Job Description / Duties

Search for the Dean of the College of Education and Human Development

Western Michigan University

Kalamazoo, Michigan

Western Michigan University (WMU or the University) seeks a visionary, innovative, and collaborative leader to serve as the next dean of the College of Education and Human Development (CEHD or the College). This is an exciting opportunity to join an interdisciplinary College of Education and Human Development that is committed to the three pillars of teaching, research, and service, and enjoys a strong history within the University and the larger community. The new dean will lead the College at a unique time, WMU having recently received a historic $550 million donation aimed at advancing student-centered initiatives, including making higher education more affordable and promoting the values of equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility. In this environment, the dean will have a platform to enhance the College’s reach through creative and decisive leadership.

Founded in 1903 as a teacher’s college or normal school, Western Michigan University has grown into a nationally regarded higher education institution while maintaining a strong commitment to training teachers, counselors, and school administrators. Located in Southwest Michigan, WMU is a vibrant, nationally recognized, student-centered, public, research institution with an enrollment of nearly 18,000.

The College of Education and Human Development is one of the founding colleges at the University and prepares leaders who make a significant impact on educational leadership and systems at the local, state, national, and global levels. The College is home to over 2,300 students and 93 faculty across a diverse array of programs in six departments: counselor education and counseling psychology; educational leadership, research, and technology; family and consumer sciences; human performance and health education; special education and literacy studies; and teaching, learning, and educational studies. As such, the new dean must be communicative, collaborative, creative, and committed to broader institutional and multidisciplinary goals and must understand the critical importance of high-caliber teaching, research, and service. CEHD is recognized on campus as a leader in both graduate education and research.

The dean will lead the College by articulating and enhancing a shared sense of identity and common purpose. This centralized focus will help deepen CEHD’s impact in the community while sustaining its commitment to academic excellence. Fostering a strategic and creative spirit will support WMU’s position as a leader of innovation and discovery in an ever-more competitive market and the rapidly changing education and human development sectors. As the chief executive officer of the College, the dean is responsible to the provost and is a respected and important leader across the University. The dean will collaboratively develop a strategic vision and direction, lead the College’s academic mission, and head its development activities to ensure sufficient resources to further its priorities and impact. The ideal dean candidate will have a demonstrated track record of advancing equity, diversity, inclusion, accessibility, and social justice; a highly collaborative and accessible style; high academic standards; and the administrative acumen to lead the College of Education and Human Development to new levels of success and distinction.

Western Michigan University has retained the national executive search firm, Isaacson, Miller, to assist with this important recruitment. The search will remain open until a hire is made, but for fullest consideration, applications should be submitted by January 6. All inquiries, applications (CVs and letters of interest), and nominations should be submitted electronically and in confidence to:

Phillip Petree, Partner

Elizabeth Dorr Weithman, Managing Associate

Mia Carpiniello, Senior Associate

Isaacson, Miller

https://www.imsearch.com/search-detail/8726

 WMU is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. Minorities, women, veterans, individuals with disabilities, and all other qualified individuals are encouraged to apply.

Contact Information

Western Michigan University has retained the national executive search firm, Isaacson, Miller, to assist with this important recruitment. The search will remain open until a hire is made, but for fullest consideration, applications should be submitted by January 6. All inquiries, applications (CVs and letters of interest), and nominations should be submitted electronically and in confidence to:

Phillip Petree, Partner

Elizabeth Dorr Weithman, Managing Associate

Mia Carpiniello, Senior Associate

Isaacson, Miller

https://www.imsearch.com/search-detail/8726