Washington, DC SEARCH for the ASSOCIATE
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SEARCH FOR THE ASSOCIATE PROVOST AND DEAN OF STUDENTS CLARK UNIVERSITY Worcester, MA THE SEARCH Clark University, a nationally ranked private liberal arts-based research university, seeks an accomplished, dynamic, and strategic leader for the position of Associate Provost and Dean of Students (DOS) to lead the Division of Student Affairs. Reporting to the Provost and serving as a member of the University’s Senior Leadership Team, the DOS will join Clark under energetic new leadership as the University also welcomed its 10th president and distinguished alumnus, David Fithian ’87, just last July, and welcomed a new Provost, Sebastián Royo, this summer. The DOS will foster a vibrant and rich campus culture in keeping with Clark’s strong tradition of liberal arts education and the evolving needs, passions, and experiences of Clark’s intellectual, entrepreneurial, increasingly diverse, and socially engaged student body. As a key part of the senior team, the DOS is a member of the Provost’s Management Group and the President’s Leadership Group and will effectively prioritize the student experience with senior leadership on an ongoing basis. The new DOS will be a seasoned student affairs leader with an inspiring vision for campus life at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. The successful candidate will play a leadership role in the University’s approach to Strategic Enrollment Management and student retention/persistence and with efforts to ensure diversity, equity, and a fully inclusive campus experience for all students. Regarding the latter, the next DOS will have the opportunity to develop, implement, and lead innovative student-focused initiatives that respond to students’ candidly expressed expectations that the University will enhance its efforts and become a leader in these areas. Founded in 1887, Clark was one of the first all-graduate institutions in the United States. Today the University is a highly ranked, student-centered institution that teaches approximately 2,350 undergraduate and 1,100 graduate students every year to be imaginative and contributing citizens of the world and to advance the frontiers of knowledge and understanding through rigorous scholarship and creative effort. This commitment to scholarship and inquiry reflects the University’s dedication to addressing issues of critical societal importance. It is also reflected in Clark’s many national and international distinctions, including recognition for its diversity and inclusion efforts, innovation, community engagement, and impact; its ranking as a top green campus; its nationally ranked Interactive Media Design (Game Design) program; and its distinguished geography, psychology, and international development graduate programs. Clark has also been included in the groundbreaking Colleges that Change Lives guide since it was first published in 1996. Boston | Philadelphia | San Francisco | Washington, DC Clark University Associate Provost & Dean of Students Page 2 of 10 ABOUT CLARK UNIVERSITY A small, private teaching and research university, Clark is committed to scholarship and inquiry that addresses social and human imperatives on a global scale. Clark’s urban location and tradition of community partnerships place faculty and students in an ideal position to live the University's motto, “Challenge Convention. Change Our World.” With an operating budget of $135 million and a $500 million endowment, Clark’s current financial position is strong. In addition to centering students, Clark has a strong tradition of faculty governance and engagement. Clark’s more than 230 full- and 150 part-time faculty are deeply committed to teaching and embrace Clark’s ethos of hands-on learning for all students. In addition, the University employs a diverse and dedicated cross-section of 470 full- and part-time staff. Clark’s 90-acre urban campus includes more than 1.6 million square feet of academic space, residence halls, and research and athletics facilities. Clark’s programs are offered through the College of Arts and Sciences; the Graduate Schools of Arts and Sciences, and Geography; the School of Professional Studies; the School of Management; and the Department of International Development, Community, and Environment. The academic environment is enhanced by eight centers and institutes that play a vital role in enabling interdisciplinary collaboration. Most recently, Clark has announced the establishment of the Becker School of Design & Technology, allowing for the continuation of nationally recognized undergraduate and graduate programs in Interactive Media Design (Game Design), Interactive Graphic Design, and Esports Management after the closure of Becker College in Worcester. At the undergraduate level, Clark provides a challenging liberal arts curriculum with many of the benefits associated with an excellent liberal arts college, including small classes, a strong sense of community, and extensive co-curricular opportunities, and staff and faculty that are passionate about teaching, mentorship, and student-support services. Clark’s Liberal Education and Effective Practice model of undergraduate education aligns all aspects of the undergraduate experience so that students are exposed to a broad and deep base of academic knowledge while also learning the key capacities of “effective practice” needed to translate ideas and values into action. This curricular model connects classroom learning across more than 50 majors, minors, and concentrations with world and workplace experiences. Today, 100 percent of Clark undergraduates complete at least one experiential learning opportunity. At the graduate level, master’s degree and doctoral students represent one-third of the student population. The graduate professional programs are a source of campus diversity, exceptional teaching, and impactful and engaged scholarship. The doctoral programs are responsible for significant contributions in an array of fields and serve to enhance Clark’s reputation. Clark offers nine doctoral and 23 master's degree programs, including its popular Accelerated B.A./Master’s Program, knowns as the “5th-year program”. Graduate programs include degrees offered through Clark’s AACSB-accredited School of Management. Clark has received national attention for its accelerated-degree programs that allow students to complete both a B.A. degree and a master's degree in five years. The fifth-year of 14 of these programs is tuition-free for eligible students. As a research university, Clark offers students the opportunity to participate in cutting-edge scholarship and creative work, beginning as early as their first year. Researchers who have held Clark appointments include A.A. Michelson, the first U.S. Nobel Prize winner in the sciences, and Robert Goddard, the father of the space age and the inventor of modern rocket technology. Clark has produced more geography Ph.D.’s than any other program in the world, and its doctoral Clark University Associate Provost & Dean of Students Page 3 of 10 programs in psychology and in Holocaust and genocide studies are highly regarded and distinctive. THE UNIVERSITY AND CURRENT CONTEXT As of fall 2020, Clark's student body is comprised of 2,242 undergraduates and 1,158 graduate and professional students. The undergraduate student population is 12.5% international, 19% first-generation college students, and 25% students of color. More than 50% of graduate students identify as international. Approximately 68% of the full-time faculty and instructors are white, 11% are Asian, 6% are Black or African American, 5% are Hispanic or Latinx, and 10% are foreign nationals. Approximately 77% of the full-time staff are white, 12% are Hispanic or Latinx, 4% are Asian, and 4% are Black or African American. Over the past few years, Clark has undertaken institution-wide assessments of campus climate and culture intended to generate community conversations about diversity and inclusion-related pathways forward for the University. Clark’s community, like many other institutions of higher education, has recently experienced an increase in student activism that reflects and supports national and local demands for racial justice. The movement for racial justice and equity, alongside a pandemic that is disproportionately impacting racially underrepresented communities, has catalyzed strong calls for transformative action and institutional change from groups across the University. Students, in particular, are hungry for actions that will result in a stronger sense of belonging and inclusiveness at Clark. While there are differing views on the best way to approach the work, the Clark community is aligned around a shared vision for an environment where all students, staff, and faculty are valued and given opportunities to flourish. President Fithian is deeply committed to making Clark a more just, equitable, inclusive, and welcoming institution and has taken action through a series of collaborative initiatives and commitment to new hirings. Clark is in the process of staffing or has recently filled positions in critical areas that support people of color alongside the ongoing national search for a Chief Officer of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. In the Division of Student Affairs, Clark has created the new position of Assistant Dean for Equity and Student Success who will work collaboratively with two other new Assistant Deans focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion, one working for the Dean of the College and the other working for