The Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College is the College’s chief academic officer, reporting directly to the President. The Vice President for Academic Affairs provides oversight and vision for academic programs and policies; faculty recruitment and evaluation; and academic budget planning and implementation. Current direct reports to the Vice President for Academic Affairs include the Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs, the Director of the Library, the Academic Deans, the Academic Division Chairs, HEOP, Career Center, Office of Online Learning, the Library, the Writing Center, and the Registrar.
The Vice President is a critical member of the College leadership team: in addition to serving on the President's Cabinet, the VPAA also works with the Board of Trustees in areas of educational policy and management of College resources, and serves as an advocate for faculty and students on all academic matters.
  

Key Responsibilities:

Strategy and Academic Leadership
•Serves as a member of the President’s Cabinet, leading specific strategic initiatives identified by the President and contributing actively to the leadership team.
•Serves as the principal College academic planning officer, acting with the input and involvement of the Academic Deans, Chairs of the Academic Divisions, Academic Affairs staff, and faculty at large.
•Serves as the main academic liaison to the Board of Trustees and the Academic Affairs Committee. Prepares documents and reports in the areas of academic responsibility.
•Participates in program development as a member of the Program Development and Curriculum Committees. Provides high-level oversight for all academic initiatives and offices related to Academic Affairs.
•Participates as an ex officio member on all faculty committees.
•Oversees orientation and development of faculty.
•Is the chief academic advisor to the President
•Discharges the duties of the President in his/her absence.
•Coordinates institutional self-studies and reports to assure continued accreditation.
  

Operations
•Participates in College committees and meetings outlined in the Faculty Handbook or as appropriate.
•Fulfills VPAA responsibilities at convocation, commencement, and other formal events.
•Receives recommendations from the Faculty Senate and other Faculty and academic committees, reviews these recommendations, and presents a position on these recommendations to the President and/or to the Cabinet when appropriate.
•Works closely with the President and the Chief Financial Officer to make decisions about new faculty positions.
•Appoints academic division chairs in consultation with faculty after receiving the recommendation from the division.
•Appoints division Deans after consultation with faculty and the President.
•Holds final responsibility for all budgets in Academic Affairs and works with the President and Cabinet on College budget matters.
•Submits an annual report to the President.
•Serves as Secretary to the Board of Trustees Academic Affairs Committee.
•Determines salary recommendations and conducts hiring negotiations with new faculty and Academic Affairs staff for which the President has final authority.
•Ensures timely evaluation of all faculty by the Promotion and Tenure Committee and makes recommendations to the President and Board.
  

Staff Supervision and Development
•Promotes a culture of high performance and develops staff using a supportive, collaborative, and data driven approach.
•Ensures all areas are customer-focused in their dealings with students, faculty, staff and others.
•Provides leadership by overseeing, directing, and supervising employees in the Academic Affairs offices. This includes actively participating in the selection, hiring, training, and evaluation of all direct reports, in collaboration with the Office of Human Resources.
•Orients and guides direct reports by communicating departmental standard procedures, and philosophy of mentoring and supervising students.
•Facilitates and directs the process of goal setting for all direct reports, conducts regular meetings to monitor workflow, and offers feedback and guidance to support the professional development of direct reports.
•Delegates tasks to appropriate departmental staff members as new College initiatives arise.
•Performs other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

•Earned doctorate or terminal degree.
•Record of successful teaching and professional activity; appropriate record of professional publication or comparable scholarship.
•Demonstrated leadership and strategic thinking ability.
•Fosters a strong sense of community and shared governance, working with faculty.
•Demonstrated ability to execute on initiatives and follow through to successful conclusion.
•Prior administrative experience (vice president, assistant vice president, dean, department chair, director, etc.) required – including budget-development and oversight.
•Ability to learn new skills quickly and embrace mentoring and coaching.
•Open and collaborative leadership style that is conducive to shared governance.
•Ability to encourage and nurture faculty development while maintaining high standards of academic excellence and achievement.
•Ability to recognize the importance of integrative and experiential learning and the practical application of knowledge.
•Ability to analyze the position of Mount Saint Mary College in the changing landscape of undergraduate education.
•An understanding of the importance and value of the Liberal Arts.
•Commitment to Mount Saint Mary College’s program of academics, work, community engagement, cross-cultural understanding, and sustainability/environmental responsibility.
•Commitment to developing and enhancing the integration of academics, work, and community engagement.
•A strong commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion in all academic practices.