Dean, College of Arts & Letters at Michigan State University in EAST LANSING, Michigan

Job Description:

Michigan State University

Dean, College of Arts & Letters

Michigan State University (MSU) invites nominations and applications for the position of Dean of the College of Arts & Letters. With students from all 50 states and nearly 140 countries, MSU strives to foster a community that respects and values a broad range of backgrounds and viewpoints in order to create opportunities for all. This is an exciting time of change at MSU, with a new, visionary, and highly regarded President who has great aspirations to further the Universitys reputation and stature. MSU offers more than 400 academic programs across its 17 degree-granting colleges. With approximately ten recently-appointed deans, this is a vibrant, dynamic moment filled with energy and optimism for new possibilities.

The College of Arts & Letters has identified five strategic priorities: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; Arts & Storytelling; Engaged Pedagogy and Practice; Wellbeing; and Research and Innovation. In addition, there is a strong culture of care that permeates the College. In this context, the College seeks a human-centered, values-driven leader who cares deeply about people and collaborative culture building. The next College of Arts & Letters Dean also should have a comprehensive understanding of the state of arts and humanities across the United States as well as new ways of thinking about fields and disciplines in light of societal, cultural, and technological changes.

Nine departments comprise the College: African American & African Studies; Art, Art History, and Design; English; Linguistics, Languages, and Cultures; Philosophy; Religious Studies; Romance and Classical Studies; Theatre; and Writing, Rhetoric, and Cultures. While 1,541 undergraduates and 238 graduate students are enrolled in the College, it serves more than 5,000 students overall through its contribution to the general education curriculum, offers 25 majors, and boasts a 95% undergraduate placement rate. The College is home to 316 FTE faculty (168 tenure-system and 148 fixed-term), 71 FTE academic staff, and 55 FTE nonacademic staff. The College hosts numerous research centers that produce innovative scholarship and provide opportunities for students to engage in firsthand learning. Over the last four years, research awards in the College have ranged from $3.7 million to $6 million.

A vibrant living-learning community devoted to using the arts and humanities to make positive change in the world, the Residential College in the Arts and Humanities (RCAH) opened its doors to students in 2007. RCAH offers opportunities for creative collaboration and discovery in a focused community in which students in the same major live, attend class, socialize, and form lifelong connections with friends and mentors. With an average class size of 15 students, RCAH provides the advantages of a small, private college with the opportunities of a large research university. MSU has begun to explore the possibility of integrating RCAH into the College of Arts & Letters. A single strong arts, letters, and humanities collegecombined with existing strategic initiatives related to the arts, research, and community outreach and engagementis expected to position MSU to be a national leader in the arts and humanities.

The Dean will set a clear, innovative vision for the future of the arts and humanities at MSU and implement the newly developed College of Arts & Letters strategic plan. The Dean will also raise enrollments through a focus on student recruitment, play a leadership role in MSU General Education redesign efforts, and secure additional resources for the College, some of which will be used to improve theatre and arts facilities. In addition, the Dean will recruit and retain the best faculty and staff and enhance their career development, ensure a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment for all members of the College community, and champion and advocate for the College across the entire University and beyond. The Dean will promote the Colleges community-engaged research, digital humanities, and creative discovery agenda, and incentivize faculty to do more funded research.

The Dean serves at the pleasure of the Provost with an initial appointment of a renewable five-year term. The ideal candidate will possess a terminal degree, have a proven record of scholarly achievement, demonstrate the level of excellence expected for a full professor in a College of Arts & Letters department, and bring relevant administrative experience to the table.

The full Position Specification can be found at https://bit.ly/MSUCAL.

Inquiries, nominations and applications are invited. Interested candidates should submit confidentially, in electronic form (Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF files preferred), a curriculum vitae and letter of interest to:

Dr. Jett Pihakis

MSU.CAL@russellreynolds.com

(202) 654-7800

Materials should represent qualifications relative to the opportunities and challenges described in the full Position Specification, inclusive of a statement detailing how your past and future work will contribute to advancing MSUs commitment to inclusive excellence.

For fullest consideration, materials should be received as soon as possible and preferably by January 13, 2025.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, citizenship, age, disability, or protected veteran status.

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