North Park University is seeking a person of active and expressed Christian faith who is a skilled and strategic student life administrator and a champion for student success, to serve as the University’s next Vice President for Student Engagement (VPSE). A Christian university in the heart of Chicago, IL, North Park has a historic commitment to three distinctive identities—Christian, city-centered, and intercultural—and recently earned designation as a Hispanic-Serving Institution. The successful candidate will have a strong record of both effective campus administration and a passion for working with diverse student populations, ideally with experience in urban environments.

The University

Founded in 1891 by the Evangelical Covenant Church, North Park is located on Chicago’s northwest side, with satellite campuses in Grayslake, Waukegan, and Arlington Heights. The university serves an increasingly diverse population of students from the city of Chicago, the nation, and the world. There is no racial or ethnic majority in the undergraduate population, as no racial or ethnic category is represented above 50%. Of traditional undergraduates, 42% identify as students of color. The religious beliefs of students represent a wide variety of faith backgrounds, including the Evangelical Covenant Church, other Protestant denominations, Catholicism, Orthodox Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. Undergraduate students are 62% female, 60% commuter, and 70% from the state of Illinois. Also contributing to North Park’s student body are 136 adult degree completion students, 636 graduate students, and 368 enrolled in Seminary. These student populations are equally diverse, with 59% female students and 48% white students.

The Position

As the chief student affairs officer, the VPSE provides leadership for the development and implementation of all student engagement planning and policy as well as the budget, reviews, and overall supervision of staff in Student Engagement.  Within this role, the VPSE coordinates across all Student Engagement units—Dean of Students, Student Activities, Housing and Residence Life, Health Services, Counseling Support Services, Diversity and Intercultural Life, Student Success, and Career Services and Internships. The next Vice President for Student Engagement will guide efforts to foster a campus culture of inclusivity, shared responsibility, communication, transparency, and respect. The ideal candidate will embrace the HSI designation; demonstrate a commitment to a student experience that is Christian, intercultural, and city-centered; and have experience providing leadership to a vibrant and increasingly diverse student body.  Working with the Senior Leadership Team, the VPSE will collaborate with the North Park University community to achieve the university's strategic goals. To learn more about the key priorities, desired skills and attributes, and the application procedures, please visit the position profile.

Applications and Nominations

Assisting North Park University with this search are Mahauganee Shaw and Tom Shandley, Senior Consultants with Academic Search. Nominators and prospective candidates may reach out to NorthParkVPSE@academicsearch.org to arrange a confidential discussion about this opportunity. The position is open until filled but only applications received by June 11, 2021 can be assured full consideration.

North Park is committed to providing and maintaining a welcoming environment, and will not tolerate discrimination, harassment, sexual misconduct, relationship violence, retaliation, or any form of intimidation by any person in any form directed against students, faculty, or staff of the institution. To assure that its commitment is met, North Park has adopted a Policy Against Discrimination, Harassment, Sexual Violence, Relationship Violence, and Retaliation. The Policy prohibits discrimination or harassment of any member of the University community because of his or her race, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, veteran’s status, or other protected status, as those terms are defined by applicable local, state, and federal law, subject to North Park’s right, as a religious institution, to make decisions on the basis of religious beliefs and lifestyle consistent with the religious principles espoused by the Evangelical Covenant Church.