Assistant Professor or Open Rank

This position is affiliated with the Kansas Water Institute and is one of several water-related thematic team hires at K-State. Each of these positions will hold a scholarly connection to KWI and will join an interdisciplinary cohort of water-related faculty with the opportunity to collaborate on research, teaching, and engagement. KWI develops and supports interdisciplinary research, teaching and engagement on high-priority water resource problems and objectives identified through the state water plan. The Institute also facilitates effective communication between water resource professionals and helps share and apply research results (see https://www.k-state.edu/engagement/innovation-and-partnerships/interdisciplinary-institutes/water-institute/).

The majority of faculty time will be devoted to research, outreach, and grant focused to advance the objectives of KWI, and the remainder of time will be used to support teaching within the department. The successful candidate will:

• Lead research, along with other interdisciplinary KWI colleagues, into water-related issues impacting Kansas communities and rural areas.
• Deliver creative and effective teaching in courses related to water topics as needed within the teaching time allocation.
• Engage in significant, peer-reviewed research, scholarship, and/or creative activities.
• Supervise independent graduate research.
• Participate in departmental governance.
• Participate in university and professional service.
• Contribute to an environment that fosters collegiality.

The Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional & Community Planning (LARCP) in the College of Architecture, Planning & Design (APDesign) at Kansas State University (K-State) in Manhattan, Kansas seeks a qualified candidate to conduct research on water-related issues impacting Kansas communities and rural areas. This open-rank position is for tenure-track assistant, associate, or full-professor candidates depending on qualifications, expertise, and past funding record. The faculty member will collaborate with colleagues from the Kansas Water Institute (KWI). The faculty member will also teach in the LARCP department related to watershed planning/design and socio-ecological systems.

This position is On-site.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Terminal degree in landscape architecture, landscape ecology, environmental planning, geography (with an emphasis in physical geography), or other discipline with expertise in watershed-scale landscape research and/or management.
• Evidence of the ability to secure, or potentially secure external research funding.
• Expertise in the use of geographic information systems with application to the analysis and planning of watersheds, regional landscapes, and water-related landscape systems.

The degree requirement is necessary for accreditation purposes and to ensure candidates possess the specialized knowledge, skills, and abilities that can only be attained through a formal educational program at this level.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in developing and conducting extramurally funded research.
• Experience in watershed assessment.
• Ability to teach fundamentals of landscape ecology at the watershed scale.
• Experience in stream/waterway and hydrology assessments (including fluvial geomorphology).
• Experience in planning, design, implementation, and management of green infrastructure for stormwater management and flood prevention.
• Active research agenda in any of the above or a related area.
• Ability to potentially teach water related topics like environmental ethics, landscape restoration, master planning/design, landscape performance, or interdisciplinary landscape planning/design.

Sponsorship eligibility:

Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the U.S. on an ongoing basis without sponsorship.

Please submit the following documents:

• Letter of interest with a clear statement of how you meet the minimum and preferred qualifications, to the attention of: KWI/LARCP Faculty Search Chair Howard Hahn.
• Curriculum vitae
• Portfolio: Research, Teaching, and/or Design
• Names of three references (including title, relationship to candidate, mailing address, telephone number, and email address)

Applications close on: January 5, 2026