Twenty-six new tenured and tenure-track faculty members have joined Temple’s ranks from the world’s leading institutions for the 2010-11 academic year.

The arrival of the latest wave of new recruits brings the total number of senior faculty members hired since 2004 to more than 400 — a stunning development at a time when many universities have been experiencing stagnant hiring or even reductions.

“We continue to be committed to bringing the best scholars, researchers, creative artists and teachers to Temple,” said Provost and Interim Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Richard M. Englert. “But it’s not just a matter of quantity. Great universities are built on great faculty members, and the quality of the people who have joined us in recent years has been outstanding and will have an enormous, positive impact on Temple students for generations to come.

”Eleven of Temple’s schools and colleges have welcomed at least one new tenured or tenure-track faculty member so far in 2010-11. The College of Science and Technology and the Fox School of Business led the way with five new faculty members each.

Among the new faculty members  hired by Temple for 2010-11 are Mark Salzer, an expert in community inclusion and community mental health of adults with psychiatric disabilities, who was hired from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine to be the first chair of the College of Health Professions and Social Work’s new Department of Rehabilitation Sciences; Derek Avery, a leading scholar in the area of diversity in the workplace, who joins the Fox School’s Department of Human Resource Management from the University of Houston; Marisol Tellez, an expert in oral health disparities and new systems for the detection and management of caries (tooth decay), who was hired by the Kornberg School of Dentistry to join the Department of Dental Public Health Sciences after serving as academic manager for the Andean Region for Colgate-Palmolive in Colombia; and Daniel Funk, a world leader in consumer behavior research in the sports industry, who comes to Temple’s School of Tourism and Hospitality Management from Australia’s Griffith University.

According to university leaders, Temple’s faculty hiring boom has been made possible by several factors. Enrollment increases since 2000 have generated more tuition revenue and a need for more instructors. In addition, the retirement of a large number faculty members hired in the late 1960s and ‘70s — the years following Temple’s designation as a state-related institution — has increased the number of vacancies. Officials also credit the energy of Temple’s deans, some of whom also came to Temple in recent years.

Temple’s commitment to faculty hiring isn’t likely to end this year, says Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Development and Faculty Affairs Diane C. Maleson. “The provost has authorized more than 80 searches for tenured and tenure-track faculty positions for 2011-12,” she said.

Why we came to Temple?

Name: Mark Salzer

New home: Rehabilitation Sciences, College of Health Professions and Social Work
Why Temple attracted me:
“As a Philadelphia resident, I’ve noticed from across the city that Temple is up-and-coming. The new buildings have really energized the campus. That excited me. But
it really was the commitment to research. That was attractive to me, as well as a wonderful opportunity to create a new department — a world leader — in an emerging field.”

Name: Marisol Tellez

New home: Dental Public Health Sciences, Kornberg School of Dentistry
Why Temple attracted me: “Our current dean, Amid Ismail, is someone I’ve known for a long time and respect a lot. When I came to interview, I met so many different people from different backgrounds — that’s very appealing to me, and it’s not common in academic institutions. I knew that I would have a chance to develop interdisciplinary connections with many people.”

Name: Derek R. Avery

New home: Human
Resource Management, Fox School of Business
Why Temple attracted me: “I love Philadelphia. I am a big fan of large, diverse, culturally interesting cities with rich histories. As someone who studies diversity, I wanted to work at a place that’s diverse. And I’ve been paying attention to the university’s trajectory. It was impressive to me that Temple was hiring faculty members — and hiring a lot.”