovative research. Recognized among the nation's highly ranked research universities, Lehigh offers a rigorous academic community for over 7,500 students. Lehigh University has some 5,800 undergraduates, 1,800 graduate students, and nearly 600 full-time faculty members. Lehigh University is located in Bethlehem, PA, a vibrant and historic area. Over 840,000 people live in the Lehigh Valley, which is in close proximity to New York City and Philadelphia.

Qualifications

Candidates must have earned a doctorate in one of the following or a closely-related field by the date of employment: Community and Global Health, Education, Population/Public Health, Psychology, Sociology, or Anthropology. Candidates must have a record of publication in top-tier peer-reviewed journals and a record of securing external research funding.

Application Instructions

Review Of Applications Will Begin On January 12, 2026 And Will Continue Until The Position Is Filled. Applicants Should Submit Their Materials Online. Candidates Should Submit The Following Materials

• Cover letter
• Curriculum vitae
• Research statement that describes past scholarly contributions and future research directions
• Teaching statement that describes instructional philosophy, courses that the candidate would want to teach or develop, and mentoring style
• A statement on Contributions to Lehigh’s Principles of Our Equitable Community that describes how your experiences, knowledge, and skills prepare you to effectively contribute to a learning and research community that holds these principles at its core (the Lehigh ADVANCE Center’s guide for understanding and preparing such statements is available here)

Candidates may be asked for reference letters after the campus interview. Any inquiries regarding this search should be directed to Professor George DuPaul, Chair of the search committee at [email protected].

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Lehigh University is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, color, disability, ethnicity, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital or familial status, national origin (including shared ancestry), pregnancy or related conditions, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status. Lehigh University is committed to a culturally and intellectually diverse academic community and is especially interested in candidates who can contribute, through their research, teaching and/or service, to this mission. Lehigh University provides competitive salaries and comprehensive benefits, including domestic partner benefits, and supports faculty members’ work/life balance.