Voting Rights and the Law (4 units) – Lecturer Posting for USC’s Capital Campus

USC Gould School of Law is seeking a part-time lecturer to teach an undergraduate law class in Washington D.C. at USC’s Capital Campus location – Voting Rights and the Law (4 units). The instructor will begin work this fall 2025 to develop the course. The instructor will then teach the course during the spring 2026 semester, from Jan 12 to May 1, 2026 (final exam period May 6-13). The class will be held on USC’s Capital Campus once a week in the evenings from 6:00 to 9:30PM either on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday depending on the candidate’s availability. The schedule is firm so candidates must be able to teach on campus at the scheduled time.

Candidates should have strong legal professional backgrounds, preferably with teaching experience. The course will be taught exclusively to enrolled undergraduate students. A Juris Doctor degree or PhD is required.

Course Description:

In this course, we will examine and discuss the basic themes surrounding the legal regulation of elections with a focus on voting rights. It will cover all the major Supreme Court cases (and a few important lower court decisions) on the topics such as the law and voting rights, reapportionment/redistricting, ballot access, regulation of political parties, and presidential election controversies. It will also discuss competing political philosophies; alternatives to the two-party system; and the role of the courts and state legislatures in our system. By the end of the course, students should have a basic understanding of the structure, mechanics, and history of the political process in this country, but with an appreciation for the complexities of the right to vote and the difficulties involved in regulating the behavior of political actors.

This class may be postponed to a later semester if there are fewer than 6 students enrolled.

Spring 2026 Academic Calendar

Classes Begin

Mon

January 12

Martin Luther King’s Birthday Holiday

Mon

January 19

President’s Day Holiday

Mon

February 16

Spring Recess

Sun-Sun

March 15-22

Classes End

Fri

May 1

Study Days

Sat-Tue

May 2-5

Exams

Wed-Wed

May 6-13

Final Grading Deadline

Tue

May 19

USC reserves the “Adjunct” appointment for faculty teaching less than full-time at USC, who are employed full-time in a primary profession or career elsewhere. Adjunct faculty typically teach only one course per year but, in exceptional cases, may teach one course per semester, if approved by the dean.

To ensure compliance with federal, state or local regulatory requirements as well as university policy and procedures, Adjunct Lecturers are required to complete specific training requirements as a condition of employment. Adjuncts Lecturers must complete mandated training by a required deadline. Failure to do so may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination, in accordance with the Faculty Handbook. Trainings that are required for all faculty and staff include USC’s Harassment Prevention Training at the time of hire and every two years thereafter, USC’s Integrity and Accountability Code Training at the time of hire, Information Security training annually, and Workplace Violence Prevention Plan training annually. A variety of other trainings may be required based on specific job responsibilities.

https://policy.usc.edu/training-requirements-and-opportunities/

https://employees.usc.edu/learn-grow/learning-and-professional-development/required-training/

The base salary range for this position is $2,376 - $11,000 per semester. When extending an offer of employment, the University of Southern California considers factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the number of units per course, the candidate’s work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, federal, state and local laws, contractual stipulations, grant funding, as well as external market and organizational considerations.

The Gould School of Law (Gould) considers candidates that demonstrate, through ideas, words and actions, a strong commitment to USC’s Unifying Values (link). Gould holds a unique position in society, and within the university, as every aspect of these principles are influenced by and can be protected through legal rules and institutions.  At Gould, we are proudly committed to maintaining a community in which each person respects the rights of others to live, work, and learn in peace and dignity, to be proud of who and what they are, and to have equal opportunity to realize their full potential as individuals and members of society.