The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) is a pioneer of purpose-driven science and home to Cornell University’s second largest population of students, faculty and staff. We work across disciplines to tackle the challenges of our time through world-renowned research, education and outreach. The questions we probe and the answers we seek focus on three overlapping concerns: natural and human systems; food, energy and environmental resources; and social, physical and economic well-being. CALS is fundamentally invested in improving the lives of people, their environments and their communities both in New York state and around the world.

About Us:

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is the world's leading resource for conservation, research, education, and citizen science focused on birds. The Lab is a vibrant unit within Cornell's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Staff at the Lab publish research, teach courses, advise students and postdocs, collect and disseminate world-famous digital resources on biodiversity, and engage with partner organizations and citizens around the world to conduct scientific research and facilitate conservation actions.

The Cornell Lab is an inclusive community and we recognize that a diverse workforce creates more innovative and impactful work to address global challenges. We are committed to fostering a healthy workplace that values diverse perspectives and backgrounds as well as supporting growth and advancement opportunities. The Lab welcomes staff who are still learning in their careers and who are motivated to take on new challenges.

Position Function

 

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology seeks a scientist with exceptional knowledge of birds of the world at the species and family levels, experience in scientific writing and editing, original and synthetic research, and public scientific outreach to serve as Science Lead. The Science Lead will become a core part of the academic team responsible for synthesizing data on birds while editing and producing the Birds of the World project.

Birds of the World (BOW) is the Cornell Lab’s signature scientific publication and the largest, most comprehensive avian life history resource in the world. It features 10,824 scholarly accounts covering all bird species, 249 overviews of avian families, hundreds of thousands of multimedia assets, and dynamic bird distribution data from eBird, the world’s largest citizen science database. Stakeholders and users of BOW include individuals (scientists and birdwatchers) as well as organizations (academic and public libraries, nonprofit institutions, agencies, scientific societies, and consulting firms). Based in the Biodiversity Studies and Higher Education program, the Birds of the World Science Lead will join a dynamic team of research leaders, scientific editors, content consultants, web developers, and a worldwide community of academic contributors.

Birds of the World is a dynamic, living, publication, which strives to engage with professional ornithological communities around the world. As Science Lead, you will become a leading figure on this global team, reviewing and preparing accounts for publication and ensuring the highest scientific standards, while developing capacity and expertise across the global team of contributing authors and associate editors. A significant component of this work is maintaining and stewarding the relationships of thousands of contributing-scientist authors worldwide, the collective expertise of whom is reflected in the unprecedented depth of Birds of the World.

This is a three-year appointment, with renewal conditional on availability of funds and satisfactory performance.

Anticipated Division of Time

• Data and Scientific Synthesis (50%). Serve as a key academic/professional component and resource for the Lab’s Science synthesis and editing team. Develop and implement efficient workflows for comprehensive scientific content updates for all bird families and more than 10,000 bird species in online monographs while ensuring appropriately authoritative scientific coverage and the academic rigor of these Cornell Lab publications. Beyond maintaining current scholarly content, the expectation will be to increase the rate of annual account revisions that synthesize new findings; the specific goals for publishing will be discussed annually and set by the team and the Birds of the World Managing Editor, as these depend in part on account management infrastructure and staff, and the level of external collaborator engagement. Keep Birds of the World current with avian taxonomic changes in collaboration with the Cornell Lab Systematics team. Work closely with a team of technical information specialists and software designers at the Lab who will assist in developing the infrastructure required to run the project, as well as archiving and serving the digital assets.

• Community stewardship activities (30%). Work together with the Birds of the World Managing Editor to coordinate and manage a community of professional scientist authors and associate editors to produce and review incoming science content. Identify and recruit authors from the scientific ornithological community to revise family and species accounts. Work with these authors to incorporate new science and associated citations, amend and replace text as needed, and integrate into each account a suite of rich media assets (sound recordings, photos, video, diagrams, etc.) that illustrate various aspects of each species’ natural history.

• Mentoring, teaching, and training (15%). Mentor and supervise Cornell undergraduate students who are working with BOW and/or engaged in independent research projects that advance our understanding of ornithology. Train and supervise individuals from a variety of backgrounds and career levels in scientific data synthesis and scientific writing skills. Supervise Cornell undergraduate workers, and mentor those engaged in independent research projects leading to senior theses and peer-reviewed publications.

• Other (5%). Keep abreast of, and take part in current research related to this position. Represent the Lab in professional contexts related to avian systematics and taxonomy. Other ad hoc duties as assigned by the supervisor.

 

Requirements

• PhD in biology, ecology, natural resources, or related field required. Expert-level knowledge of bird species of the world.
• Experience in synthesizing natural history data and in writing scientific literature on avian life history at the family and/or species level.
• Experience and good working knowledge of scholarly publishing practices, particularly online.
• Professional record of publishing scientific papers in peer reviewed journals.
• Experience as a research mentor and/or teacher of less experienced students and colleagues.
• Demonstrated ability to work constructively with collaborators from a broad range of backgrounds and nationalities.

 

Preferred:

• Experience leading large-scale, multi-layered projects and research.
• Familiarity with and connectivity to the global community of ornithologists, especially those outside of North America and Europe.
• Strong record of enhancing the performance of a team through productive collaborations.
• Strong record of successfully meeting schedules and milestones of research projects that involve multiple stages and several participants.

 

Supervision Exercised

Reports to the Biodiversity Sciences and Higher Education - Digital Publications Lead, Brian Sullivan.

Formal supervision of 8-12 undergraduate student workers annually, and academic supervision of 2-3 undergraduate research students annually. Training of many staff, undergraduates, graduate students, postdocs, and visiting scholars.

To apply:

Please apply via Academic Jobs Online, https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/26626.

Application Deadline is November 23, 2023.

Qualified candidates should submit a short cover letter, curriculum vitae, contact information for three references, and a statement supporting diverse communities (this can be a stand-alone document (preferred) or the information can be embedded in other parts of the application materials) outlining how, through research, teaching, service, mentoring, extension, and/or outreach, the candidate has and will contribute to support Cornell’s historical mission of “any person … any study,” via the website.

Applications will be reviewed as received, continuing until a suitable applicant is identified.

CALS hiring range for this title is $44,800 - $75,000.

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

Life. Changing.

 

Cornell University is an innovative Ivy League and Land-grant university and a great place to work. Our inclusive community of scholars, students, and staff impart an uncommon sense of larger purpose and contribute creative ideas to further the university's mission of teaching, discovery, and engagement.

Cornell’s regional and global presence includes state-wide Cornell Cooperative Extension programs and offices in all counties and boroughs, global partnerships with institutions and communities engaged in life-changing research and education, the medical college’s campuses on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and Doha, Qatar, and the Cornell Tech campus on Roosevelt Island in the heart of New York City.

Diversity and Inclusion are a part of Cornell University’s heritage. We are a recognized employer and educator valuing AA/EEO, and we do not tolerate discrimination based on any protected characteristic, including race, ethnic or national origin, citizenship and immigration status, color, sex/gender, pregnancy or pregnancy-related conditions, age, creed, religion, actual or perceived disability (including persons associated with such a person), arrest and/or conviction record, military or veteran status, sexual orientation, gender expression and/or identity, an individual’s genetic information, domestic violence victim status, familial status, marital status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. We also recognize a lawful preference in employment practices for Native Americans living on or near Indian reservations in accordance with applicable law.

Cornell University embraces diversity and seeks candidates who will contribute to a climate that supports students, faculty, and staff to all identities and backgrounds. We strongly encourage individuals from underrepresented and/or marginalized identities to apply.

 

Pay Range:

$44,800.00 - $85,800.00

Pay Ranges:

The hiring rate of pay for the successful candidate will be determined considering the following criteria:

• Prior relevant work or industry experience.
• Education level to the extent education is relevant to the position.
• Academic Discipline (faculty pay ranges reflects 9-month annual salary)
• Unique applicable skills.

Familiarize yourself with Cornell's COVID-19 workplace guidance as well as the university's COVID-19 services and information.

 

Employment Assistance:

For general questions about the position or the application process, please contact the Recruiter listed in the job posting or email mycareer@cornell.edu.

If you require an accommodation for a disability in order to complete an employment application or to participate in the recruiting process, you are encouraged to contact Cornell University's Office of Institutional Equity and Title IX at voice (607) 255-2242, or email at equity@cornell.edu.

Applicants that do not have internet access are encouraged to visit your local library, or local Department of Labor. You may also request an appointment to use a dedicated workstation in the Office of Talent Attraction and Recruitment, at the Ithaca campus, by emailing mycareer@cornell.edu.

 

Notice to Applicants:

Please read the required Notice to Applicants statement This notice contains important information about applying for a position at Cornell as well as some of your rights and responsibilities as an applicant.

 

EEO Statement:

Diversity and Inclusion are a part of Cornell University’s heritage. We are a recognized employer and educator valuing AA/EEO, and we do not tolerate discrimination based on any protected characteristic, including race, ethnic or national origin, citizenship and immigration status, color, sex/gender, pregnancy or pregnancy-related conditions, age, creed, religion, actual or perceived disability (including persons associated with such a person), arrest and/or conviction record, military or veteran status, sexual orientation, gender expression and/or identity, an individual’s genetic information, domestic violence victim status, familial status, marital status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. We also recognize a lawful preference in employment practices for Native Americans living on or near Indian reservations in accordance with applicable law.

 

Cornell University embraces diversity and seeks candidates who will contribute to a climate that supports students, faculty, and staff to all identities and backgrounds. We encourage individuals from underrepresented and/or marginalized identities to apply.

2023-11-15

 

About Us

Cornell University is an innovative Ivy League university and a great place to work. Our inclusive community of scholars, students and staff impart an uncommon sense of larger purpose and contribute creative ideas to further the university's mission of teaching, discovery and engagement. With our main campus located in Ithaca, NY, Cornell's far-flung global presence includes the medical college's campuses on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and Doha, Qatar, as well as the Cornell Tech campus located on Roosevelt Island in the heart of New York City.

We offer a rich array of services, programs and benefits to help employees advance in their career and enhance the quality of personal life, including: employee wellness, workshops, childcare and adoption assistance, parental leave, flexible work options.

 

Looking for more jobs near me. Find your favorite job now by visiting our jobs page.