Assistant Professor of Legal Practice for Legal Writing/Academic Success Program (00020028)

Working Position Title Assistant Professor of Legal Practice for Legal Writing/Academic Success Program (00020028)

Classification Title Lecturer

Position Number 00020028

Posting Date 08/10/2026

Closing Date

Priority Review Date 09/18/2026

Business Unit Description Faculty

Full-Time/Part Time Full-Time

FTE 1.00

Position Status Regular

FLSA Exempt

Job Code 2070

Union Representation Non-Union

Union Code N/A

Unit/Department College of Law Faculty

College/Unit College of Law Dean

Division Academic Division

Location NAPERVILLE

Link to Department Website or Custom Search Page College of Law

Overview

Northern Illinois University College of Law (NIU Law) invites applications for an Assistant Professor of Legal Practice for Legal Writing/Academic Success Program (ASP) to serve its newly launched evening Part-Time J.D. Program (“PTJD Program” or “Program”). The Program will be based at the NIU Naperville campus, which is approximately 45 minutes from NIU Law’s full-time program on the university’s main campus in DeKalb. The position begins August 2027.

This is a rare and exciting opportunity to join a growing program from the ground up and help shape legal education for a new generation of working professionals in the dynamic suburban Chicago legal market.

About NIU Law

NIU Law is a student-centered, nationally recognized public research university, with expertise that benefits our region and spans the globe in a wide variety of fields including the sciences, humanities, arts, business, engineering, education, health and law. Through our main campus in DeKalb, Illinois, and education centers for students and working professionals in Chicago, Naperville, Oregon and Rockford, NIU offers more than 100 areas of study while serving a diverse and international student body.

Situated within NIU, The College of Law is rooted in access, diversity, and excellence in teaching, with a rich history of distinction in legal education. Student success is our top priority. Our charter is simple: We provide our students with a high-quality and affordable legal education. We want our students to realize the value of a legal education – how their training can help them professionally and how their preparation to practice law will allow them to positively impact the communities in which they live.

The highly skilled faculty at NIU College of Law are educated at some of the nation’s most prestigious law schools, and they bring a broad range of professional experience to the classroom. They are committed teachers and scholars. Our faculty invest significant time in ensuring student success by designing innovative teaching methods, fully engaging students inside and outside the classroom, and providing students with individualized attention and feedback.

NIU College of Law is particularly proud to be routinely named a top law school nationally for diversity, value, and careers in public interest and government service. Our diversity enriches the classroom learning experience, strengthens our curriculum, and prepares our students for practice in a richly diverse region and nation. In the Part-Time J.D. Program, we will continue to cultivate this diversity, promote a culture of equity and inclusion, and support an environment in which all constituents of the law school feel valued and know they have a voice and opportunity to participate in the future of the law school.

About the NIU Law Part-Time J.D. Program

NIU Law’s new Part-Time J.D. Program (PTJD) will welcome its first class in Fall, 2027. The Program is designed for working professionals, career changers, and community-rooted individuals who are ready to earn a rigorous, ABA-accredited law degree without putting their lives on hold. Students in the Naperville PTJD Program earn the same J.D. degree as students in NIU Law’s full-time program over four years.

NIU Law Legal Writing Program: The Legal Writing and Advocacy Course is a core course in the first year curriculum at NIU Law. The four-credit, two- semester course is structured to help first year law students acquire and refine the basic legal writing and analysis skills fundamental to the successful completion of law school and to the competent practice of law. As a secondary goal, students in Legal Writing and Advocacy may also be introduced to other skills and topics important to the practice of law, including oral communication of legal issues, interviewing and counseling, professional responsibility, and motion practice.

Position Summary

This position is located at NIU Law’s new Naperville campus and will primarily focus on teaching in the Part-Time J.D. Program. This position will be expected to coordinate with and work in a collaborative relationship with the legal writing faculty at the DeKalb campus.

Two Campuses, One Law School

Although the PTJD Program will be located in Naperville, it will operate as one law school along with NIU Law’s DeKalb location.

Faculty at the PTJD Program are full members of the NIU Law community and will have service commitments that integrate with faculty in DeKalb. Travel to DeKalb for some service commitments, such as attending faculty meetings, is required.

This position may also need to travel to DeKalb to meet with legal writing faculty at the full-time program.

Teaching Responsibilities

The Assistant Professor of Legal Practice will teach Legal Writing and Advocacy (LWA) I and II. Each two-credit course is required for first-year students. LWA I focuses primarily on objective writing, while LWA II centers on persuasive writing and oral advocacy.

In addition to, and in conjunction with the Legal Writing Program, NIU Law assists law students in achieving their greatest potential through the Academic Success Program (ASP). There are numerous components to ASP throughout the course of the students’ academic career at NIU Law that the Legal Writing/ASP professors are responsible for delivering. As part of ASP, select incoming 1L students are required to participate in a Jump Start Orientation program the week prior to the 1L Orientation. These students are instructed in basic analytical and rule development skills during a week of writing-intensive course work taught and implemented by the Legal Writing/ASP professors.

The Legal Writing/ASP professors, together with the Director of Legal Writing and the Director of Academic Success, are responsible for the delivery of the legal writing and academic success programs at NIU Law. The Academic Success and Legal Writing programs are intentionally linked to reflect the College of Law’s commitment to integrated student support, ensuring that academic skill-building and legal writing instruction reinforce one another throughout a student’s development. Accordingly, this position reports directly to the Director of Legal Writing and coordinates programmatically with the Assistant Dean for Academic Success. This is a ten-month position within the University.

Methods of Teaching and Schedule

The PTJD Program’s class schedule is built around its students’ professional lives. Class formats include:

• In-person instruction on two primary weekday evenings between 5:00–10:00 p.m.
• Occasional Saturdays for specialized courses
• Synchronous and Asynchronous online courses
• Fall and Spring Terms

Professors will be expected to engage in and master in-person, online synchronous, and online asynchronous teaching methods.

Faculty teaching in the PTJD Program are expected to be physically present on the Naperville campus on at least three days per week during the academic year. This is not a remote position.

NIU Law values faculty members who understand and embrace the distinctive needs of non-traditional law students. Teaching effectiveness, accessibility to students, and a commitment to in-person engagement are central expectations of this role.

In addition to teaching in Naperville, faculty members are expected to attend institutional events and contribute to the broader NIU Law community, which includes Fall Orientation, Spring Commencement in DeKalb, and other key law school events.

Distance Education and Technology

Candidates should have a demonstrated experience with or express a willingness to master synchronous and asynchronous online legal instruction. Professors should also have a commitment to staying current on distance education best practices and emerging instructional technologies.

Preferred candidates will have either a demonstrated capacity for or expressed willingness to master the following:

• Synchronous online instruction (live virtual class sessions)
• Asynchronous course design and delivery (recorded lectures, discussion boards, online assessments)
• Learning management systems (e.g., Blackboard or its equivalent)
• Hybrid course modalities that blend in-person and online learning
• Ongoing professional development in distance legal education

The ability and willingness to remain proficient and up to date on best practices in distance education is an ongoing expectation of this position, not merely a hiring preference.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Coordinate with and work in a collaborative relationship with the legal writing faculty at the DeKalb campus.
• Teach the required Legal Writing and Advocacy I and II courses
• Plan and develop legal writing and legal skills problems for these courses
• Provide individual instruction to first-year students
• Grade and comment on legal writing and legal skills assignments
• Assist in the planning, development, and delivery of programs tailored to help ASP students reach their full potential
• Provide academic counseling to ASP students
• Assist in the hiring, training, and oversight of upper-class students who serve as Graduate Assistants for ASP students
• Assist in the planning and delivery of meetings geared toward developing general study and exam skills for the entire first-year class during the fall semester
• Assist in the planning, development, and delivery of the week-long academic orientation program for select incoming 1L students participating in the NIU Law Jump Start Program
• Assist in the planning, development, and delivery of the orientation program for the entire first-year class as needed
• Cooperate and assist with other programs involving oral and written communication skills, including the second-year moot court competition and third-year external moot court teams
• Provide individual instruction to students selected to participate in Upper-Level ASP during fall semester
• Provide individual instruction to first-year students selected to participate in the exam-writing seminar during spring semester
• Assist in the planning, development, and delivery of Bar programs for upper- level students and alumni
• Assist in the continuing in-depth evaluation of both the legal writing and
• academic success programs and identify and implement program improvements
• Maintain a regular in-person presence at the NIU Naperville campus at least three days per week during the academic year
• Participate in law school and university service at both the Naperville and DeKalb campuses
• Advise, mentor, and support PTJD students
• Attend key institutional events including Fall Orientation and Spring Commencement
• Contribute to the ongoing development and improvement of the PTJD Program
• Other responsibilities that may become necessary as determined by the Deans and program directors

Minimum Required Qualifications

• J.D. from an ABA accredited law school
• Valid license to practice law
• Strong writing skills
• Strong academic credentials
• Minimum of two years of teaching and/or practice experience

Additional Requirements

N/A

Preferred Qualifications

• Ability to work well within a coordinated program structure
• Background or training in counseling or educational theory
• Ability to work with a diverse student population
• Strong organizational skills

Physical Demands Summary

For additional physical demands and requirements please see human resources policies and protocols.

Anticipated Appointment Start Date 08/01/2027

Anticipated Appointment End Date

Percent of Staff Year 0.83

Standard Hours Per Week 37.50

Salary Commensurate with experience and qualifications, starting at $70,000.00; NIU offers a robust benefits package.

Hourly or Semi-monthly Pay Rate/Range Commensurate with experience and qualifications, starting at $70,000.00; NIU offers a robust benefits package.

Earn Type Salary

Application Procedure

To be officially considered, applicants must visit Assistant Professor of Legal Practice for Legal Writing/Academic Success Program to create an application profile and submit the following materials by September 18, 2026:

• Cover letter
• Résumé or C.V.
• Unofficial Transcript, with Official at hire
• List of at least 3 Professional References

Preference will be given to applications received by September 18, 2026, though applications will be accepted until the positions are filled.

For questions or to express interest, please contact Lisa Woods, Legal Writing/ASP Professor, at [email protected], or Tiffany Adams, Associate to the Dean, [email protected].

Special Instructions

Quick Link to Applicant https://employment.niu.edu/postings/94823

Is Background Check Required Yes

EEO Statement Summary

In accordance with applicable statutes and regulations, NIU is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, religion, age, disability (physical and mental), marital status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender (identity and expression), political affiliation, or any other factor unrelated to professional qualifications, and will comply with all applicable federal and state statutes, regulations and orders pertaining to nondiscrimination, equal opportunity and affirmative action.

The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies:

Ethics and Compliance Officer, Title IX Coordinator

Health Services Building Room 230

[email protected]

815-753-5560

Visa Policy

In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification document form upon hire.

ADA Accommodation

NIU remains committed to ensuring that its recruitment and application procedures include full opportunities for applicants with disabilities. Employment opportunities will not be denied to anyone because of the need to make accommodations for a person’s disability during either the application or interview process. An applicant who believes they require an accommodation to participate in the employment process due to a disability may request that accommodation through the Accommodation Request Form. For further assistance, please contact the office of Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity (AAEO) at [email protected].

Safety Information

NIU provides annual reports on campus security and fire safety.

Read the Annual Security and Fire Safety Report.

Contact the Ethics and Compliance Office at 815-753-9364 for a hard copy.

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