Vice President for Finance and Administrative Services Leadership Profile

CONFIDENTIAL Prepared by

Jane E. Courson Karen L. Goldstein, Ph.D. March 2015

This Leadership Profile is intended to provide information about Knox College and the position of VP for Finance and Administrative Services. It is designed to assist qualified individuals in assessing their interest.

The Opportunity

Knox College, a distinguished and globally diverse national liberal arts college located in the heart of the Midwest, seeks an innovative financial leader to become its next Vice President for Finance and Administrative Services (VPFA). Successful candidates will be passionate about the life-changing opportunities a liberal arts education can provide for students.

Reporting to President Teresa L. Amott, the VPFA serves as a key advisor to the President and works collaboratively with her, the Board of Trustees, senior leadership, faculty, and staff to assure a successful and stable financial future for the College. The VPFA provides leadership, vision and proactive financial planning in the development of initiatives that will optimize resources in support of the College’s mission and strategic priorities. The VPFA’s responsibilities include oversight and management of the business office, accounting, purchasing and operations, facilities management and construction, campus safety, human resources, dining services and the bookstore. The VPFA also has primary responsibility for the development and implementation of the College’s annual operating budget of approximately $40 million.

Ideal candidates will have a track record of creative problem solving and experience leading change with demonstrated financial management success in higher education or a similarly complex organizational setting. Such candidates will be superb communicators with exceptional analytical skills who work collaboratively with colleagues in a spirit of partnership and transparency to advance institutional goals. They will appreciate shared governance and advocate for an environment that promotes inclusive decision-making, best practices, student success, and a sense of community across the institution and will support and advance the College's many sustainability initiatives, working in collaboration with campus constituencies and external entities. The successful candidate will resonate with Knox’s deeply rooted commitment to diversity in all its forms and demonstrate a willingness to model and promote respect, equity, and inclusiveness in day-to-day interactions across campus.

Knox College is a nationally ranked, private, residential liberal arts college of 1,420 undergraduate students located in Galesburg, Illinois. Founded in 1837 by social reformers strongly opposed to slavery, Knox was one of the first colleges in the United States open to all, regardless of race, gender, and financial means. With a campus population that includes students from 48 states and 51 countries, significant representation of first-generation college students, and substantial cultural, racial, and ethnic diversity, Knox is a vibrant and creative community. One of 40 Colleges that Change Lives, Knox College provides students with an academically rigorous and transformational education.

Please see the Procedure for Candidacy section later in the document for more information regarding inquiries, nominations and applications.

Overview

Knox is a national treasure, one of the best of America’s liberal arts colleges. For decades it has been one of the most productive of all American colleges and universities in educating future PhDs and its alumni have made lasting contributions to politics, journalism, the arts and humanities, sciences, business, and medicine. They have led presidential transition teams and Fortune 500 companies, argued cases in front of the U.S. Supreme Court, and contributed to the well being of our local, national, and international communities. Because of its intellectual integrity, the dedication of its faculty, and its enduring commitment to access, Knox has been transformational in the lives of generations of students.

A national liberal arts college of distinction, located in the heart of the Midwest, Knox maintains its dedication to the pursuit of academic excellence and social engagement. Founded by abolitionists and social reformers in 1837, four years after Oberlin and nine years before Grinnell, it set out to improve society by educating young people for productive and conscientious citizenship, regardless of their race, gender, or financial condition. It was among the first institutions in the country to offer a full and equal college education to people of color and to women. The pervasive spirit of equality on campus motivated Abraham Lincoln to use the occasion of his fifth U.S. Senate debate with Stephen Douglas, held on the Knox campus in 1858, to denounce slavery on moral terms for the first time.

This progressive and egalitarian spirit continues to thrive at Knox today. The College’s 1,420 students are diverse, drawn from different ethnic groups, from varied economic backgrounds, from the biggest cities as well as the smallest farming communities, from every part of the United States and from more than 50 other nations around the world. An unusually high percentage of students are the first members of their family ever to attend college. While pursuing a distinctive liberal arts education, they engage in open and vigorous exchange of ideas both inside and outside the classroom. They participate actively in every aspect of campus life, from research projects with faculty to active involvement in governance. They expand their

3 horizons through high levels of participation in off-campus study programs. And they put their ideas and principles to the test in the real world, volunteering in projects that range from harvesting food from the Knox Farm on campus to helping young girls in India learn how to avoid exploitation and assert their human rights.

At Knox, the commitment to its ideals is expressed through its actions. From financial support to ensure access for all students regardless of background to student-designed majors and minors, from its nationally recognized commitment to sustainability to its long-standing dedication to social justice and support of student activism, the Knox community lives according to its principles.

Throughout its history, Knox has been dedicated to academic achievement. One indication of this is its notable success in preparing graduates for advanced study. A National Science Foundation (NSF) 2012 Survey of Earned Doctorates ranked Knox in the top four percent of liberal arts colleges in the proportion of graduates who have earned doctorates in business, and in the top 10 percent for graduates who have earned doctorates in mathematics, computer science and the physical sciences. Over all, Knox is in the top fifth of its comparison group of baccalaureate arts and sciences colleges in many broad-ranging fields -- business, mathematics and computer science, the physical sciences, life sciences, humanities and social sciences. This is a tribute, of course, to Knox students, but above all to the intellectually engaged and dedicated teachers who make up its faculty.

College Leadership

The Board of Trustees Members of the Knox College Board of Trustees serve as the ultimate fiduciaries in their oversight of institutional affairs in accordance with the College’s charter, bylaws, statements of mission and purpose, and institutional priorities. The Board is comprised of up to 37 general Trustees. There are currently 36 general trustees, 92 percent of whom are graduates of Knox College. In addition to the general trustees, there are 18 Life Trustees and 3 Honorary Trustees.

College Officers The Knox College officers include the President, the Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College, the Vice President and Chief Information Officer, the Vice President for Advancement, the Vice President for Enrollment and Dean of Admission, and the Vice President

4 for Finance and Administrative Services. Other members of the President’s Council include the Dean of Students, the Associate Vice President and Chief Communication Officer, the Associate Dean of the College, the Director of Government & Community Relations, Chief Institutional Research Officer, and the Executive Assistant to the President. The College will be launching a search for a Vice President for Student Development in the near future.

The President Dr. Teresa L. Amott is the 19th president of Knox College. She is the first woman to lead the 178-year-old institution.

Prior to assuming her post at Knox College, President Amott spent six years as provost and dean of the faculty at Hobart and William Smith Colleges (HWS) in Geneva, New York. At HWS, she helped design and implement the strategic plan focused on expanding the academic program and faculty, increasing faculty diversity, and renovating the academic facilities. Before joining HWS, she served as vice provost at Gettysburg College for five years. She has held academic appointments at Bucknell University, Harvard University, University of Massachusetts- Boston and Amherst, and Wellesley College.

Educated in economics, President Amott holds a Ph.D. from Boston College and a B.A. from Smith College. Her research has focused on the labor market experiences of women and people of color. She is co-author of Race, Gender, and Work: A Multicultural Economic History of Women in the United States (with Julie Matthaei).

President Amott brings a unique global perspective to Knox. Born in Bolivia to a Brazilian mother and a United States Foreign Service father, she lived and studied abroad much of her childhood.

College Community

Knox College is well-known for its exceptionally strong sense of community. It prides itself on its ability to welcome, nurture, and support students from around the world, while providing a caring and inclusive work environment for both faculty and staff.

Students

Knox enrolls 1,420 undergraduate students. More than 97 percent of students live on or near the campus. Knox’s student body is diverse and approximately 57 percent are women, 29 percent are first generation college students, 34 percent are Pell-eligible students, 27 percent are U.S. students of color, and 11 percent are international students.

Consistent with Knox’s commitment to first generation and low income students, roughly 78 percent of students receive some form of need-based financial aid. The average aid package in 2014-15 amounted to $27,884 from all sources.

Knox’s commitment to access and fairness drove the College to become test optional in 2005, no longer requiring students to submit ACT or SAT scores. The College’s goal was to lower barriers facing talented students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Today about 85 percent of students submit scores, and they compare favorably with those of earlier years when scores were required. Roughly 33 percent of entering students are in the top tenth of their high school class.

Although the quality and diversity of Knox students remains high, the admission environment is extremely challenging. Knox competes directly against larger and wealthier institutions. Three of its top five admission overlap institutions are the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, Grinnell College, and Beloit College. In recent years Knox’s admit rate has averaged in the high 60 percent and thus far this year, is tracking significantly lower. Yield has been about 20 percent.

Faculty

Knox’s academic distinction rests above all on a faculty of exceptionally dedicated teacher- scholars. Knox has approximately 120 full-time faculty, 98 percent of whom have a Ph.D. or terminal degree. In the classic tradition of liberal arts colleges, excellence in teaching is of paramount importance. Knox faculty members typically teach a total of six courses a year, spread over three trimesters. Almost all these courses are small, intimate, and intensely interactive; the average class size is 17. Classes are designed specifically to invite the testing of ideas and the critical exchange of intellectual perspectives. In recent surveys--such as the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) given to first year students and seniors and Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) administered to first year students upon arrival at Knox--Knox students are significantly more likely to have participated in high-impact and enriching educational practices than their Carnegie class peers. Most specifically, these surveys indicate the significant opportunities Knox students have to interact with peers from diverse backgrounds, develop their ideas through written communication, and develop close mentoring relationships with faculty.

6 In addition, faculty invest themselves in an unusually rich program of undergraduate research, scholarship, and creative work and independent study. Select students also participate in the College Honors Program, cited by the Fund for the Improvement of Post-Secondary Education as a national model. Fully 85 percent of Knox students complete a faculty-supervised independent research, scholarly, or creative project by the time they graduate.

Intensive teaching of this sort is rooted in the faculty’s own scholarly engagement. In the last three academic years, Knox’s 97 tenure-line faculty have published eight books and more than 100 articles in peer- reviewed journals, presented more than 100 exhibits or public performances, and served as proposal reviewers for the NSF, NIH, NEH, ACLS, and the Fulbright Commission. There have been several notable accomplishments: in 2014, Knox was awarded two National Science Foundation Major Research Instrumentation grants (totaling $340,000); several faculty have received NSF grants for enhancing STEM experiences for underrepresented students, student research collaboration in computer science, and collaborative research with RI institution colleagues. Elsewhere on campus, faculty have recently received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts for a local jazz festival, the Illinois Humanities Council to stage a world premiere play, and a Mellon Foundation planning grant to explore the digital humanities. And in addition to College operating funds, faculty across the campus are currently supported by a $400,000 Mellon Foundation faculty development grant.

The Knox Board of Trustees has protected the College’s 12:1 student/faculty ratio throughout its financial challenges, a key decision that enabled the College to maintain the quality of its academic program during trying times. The size of the faculty has grown in keeping with the increase in student population, making possible additional curricular enhancements and innovations. Faculty compensation has suffered during periods of financial constraint, and still lags behind other colleges within Knox’s peer group.

Staff

An equally dedicated staff of approximately 300 administrators, managers, professional, technical, clerical, craft, and maintenance people keep Knox running. Their warmth, high standards, and commitment to the College are clear. They are respected and valued members of the Knox community. In 2014, 54 percent of Knox faculty and staff contributed to the College, a testament of their loyalty to Knox.

7 Strategic reductions in staff have periodically been made across the institution as economic conditions warranted. As a result, staff sizes have not kept pace with the growth in the size of the College. Recurring complaints about thin staffing levels continue to hamper the institution’s efficiency.

Alumni

Knox alumni are an essential resource for the College. There are more than 16,000 “alumni of record,” demonstrating the value of a Knox education and carrying Knox’s banner across the country and around the world. The Alumni Council provides a means for the College to consult with representatives of the alumni body and provides a way for alumni to support the College and maintain their commitment to its educational mission.

Alumni involvement has increased over the past decade. Attendance at Homecoming has doubled from about 500 a decade ago to more than 1,000 today. Regional alumni activity has also grown. The number of annual events at Knox clubs outside the immediate region has averaged 40 over the last several years, with an average attendance of about 1,600. Giving participation among graduates is 33 percent. The College raised more than $3.4 million for its Annual Fund in 2014, and typically raises more than $10 million annually overall, a testament to the depth of alumni loyalty. Knox's recent fundraising successes, including annual growth in the Knox Fund and the College's endowment, record-breaking fundraising totals, and successful capital projects like Alumni Hall, won recognition from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), an international association of educational institutions. The organization selected Knox for a 2014 CASE Educational Fundraising Award for Overall Performance. CASE's Educational Fundraising Awards are based on data submitted to the Council for Aid to Education's annual Voluntary Support of Education survey, which is co- sponsored by CASE. In selecting Overall Fundraising Performance winners, judges use several factors to recognize institutions that show solid program growth, breadth in the base of support and other indications of a mature, well-maintained program.

8 Academics

The hallmark of a Knox education is what the College’s mission statement calls “opportunities for sophisticated research and creative expression.” In the College’s most recent re- accreditation from the Higher Learning Commission/North Central Association (2009), 85 percent of Knox graduates complete an independent research or creative project, and more than 50 percent have worked on a research project with a faculty member outside of course requirements. The Vovis Center for Research and Advanced Study coordinates much of this activity and works with students to guide and oversee their research, scholarly, and creative projects.

In 2002, Knox significantly revised students’ graduation requirements, the first significant revision of Knox’s curriculum in a quarter of a century. It reflected a desire to rethink the framing of the College’s approach to the liberal arts. Additionally, it also responded to the need to relate Knox’s enduring commitment to the liberal arts to the findings of a recent market analysis highlighting the increasingly instrumental, results-oriented view of undergraduate education expressed by students and their families.

The curriculum has four guiding themes:

● Preserving the essentials ● Adapting to an interconnected world ● Connecting knowledge and experience ● Personal ownership of one’s education

To achieve these goals, the curriculum is organized around five building blocks:

● Foundations: At least one designated Foundations course in each of five broad areas (Arts, History and Social Sciences, Humanities, and Mathematics and Natural Sciences) ● Specialization: a major field of study, plus a second field of concentration ● Key Competencies: writing, oral presentation, quantitative literacy, information literacy and informed use of technology, second language, understanding diversity ● Experiential Learning: an out-of-classroom hands-on learning experience ● Educational Plan: developed in consultation with the pre-major advisor, by the end of the sophomore year.

Although this curriculum has well served the College and its students over the past decade, the national higher education environment and the changing student demographics suggest that the College rethink and revitalize its curriculum. This spring, under the leadership of the faculty, the College will launch a review of these requirements again, with an eye toward creating a liberal arts education at Knox that is responsive to the 21st century student.

9 Knox’s academic strengths are distributed across the curriculum. The creative and performing arts are deeply integrated into campus, and the Knox creative writing program is known nationally. The program regularly has students awarded writing prizes in the Associated Colleges of the Midwest competitions, and the literary magazine Catch, has won national awards. The social sciences broaden a student’s experience in traditional liberal arts disciplines, such as political science, sociology and anthropology, and economics, as well as more applied areas, such as educational studies and social service. The humanities and physical and natural sciences offer students intensive classroom experiences, as well as opportunities for undergraduate research, scholarship, and creative work. In all, the College offers 38 majors and 49 minors, as well as robust pre-professional programs in medicine and allied health fields, and law, and participates in 3-2 engineering programs.

Much of the College’s academic program does not confine student learning to the classroom. Indeed, all Knox students are required to complete an experiential learning component, such as an internship, study abroad, or undergraduate research. About 40 percent of Knox students engage in off-campus study, and more than 70 percent complete an internship or other work experience related to their fields of study. Throughout the academic year and summer, Knox students can be found on campus in the library, labs and studios and around the world putting their classroom-based knowledge into practice.

During the past decade, Knox has added several new programs that emphasize the interdependence of practical aims with the well-grounded critical thinking of the traditional liberal arts. For example, neuroscience was introduced as a minor and then expanded to a major, funded through a grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Minors and majors have been added in response to student desire for more explicit career pathways: business and management, journalism, social service, and financial mathematics (first three as minors only, the last as a major as well as a minor). Conversations on campus this year are advancing to adding several more areas of study driven by student demand and faculty interest. These areas may include: human health, astronomy, statistics, social justice, and arts management. The vitality of the curriculum is reliant on an engaged faculty attentive to current trends in higher education and attuned to how the liberal arts can and should be articulated within a diversity of disciplines.

Finally, Knox’s educational experience is known for its immersive terms, a cluster of courses in one term focused around a theme. The interrelatedness of knowledge is paramount to these immersive terms, and the deep learning that students experience in them often are the highlight of a student’s experience. The College offers several immersive term opportunities, including Repertory Term in our Theatre Department, during which students complete all of the requirements necessary to stage two full-length plays, and then perform them. Green Oaks Term, hosted at our 700-acre biological field station, that weaves together biology, sustainability, and the arts. Japan Term, a set of three courses in Japanese Buddhism, Asian history, and Japanese language that culminates in a two-week travel seminar to Japan. And the College’s newest immersive term, Kickstart, is a partnership between computer science and business and management that replicates a startup incubator for the term. Teams of students develop ideas, create the software and business model, and then pitch the project to local entrepreneurs.

10 Finances

As is typical of small, private liberal arts colleges, Knox is highly tuition-driven. Revenue from tuition and student fees funds more than 80 percent of its $40 million annual operating budget. It has outstanding debt of $25 million. The endowment as of June 30, 2014, exceeded $124 million, the highest year-end valuation in the College’s history, and the discount rate for the current academic year is 56 percent. Its draw on the endowment is 6.5 percent. The comprehensive fee for undergraduate students for 2014-15 totals $49,221.

In the 1990s, Knox implemented an ambitious but unsuccessful growth strategy that left the College in financial distress. For decades, the College has struggled to eliminate a structural budget deficit of $2-3 million a year. During this period, the Board approved deficit budgets with the understanding that any budget shortfall would be addressed by the end of the fiscal year through ad hoc budget reductions. In recent years, Knox has also felt the impact of the 2008 economic meltdown. In response, the College implemented a multi-part plan that included: a freeze on hiring; limited extensions of new tenure-track faculty lines; careful management of enrollment, tuition, and financial aid; deferral of capital projects; and other specific budget reduction targets for each division. The recession related tactics were largely effective, and the College feels its regained economic footing is sustainable.

Knox remains committed to its mission of access and opportunity and provides financial support in some form of grant aid to nearly 98 percent of its students. The College understands that its operating needs cannot be fully addressed going forward unless it increases revenue from all sources, including student charges, and that it must significantly increase its capital gifts to address its deferred maintenance, facilities, and other capital needs. A market research firm has been retained to help the College raise its visibility, increase its understanding of and improve its position in the marketplace. Knox has intensified its fund raising activity and has identified $90 million in fundraising initiatives to target between now and 2018, intended to increase the endowment and enrich the student experience; address deferred maintenance and capital project needs; and continue to enhance alumni engagement.

More important, the College has recognized that to improve its long-term financial health and vitality and emerge as a stronger, more confident, and vibrant institution, it must replace its traditionally conservative management style with a more strategic, pragmatic, and entrepreneurial financial management approach.

Facilities

The Knox College campus contains many buildings of historic significance and great beauty but most are in need of significant repair or renewal. A targeted restoration process has begun with remarkable results. Historic Alumni Hall, located in the center of campus, has recently been completely renovated and restored to full luster. Inviting and beautifully appointed gathering spaces welcome students, faculty, staff, and

11 visitors alike. Construction of a new art building is currently in the design and fundraising stage, and the 40-year-old Umbeck Math-Science Center, a centrally located and heavily used academic building, is slated for a staged renovation by 2018. Despite these recent accomplishments, a significant deferred maintenance backlog continues to challenge the College. Many key facilities, including residence halls and athletic spaces, need to be updated or replaced. Developing a pragmatic and attainable plan to address facility needs and create more useful and attractive space across campus has been recognized as an institutional priority if the College is to strengthen academic and community life and maintain its ability to attract talented students.

Strategic Plan

Knox’s current strategic plan, Knox 2018, so named because it runs through 2018, challenges the College to push the boundaries of teaching and scholarship; to expand learning opportunities beyond the classroom; to develop and nurture a campus community -- faculty, staff, and students -- that reflects today’s global world; to increase engagement with its network of alumni, parents, and the surrounding community; to reshape and renew its physical spaces; and to enhance its financial base.

The Knox 2018 strategic plan includes three goals and 11 strategic priorities:

1. Advance Knox’s Distinctive Approach to Liberal Learning - Building upon Knox’s mission to "to understand and improve ourselves, our society, and our world" and "to put learning to use to accomplish both personal and social goals," the College will bolster its traditional strengths while embracing new areas of study and innovative learning experiences that are critical for student success in the 21st century. Students will learn through interdisciplinary and integrative experiences inside and outside the classroom and develop skills and competencies through active hands-on learning.

2. Engage Our Diverse, Vibrant Campus Community - One of Knox College's greatest assets is our sense of community, rooted in our historic commitment to egalitarianism, access, and outreach across campus and into the Galesburg community. Today, the idea of community at the heart of residential liberal arts colleges has expanded from the local to the global and deepened to reflect inclusivity across multiple dimensions of human experience. This broad sense of community is a core element of academic excellence in higher education. Over the next five years, the College will strengthen its culture of inclusivity through programs that foster engagement and participation across the many constituencies that make up the Knox community.

3. Ensure a Knox Education for Generations to Come - The tradition of a liberal arts education in a residential setting is resilient: and so is Knox, persisting and evolving through extraordinary economic and social changes. Now, 178 years after our founding, we continue to offer a life-changing education in a small, personalized setting. The students, who graduate from Knox, enter society equipped with the ideas and skills needed to lead in a changing, globalized world and to make sound choices for a more socially equitable and ecologically sustainable future. As we look toward 2018 and further beyond to 2037 and Knox’s bicentennial, this is the time to ensure that generations to come can benefit from a Knox education.

The Role of the Vice President for Finance and Administrative Services

Knox College seeks a confident and experienced financial leader to serve as its next Vice President for Finance and Administrative Services. Reporting to the President and working in close partnership with other members of the senior leadership team, the VPFA serves as the College’s chief financial and administrative officer and plays a key role in the management and operation of the institution. The VPFA is expected to be innovative and entrepreneurial in the pursuit and development of strategies that fully optimize resources and further the College’s overall academic, administrative, and strategic initiatives.

The Vice President is responsible for providing leadership, vision, and management to the Division of Finance and Administrative Services. The division supports the College’s overall financial and administrative operations, including development and management of the institution’s annual operating budget. The division also supports finance and accounting, the business office, purchasing and operations, facilities management and construction, campus safety, human resources, legal affairs, dining services and the bookstore.

The VPFA oversees six direct reports and an overall staff of approximately 120.

The division currently includes the following functions:

● Accounting and Budget ● Legal Affairs ● Risk Management ● Insurance ● Human Resources ● Campus Safety ● Purchasing ● Accounts Payable ● Contract Management ● Payroll ● Facilities Planning and Management (Custodial, Maintenance and Grounds) ● Dining Services ● Bookstore

Opportunities and Expectations for Leadership

The Vice President for Finance and Administrative Services will be joining Knox at a critical moment in its history as the institution strives to achieve long-term budget equilibrium through proactive planning that balances fiscal stability with high expectations and aspirations for the future. The challenge is clearly not intended to maintain the status quo. The VPFA will have the opportunity to partner with a resourceful and innovative president and strong senior leadership team in the imagining, development, and implementation of ambitious and forward-thinking initiatives, many outlined in the College’s Knox 2018 Strategic Plan, that will ensure ongoing growth and financial stability and guide the College through this uncertain economic environment.

The VPFA will provide advice and leadership that will enable and facilitate beneficial change. The Vice President will serve as an idea generator who has experience with a variety of budget models and will demonstrate the ability to translate the implications of complex financial decisions to various audiences. The VPFA must be entrepreneurial and creative in seeking out new sources of revenues in ways that reflect an understanding of and commitment to the College’s overall strategic priorities and commitment to academic excellence.

The new VPFA will participate in the following short and long-term leadership opportunities:

Partner with the President

The VPFA will join a President with a clear and compelling vision for the future and a Board of Trustees and senior leadership council whose members are committed to working in partnership, reflecting the collaborative and supportive spirit of the entire campus community. The President and the senior team share a strong commitment to enhancing the College’s rich history of academic excellence and student-centered programs as they plan for the future. By all accounts the President, an economist, is creative and energetic, comfortable working with data, and with the capacity to absorb vast amounts of complex financial information and its implications quickly. She would welcome a financial partner to provide entrepreneurial thinking and analysis to support institutional planning in this challenging period of constrained resources.

14 Establish a Transparent Budget Process

The new VPFA will play an important role in establishing a more transparent and collaborative budget planning process across the campus, assuring a clear understanding of policies and procedures and establishing new ones as needed, that will all be consistently applied across operations. The Vice President will also be responsible for assessing and improving all administrative support functions within the finance and administrative services division. The ultimate goal is to establish a process that is inclusive, participatory, and clearly defines the College’s goals and strategic priorities and restores long-term financial security, equilibrium, and sustainability.

Promote a Spirit of Innovation

The next VPFA will join an institution whose employees possess a strong commitment to the College, as well as a spirit of innovation. There is an equally strong desire to perform well and provide outstanding service to the campus community, hampered in recent years due to financial constraints. The VPFA will have the opportunity to explore and encourage new ideas that both support and promote this innovative spirit in matters pertaining to financial and human resources, construction and facilities management, and auxiliary services. The College’s Knox 2018 Strategic Plan also includes priorities for auxiliary income, which this position would spearhead.

Enhance Financial Literacy

The VPFA will join a campus community that understands the financial realities of a small, private, tuition-driven College with a commitment to liberal arts education. Clearly, this is a consultative community that wants to participate in the discussion of financial issues impacting the future. The new VPFA will work with the President and other members of the President’s Council to inform and further educate the campus community about the institution’s financial resources, and build a shared understanding of the choices and opportunities for the future. The VPFA will work with the board, senior leadership, faculty, staff, and students to maintain trust and transparency and inform the Knox community on all of the College’s financial and compliance issues.

Provide Division Leadership and Enhance Operations, Service, Effectiveness and Efficiency

The Division of Finance and Administrative Services strives to provide the best possible support services to the campus community. The VPFA will inherit a capable and committed team who work well together, understand the constraints of operating within limited budgets, and are proud of their ability to accomplish more with less. Across the division, questions exist about the ability to meet ongoing, let alone increasing, service needs at current staffing levels. Compliance and other regulatory requirements have increased, and the institution’s operations have become more complex.

The VPFA will want to assess and review the division to evaluate strengths, identify areas that may be under performing due to limited staff or resources, and develop plans that enhance efficiency, customer service, and the appropriate application of information and technology. The underlying goal is to create an energized, supportive, and collaborative environment across the division that encourages communication and initiative and provides mentoring and

15 professional development opportunities to maximize staff potential and performance. The VPFA will also be a proactive advocate for the division and strive to educate the campus community regarding best practices that will improve efficiency and deliver the highest level of customer service possible.

Develop a Plan to Improve Campus Facilities

Like many small colleges and universities with limited resources, Knox has developed a backlog of deferred maintenance over time. The need for updated facilities and campus space issues are becoming increasingly apparent and beginning to impact the College’s ability to recruit and retain students in this highly competitive environment. Targeted fund raising initiatives will address renovations in some outdated academic and athletic facilities and provide resources for enhanced technology. New residence halls are also a priority. The next VPFA will need to develop and sustain a comprehensive program to resolve the deferred maintenance backlog, including updating the technology infrastructure across campus.

Advance and Nurture a Culture of Sustainability

The College has a long-standing record of setting and meeting ambitious goals in the realm of sustainability, and has achieved a STARS Silver rating and a Gold rating from the Illinois Campus Sustainability Compact. Many practices covered by these ratings fall within the areas of responsibility of the VPFA. For instance, the College has long banned trays in dining halls and composts all food waste from the student cafeteria, has an extensive recycling program, encourages the use of green cleaning products, has committed to LEED certification in current building projects, and is now recognized by the EPA as a Green Power Partner. The VPFA will be responsible for continued progress in this area and will work collaboratively with students, faculty and staff to identify creative solutions and new initiatives.

Foster a Culture of Communication, Collaboration and Transparency

The members of the Knox College faculty, administration, and staff are committed to a well- established culture of shared governance. The next VPFA will benefit from and build upon this commitment through thoughtful communication and engagement with all members of the community. The VPFA will want to build strong and productive relationships with academic affairs and other divisions to understand their needs better and to support the development of a collective vision and voice across the institution. The College seeks a strong communicator who listens well, shares information, and takes the initiative to encourage innovation and idea generation across campus. The VPFA will be a proactive partner and work with senior leadership to encourage innovation and facilitate communication across divisions that will promote understanding and allow the Finance and Administrative Services Division to find more creative solutions to serve campus needs better. As part of the campus leadership, the VPFA will resonate with Knox’s deeply rooted commitment to diversity in all its forms, and model respect and inclusiveness in all interactions.

16 The VPFA Leadership Agenda

The VPFA oversees a complex portfolio of responsibilities, including all financial activities, human resources, facilities and construction services, auxiliary services, legal affairs and risk management. The agenda items below are those most important to the success of the new VPFA in the foreseeable future:

● Work in an entrepreneurial fashion with the College’s leadership and Board of Trustees to develop new sources of revenue and to increase the efficiency of current programs and services; ● Assess the delivery of services within the division of finance and administrative services to ensure that all staff have the training and resources they need to better serve their customers, and develop a program for continuous service improvement; ● Develop an open and collaborative multi-year budget planning process to include both operating and capital budgets that are tied to a strategic plan; ● Initiate the review or establishment of policies within the division to ensure that the College is in compliance with all external laws and regulations, and to ensure that the College employs best practices to advance the institutional priorities; ● Develop a multi-year plan to reduce the backlog of deferred maintenance in campus facilities within the context of the College’s strategic and master plans; ● Work to promote positive working relationships with Galesburg and surrounding communities; ● Ensure the integrity of the College’s financial statements, maintain internal control over the financial reporting process and cooperate professionally with the independent auditors; ● Provide strategic financial information to the President, the Board of Trustees and the President’s Council, using forward-looking predictive models and activity-based financial analyses along with best practice business intelligence tools to provide insight into the College’s operations and business processes; and ● Foster a culture of openness and collaboration; model and promote a dynamic customer service orientation and encourage consistent and effective communication in decision- making and the flow of information.

17 Qualifications and Personal Qualities

The VPFA will be a consummate professional of the highest integrity who embraces a team approach and who works with colleagues in a spirit of partnership, transparency and fiscal responsibility. The successful candidate will be an innovative, entrepreneurial leader with excellent financial credentials and significant managerial experience. The successful candidate will possess and demonstrate:

Vision and Leadership ● Ability to provide inspiring and visionary leadership that can advance the future of Knox College; ● Evidence of an entrepreneurial orientation with an eye to new opportunities and emerging challenges; ● Ability to work effectively with a supportive and engaged Board of Trustees; ● A track record as a team member and leader able to lead effectively across units, using collaboration to guide inclusive decision-making; ● Experience in business process re-engineering, with particular experience in reviewing and realigning systems, policies and personnel management to improve customer service and productivity; ● Knowledge of current issues and the financial challenges facing small, private higher education institutions; and ● Respect for, and enthusiasm about, the mission, values and unique culture at Knox College, with a willingness to incorporate them into the day-to-day decision-making.

Exceptional Communication Skills ● Ability to build trust and develop strong working relationships across the institution; and ● Excellent speaking and writing skills with the ability to articulate a vision effectively to all constituencies and to explain complex financial information to diverse stakeholders.

Planning and Analysis ● Experience with strategic planning, campus master planning and multi-year financial planning with the ability to apply critical, conceptual and strategic thinking to important financial, academic and administrative issues across the institution; and ● Ability to engage in continuous strategic analysis of opportunities and challenges, to produce forward-looking strategic plans and budgets, and to employ information effectively on national trends in higher education as part of the planning process.

Finance and Budgeting ● Expertise in developing and implementing comprehensive, multi-year capital and operating budgets; ● Understanding and use of a wide variety of financing techniques, financial forecasting and ratio analysis, business intelligence, policy analysis, data analysis, program evaluation and cost-benefit analysis; and ● Working knowledge or experience with investments, cash/treasury management and capital markets, both in theory and in practice.

18 Education and Experience ● Bachelor’s degree required, with a CPA/MBA or other relevant advanced degree preferred; and ● Substantial experience in a financial management capacity in a similarly complex organization, preferably in higher education.

Galesburg Community Process Knox College is located in the City of Galesburg, Illinois just south of the Quad Cities, four cities that straddle the Mississippi River in Illinois and Iowa. Galesburg is a friendly and diverse region served by two nearby airports, Quad City International Airport in Moline and the Greater Peoria Regional Airport as well as daily Amtrak service to Chicago, approximately 150 miles away.

The City of Galesburg’s history is closely intertwined with that of the College. Both Knox and Galesburg were established at the same time by the same people, thus the physical boundaries of the campus can be elusive. Downtown shops, municipal buildings, and arts venues are within easy walking distance from every part of the College. In Galesburg, moreover, one finds the same open-hearted Midwestern generosity that gives the Knox campus such an informal, friendly atmosphere.

Galesburg is an historic railroad center, where one can still board a direct train for Chicago or Denver. It is a classic prairie city of red brick streets and Victorian homes, yet it has many of the features usually associated with larger cities -- such as a thriving arts scene with the Knox- Galesburg Symphony, the Prairie Players Civic Theatre, the Discovery Depot Children's Museum, and the Galesburg Civic Art Center.

Nearly all Knox professors live within 10 minutes of campus, and many of the students work at jobs or internships in town, attend its churches and temple, and frequent its restaurants and coffeehouses. Students often stroll downtown's Seminary Street Historic Commercial District which thrives with restaurants and specialty shops while also playing host to popular festivals throughout the year. Galesburg boasts historic theatres, a farmers market, locally owned restaurants, and 23 city parks with a public beach and wooded biking/walking trails.

Knox students and professors are also active in community life as volunteers, pitching in at local organizations, such as Blessings in a Backpack, Knox Prairie Community Kitchen, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Boys and Girls Club, Girl Scouts, Special Olympics, United Way of Knox County, Knights of Columbus, Kiwanis Club, Prairieland Animal Welfare Shelter, and at several assisted living centers, churches, and schools. Knox College has been recognized as one of the top 20 colleges in the nation for community service and is one of just four finalists in the Economic Opportunity category of the 2014 President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll -- the highest federal award that an educational institution can receive for its commitment to community service.

19 The city and the College depend on each other and are invested in each other’s success. Like many Midwestern cities, Galesburg is still recovering from the departure of industry and the loss of manufacturing jobs. Knox is one of Galesburg’s largest employers, and a source of visitors and world-class talent; Galesburg is not only home to Knox’s people, but an educational asset to Knox’s academic program.

Procedure for Candidacy

We invite inquiries, nominations and applications. Credential review is underway and will continue until the position is filled. For fullest consideration, applicant materials should be received by April 13, 2015. Candidates should provide a resume, a cover letter that addresses the responsibilities described in this Leadership Profile, and the names and contact information of five references (three separate files in Word or PDF formats are preferred). References will not be contacted without prior approval. These materials should be sent electronically to the Witt/Kieffer consultants supporting Knox College in this search, Jane Courson and Karen Goldstein, at [email protected]. The consultants can be reached by telephone by contacting Cara Drew at 781-564-2626.

EOE/AA/Nondiscrimination Statement

In keeping with its commitment to equal rights since it was founded in 1837, Knox College particularly welcomes applications from members of underrepresented groups. Knox College does not discriminate on the basis of sex, gender identity or expression, race, color, creed, national or ethnic origin, religious affiliation, sexual orientation or preference, age, marital status, disability or other irrelevant factors in admission, financial aid, employment, athletics or any of its educational policies and programs.

Questions and comments regarding this policy should be addressed to Title IX Coordinator Kim Schrader or Affirmative Action Officer/Deputy Title IX Coordinator Gina Zindt at Knox College, Galesburg, Illinois, 61401-4999.

Discover Thought Leadership at www.wittkieffer.com

The material presented in this leadership profile should be relied on for informational purposes only. This material has been copied, compiled, or quoted in part from Knox College documents and personal interviews and is believed to be reliable. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this information, the original source documents and factual situations govern.

20 Witt/Kieffer is the preeminent executive search firm that identifies outstanding leadership solutions for organizations committed to improving the quality of life. The firm’s values are infused with a passion for excellence, personalized service and integrity.