James Madison University (JMU) seeks an innovative, forward-thinking and visionary leader to serve as its next Executive Director of the "https://www.jmu.edu/cob/centers/center-for-entrepreneurship/index.shtml"> Gilliam Center for Entrepreneurship (GCFE).
Located in Virginia's beautiful Shenandoah Valley, James Madison University is a Carnegie R2 Doctoral University with high research activity with an enrollment of 21,112 undergraduate, 1,767 graduate students and over 1,000 full-time instructional faculty. JMU offers strong liberal arts and professional programs in a variety of disciplines. The university is committed to innovation, superlative teaching, and scholarship, and JMU has achieved national recognition for the quality of its academic programs. The university has also been repeatedly identified as a best buy for students.
The JMU College of Business, home to the GCFE, offers bachelor's and master's degrees and graduates approximately 700 undergraduate and 100 graduate students each year, led by 150 full-time faculty. Founded in 1985, the GCFE has a compelling mission: to engage, inspire and train the entrepreneurial leaders of tomorrow through outstanding education and hands-on, real world learning experiences. The GCFE is located in the center of a new 210,000-square-foot College of Business Learning Complex, a $100 million building completed in 2020.
The new Executive Director of the GCFE will arrive at an exciting time. The current Executive Director has overseen tremendous growth during her tenure, including the creation of the Idea Power Pitch program and the Bluestone Seed Fund, a donor-backed, equity investment vehicle that invests in early-stage JMU-affiliated startups through a competitive pitch process. In addition, the GFCE has expanded the Madison Inc. incubator program, and the Dukes Venture Accelerator program. In this environment, the next Executive Director has the opportunity to work with an experienced Advisory Board, ready partners internally and externally, and a supportive administration to build on a strong foundation and continue the upward trajectory of a dynamic Center leading entrepreneurship efforts at JMU.
The Executive Director will be responsible for providing leadership and vision for the GCFE with a focus on continuing to grow an entrepreneurial mindset across campus. The position is primarily administrative in nature although the successful candidate will teach one class each semester in entrepreneurship with the Management Department. Because the GCFE has an established and active Advisory Board comprised of highly successful and knowledgeable volunteers, the selected candidate will be able to leverage board members and other relationships to further expand the entrepreneurial ecosystem at JMU. For example, Management 310, Business Fundamentals for Entrepreneurs, is funded by alumnus Shy Pahlevani and culminates with the Hisaoka-Pahlevani Social Impact Challenge.
All applications, nominations, and inquiries are invited. Applications should include, as separate documents, a CV or resume and a letter of interest addressing the themes in the "https://wittkieffer.com/positions/200952">leadership profile.
WittKieffer is assisting James Madison University in this search. For fullest consideration, candidate materials should be received by May 2. Application materials should be submitted using WittKieffer's candidate portal.
Nominations and inquiries may be directed to Greg Duyck and Julia Bradley at "mailto:JMUGilliamExecDir@wittkieffer.com.">JMUGilliamExecDir@wittkieffer.com.