Associate Professor & Mary Ann Spearin Chair in Catholic Theology in Dayton, Ohio at University of Dayton

The Opportunity

The Department of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Dayton seeks applications for the Mary Ann Spearin Chair in Catholic Theology. This endowed chair, established by Mary Ann Spearin to support graduate theological education at the University of Dayton, is open at the rank of associate professor in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies. This is a nine month, tenured faculty position with an appointment to the Spearin Chair that is made for a renewable four-year term, beginning August 16, 2027.

We seek a strong and creative scholar who can steward our programs’ successes going forward. Successful candidates will be able to demonstrate experience in administration, teaching, and scholarship, with attention to the specific and unique foci of our graduate programs.

Key Responsibilities

• Teaching theology courses in the MA and PhD programs, including regular teaching of one of the required PhD seminars; teach undergraduate courses at the discretion of, and in conversation with, the department chairperson. The typical teaching load per year for this position is 2-1.
• Contributing scholarship that advances their particular field of study and that connects broadly to the doctoral program’s emphasis in US Catholic experience.
• Directing the graduate programs in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies. Overseeing these programs in collaboration with the department’s graduate committee and other faculty charged with supporting the graduate programs.
• Advising MA students and first-year PhD students and contributing to graduate student formation (e.g. colloquies, professionalization seminars).
• Guiding appropriate curricular development, recruitment, marketing, and seeking grants when appropriate, for the graduate programs.
• Supporting assessment and accreditation processes, in collaboration with the department’s graduate committee.

The Spearin Chair receives support for their work from a staff coordinator of graduate studies, an administrative assistant shared with four other endowed chairs in the areas related to Catholic traditions, and a graduate assistant assigned to work with them on projects of their choosing. The Spearin Chair oversees a budget that not only supports graduate theological education, but also provides travel support for the Spearin Chair. When the Spearin Chair seeks promotion to full professor, their administrative accomplishments may constitute a major element of their portfolio, alongside their teaching, research, and service.

The Program

The graduate theological programs include an MA with options to focus in pastoral ministry or theological studies, as well as a PhD in Theology with an emphasis in US Catholic experience. The University of Dayton has offered master’s degrees in theology and related fields since the 1960s and continues to do so, in service of both the church and the academy and in collaboration with other departments and divisions of the University, including the International Marian Research Institute, Campus Ministry, and the Center for Catholic Education. The doctoral program features a multidisciplinary approach to theology as located in diverse communities with attention to historical and cultural contexts. The doctoral program recently celebrated its 25th anniversary. Successful alumni from both the MA and PhD programs - Catholic and Protestant - serve as teachers and leaders in higher education, pastoral ministry, and beyond, including as endowed chairs, in administrative leadership positions, in diocesan offices, in positions in various ecclesial communities, and more.

The Department

The Department of Theology and Religious Studies is a community of faculty, staff, and students which serves the academic mission of the University of Dayton and gives witness to the University’s distinctive Catholic and Marianist identity. It seeks to embody in its programs of study, its policies and procedures, and its daily practice, the University’s Catholic commitments to “the common search for truth, to the dignity of the human person, and to the sacramental nature of creation.” As a department at a Marianist university, it seeks to embody the distinctive Marianist charisms of community, formation in faith, integration of liberal arts and professional education, advocacy for peace and justice, and critical examination of the signs of the times.

The Department is home to scholars whose “common search for truth” comprises many different disciplines and methods, and welcomes scholars from a variety of theological backgrounds and faiths. The Department also values and promotes scholarly inquiry into religion–using theological, cultural, historical, ethical, sociological and other methods not dependent on specifically Catholic theological methods and norms. The scholars in the Department aim to conduct their particular forms of inquiry in a mutually challenging and interdisciplinary conversation.

The Department contributes to required courses in the University’s undergraduate Common Academic program. In addition to its graduate programs in theology, the department has a major and several minors, including minors in Jewish Studies, Catholic Social Thought and Practice, and Marian Studies.

The University of Dayton

Grounded in its Catholic, Marianist tradition, the University of Dayton is a comprehensive university offering 70 majors to undergraduates, and 50 programs (12 doctoral) to graduate students. UD provides education to develop the whole student and is committed to social justice and experiential learning. UD enrolls approximately 9,700 students, including 6,950 full-time undergraduates. It is one of the nation’s largest Catholic universities and one of the largest private universities in Ohio. At the University of Dayton, we value inclusive excellence because we recognize that diversity, equity and inclusion are fundamental to academic and institutional excellence. Inclusive excellence requires a comprehensive, cohesive and collaborative alignment of infrastructure, resources and actions. We strive to be active and intentional, sustaining engagement with and celebration of diversity in every dimension of institutional life. Because we seek a workforce with a wide range of perspectives and experiences, we encourage all candidates to apply.

The City of Dayton
Located in Dayton, Ohio, our university offers more than just a rewarding career. With a burgeoning downtown area Dayton boasts extensive green space and over 350 miles of biking/hiking trails, providing ample opportunities for outdoor recreation and relaxation. With a low cost of living, you can enjoy a comfortable lifestyle while pursuing your scholarly interests. Additionally, Dayton's dynamic arts scene offers a rich cultural experience. It's a great place to live, work, and thrive. Go to Destination Dayton for more information.

• PhD in Theology or equivalent field or degree (such as Religious Studies, STD); subject area is open to scholars in fields that support the doctoral and MA programs (such as historical theology, systematic/dogmatic theology, moral theology/Christian ethics, pastoral ministry/practical theology).

• Record of teaching, scholarship, and service commensurate with the criteria for tenure and appointment at the rank of Associate Professor in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Dayton. Tenure-track assistant professors whose record is commensurate with the criteria for tenure and appointment at the rank of Associate Professor are eligible to apply.

• Administrative experience in higher education, such as chairing committees, planning events, working on institution-wide curriculum development, oversight of programs, policy development, or similar.

• A research agenda that attends to the Catholic theological landscape and that relates to the doctoral program’s emphasis in US Catholic experience as described in the introduction.

• Expertise, demonstrated in teaching or scholarship, appropriate to teach doctoral seminars relevant to UD’s PhD in Theology with an emphasis in US Catholic experience

• Articulated ability to support the University of Dayton’s commitment to the inclusive excellence principles of our Catholic, Marianist mission and identity.

While not everyone may meet all preferred qualifications, the ideal candidate will bring many of the following:

• Successful experience in one or more of the following:

  • Administration of graduate programs in theology

  • Chairing a department

  • Demonstrated success in advising and mentoring graduate students, including graduate students from culturally and socially diverse backgrounds

  • Working with grant-writing offices in securing grants

  • Curricular development for graduate programs

  • Recruiting and marketing programs

  • Supporting assessment and accreditation processes

• Expertise, demonstrated in teaching or scholarship, appropriate to teaching one of the required seminars of UD's doctoral program

• Expertise, demonstrated in research or teaching, that will contribute to the department’s focus on the diversity of US Catholic experience

• Scholarship or teaching experience in ethics/moral theology and/or in other areas of study emphasized in UD’s graduate theological programs, such as Marian studies.

• Nationally- or Internationally-recognized scholarship, e.g. author of a book that became a subject of a symposium, invited lectures, and the like.

• Experience employing active learning strategies to foster and maintain student engagement, including in hi-flex, synchronous and asynchronous online, and face-to-face modes of instructions

• Effective interpersonal communication skills that contribute to a collaborative work environment

• Professional communication skills

• Effective oral communication skills

Applicants for this position should prepare and upload the following:

• A cover letter that addresses all minimum and any preferred qualifications met.

• CV

• A 1 to 2 page statement of the candidate’s ability to engage with the Catholic and Marianist mission of the university and the Theology and Religious Studies department, including consideration of how the university’s Marianist charism would inform their teaching, scholarship, and leadership in the doctoral program.

• Contact information for 3 references who will be contacted later in the process

Posting closes at 11:55 PM ET November 1, 2026.

Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis. The University does not provide work visa sponsorship for this position

Informed by its Catholic and Marianist mission, the University is committed to the dignity of every human being. Informed by this commitment, we seek to increase diversity in all of its forms, achieve fair outcomes, and model inclusion across our campus community. The University is committed to policies of affirmative action designed to increase the employment opportunities of individuals with disabilities and protected veterans in compliance with the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1973.