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Professor and Director of the UC Davis California Lighting Technology Center, Rosenfeld Chair in Energy Efficiency

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Position description

Position Description: The University of California, Davis, seeks a recognized leader in energy-efficient lighting/daylighting design to lead the UC Davis California Lighting Technology Center (CLTC) and teach lighting design classes as faculty director. The Director will be appointed as a tenured Associate or Full Professor within the Department of Design, College of Letters and Science. The Director will also hold the prestigious Arthur H. Rosenfeld Chair in Energy Efficiency for a term of 5 years with the possibility of reappointment.

The California Lighting Technology Center (CLTC) is a specialized research center within the Department of Design, College of Letters and Science, that directs applied design research in lighting through stakeholder engagement, innovation, education and outreach. The CLTC has been deeply involved in energy efficient lighting technology/design development, deployment and policy evolution in California for more than 15 years. The CLTC is a not-for-profit research, development and demonstration facility dedicated to accelerating the development and commercialization of next-generation energy-efficient lighting and daylighting technologies, best practice design and high-impact policy initiatives. The center includes full-scale laboratories for research and development, as well as prototyping and product testing. Complementing the full-scale applications labs is a full suite of photometric and electrical testing facilities. Long-term funding for the work done at CLTC is provided by private and public agencies, including industry partners.

Working in partnership with designers, manufacturers, end users, utilities, government agencies, and others, CLTC commercializes energy-efficient lighting and daylighting technologies, producing new technologies, inventions, patents, and license agreements. CLTC also provides engineering/design specifications, market research, resources, lighting guides, working papers, and white papers to relevant agencies and government groups involved in sustainability.

The lighting center partners directly with industry innovators and the design communities, developing new initiatives in sustainable lighting. Recently this includes the UC Davis Smart Lighting Initiative with a campus wide deployment, the Million-Lamp Challenge for all California institutions, and recently the proposed Circadian Lighting Design Specification for UC universities and medical centers. In addition, the lighting center provides leadership and support to nonprofits that support broad education, training and advanced policy development including recent spinoffs California Lighting Controls Training Program (CALTCP) and California Energy Alliance (CEA).

The Faculty Director will be expected to lead the development of new research proposals focused on sustainable lighting design, technology and policy that advance the CLTC’s research and education goals. This will include developing an overarching research agenda working in concert with CLTC senior staff, allied institutions, industry organizations, government agencies, nonprofit entities and others for broad, long-term Center funding and support. To complement and support growing research focus at the Center, the ideal candidate would have interest and expertise in human factors research, circadian design, and related design practices.

The Faculty Director will also be expected to teach lighting classes in their specialty at the undergraduate level and actively participate in advancing graduate level research in lighting, industrial, exhibition or interior design supporting the educational mission of the university. The Faculty Director will oversee the highly successful annual LED fixture design competition for undergraduates in partnership with active sponsorship from the lighting industry.

In addition to the research and teaching efforts the faculty director will also provide leadership and guidance to the University, UC Office of the President, and state agencies with respect to key initiatives and new policy proposals in sustainability and lighting standards.

More information about CLTC can be found at https://cltc.ucdavis.edu/

As faculty director (25% of the position), the individual will provide strategic vision for and operational leadership of the CLTC in the following ways:

• Serve as the CLTC’s public voice, articulating its contributions to local, state, national and international communities.
• Pursue an aggressive development program to grow the CLTC’s profile and resources.
• Engage government leaders in CLTC programs to ensure a strong link with government decision-making at state, federal and international levels, to spur the development and adoption of energy-efficient lighting solutions.
• Continue successful partnerships with campus operations and administrative units to demonstrate and deploy sustainable best practices for energy-efficient lighting in campus building retrofits and new construction.
• Lead CLTC collaborations in support of the UC Davis Smart Lighting Initiative, the Million-Lamp Challenge for all California institutions, and the proposed Circadian Lighting Design Specification for UC universities and medical centers.

As a faculty member (75% of the position), the individual will:

• Engage in research, teaching and other scholarly activities that advance the field of energy-efficient lighting design across multiple UC Davis schools, colleges and departments.
• Engage in teaching within the Department of Design.
• Participate in the normal merit and promotion process within the Department of Design.
• Resume a normal departmental teaching load, should they cease being the CLTC Faculty Director.
• Support the development of graduate and undergraduate curriculum to educate a new generation of energy efficiency lighting design professionals and leaders, and promote mechanisms to aid the education of existing professionals in the field of energy-efficient lighting design.

In all cases the holder of the position supported by the Rosenfeld Endowment Fund will:
• Engage in research, teaching and other scholarly activities that advance the field of energy efficiency;
• Lead and expand the programs in close collaboration with UC Davis faculty and professional researchers, the campus administration, industry, government and non-governmental organizations;
• Possess exceptionally strong expertise relevant to the advancement of energy efficiency research, education, outreach and commercialization; 

• Demonstrate the ability to organize, initiate and manage innovative projects in the field of energy efficiency, and successfully collaborate with industry, government and other organizations in so doing;
• Engage government leaders in the programs of the EEC to ensure a strong link between government decision making and state, federal and international government programs that spur the development of energy efficiency; 

• Manage or strongly assist the development of graduate and undergraduate curriculum to educate a new generation of energy efficiency professionals and 
leaders, and promote the most effective mechanism to aid the education of existing professionals in the field of energy efficiency;
• Assist with the expansion of key UC Davis programs that broaden and deepen UC 
Davis’ contributions to the field of energy efficiency; and 

• Enhance the academic and intellectual life of the campus as a whole. 


The Arthur H. Rosenfeld Chair in Energy Efficiency is supported by the Rosenfeld Endowment Fund established by Arthur H. Rosenfeld at UC Davis in 2012. The Arthur H. Rosenfeld Chair in Energy Efficiency is intended for the recruitment and retention of a prominent leader of the CLTC as part of the UC Davis Energy and Efficiency Institute. The endowment income supports the director’s leadership of CLTC and may contribute to the director’s specific programs in research, teaching, and outreach.

Qualifications

To be considered, applicants must have a Ph.D. degree or equivalent terminal degree in a relevant field such as Architecture, Industrial Design, Interior Design or Lighting Design. Candidates will have significant record of professional practice and/or academic accomplishment in lighting in one or more of the following areas (lighting design, human factors research, interior design, daylighting, product/industrial design) as well as strong experience in a teaching/training environment. Candidates must have demonstrated leadership and administrative experience in a group research, design or innovation environment. The applicant must be qualified to be appointed to the tenured title of Associate or Full Professor. The applicant must also have exceptional interpersonal and networking skills and the ability to work effectively with individuals representing a diversity of backgrounds, interests, and positions both within and outside the University of California. Demonstrated skill in obtaining overhead-bearing or project development funds is expected.

Application Process

Submit required materials on-line at RECRUIT, https://recruit.ucdavis.edu/JPF02714. Required materials include: a cover letter; curriculum vitae including publication list and creative projects/professional practice; a statement of teaching and research interests; a statement describing vision and leadership experience; the names and addresses (including e-mail and telephone numbers) of five references; an authorization to release form (https://aadocs.ucdavis.edu/your-resources/forms-and-checklists/forms/authorization-release-form.pdf); and a Statement of Contributions to Diversity that highlights past efforts to encourage diversity (https://academicaffairs.ucdavis.edu/faculty-equity-and-inclusion), which may include description of previous activities mentoring women, minorities, students with disabilities, or other under-represented groups, and proven past commitment to improving access to higher education for disadvantaged students.

Review of applications begins April 22, 2019, and the search continues until the position is filled.

The University of California is committed to creating and maintaining a community dedicated to the advancement, application, and transmission of knowledge and creative endeavors through academic excellence, where all individuals who participate in University programs and activities can work and learn together in a safe and secure environment, free of violence, harassment, discrimination, exploitation, or intimidation. With this commitment, UC Davis conducts a reference check on all finalists for tenured positions. The reference check involves contacting the administration of the applicant’s previous institution(s) to ask whether there have been substantiated findings of misconduct that would violate the University’s Faculty Code of Conduct. To implement this process, UC Davis requires all applicants for any open search for assistant/associate/full professor to complete, sign, and upload the form entitled “Authorization to Release Information” into RECRUIT as part of their application. If an applicant does not include the signed authorization with the application materials, the application will be considered incomplete, and as with any incomplete application, will not receive further consideration. Although all applicants for faculty recruitments must complete the entire application, only finalists considered for positions with tenure or security of employment will be subject to reference checks.

UC Davis is an affirmative action/equal employment opportunity employer and is dedicated to recruiting a diverse faculty community. We welcome all qualified applicants, including women, minorities, individuals with disabilities, and veterans.

About UC Davis:

Fostering a small-town community feel while providing a world-class academic experience, UC Davis is home to more than 37,000 students and is centrally located between San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, and the Napa Valley. The No. 5-ranked public university in the nation according to the Wall Street Journal in 2018, UC Davis offers nearly 100 graduate programs and more than 100 academic majors across four colleges and six professional schools, ranking among the world and nation's best in numerous disciplines, including veterinary science, agriculture, and plant and animal programs. UC Davis is a global leader in solving problems related to energy and energy efficiency, transportation, water and land use, air and water quality, agricultural practices, endangered and invasive plants and animals, climate change, resource economics, information technology, and human society and culture.

UC Davis supports family-friendly recruitments and Work-Life Program.

Inquiries should be directed to:

Search Committee Chair
Professor Tim McNeil
Department of Design
University of California at Davis
Davis, CA 95616
(530) 752-2589
tjmcneil@ucdavis.edu

Application Requirements

Document requirements
Reference requirements
  • 5 required (contact information only)
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