President

The University of Vermont (UVM), one of the most historic and distinguished universities in America, seeks a President who can inspire its people, build upon its striking success, and help fulfill its vision as one of the nation’s premier small research universities. The presidency is a unique opportunity for a new leader to build on the exceptional strengths and unique characteristics of UVM.

Since 1791, the University of Vermont has worked to move humankind forward. Today, UVM is a top-100 research university of an ideal size—large enough to offer a breadth of ideas, resources, and opportunities, yet small enough to enable close faculty-student mentorship and faculty-student collaborations across all levels of study, from bachelor’s to M.D. UVM enrolls 12,000 degree-seeking students, including more than 10,000 undergraduates and over 1,900 graduate students. The University is home to seven undergraduate schools and colleges, an honors college, a graduate college, a medical school, and a division of continuing and distance education. The University attracts a distinguished faculty that has steadily built its research enterprise, growing sponsored research from $65 million in 1999 to over $138 million in 2016. The University’s Foundation announced in July 2018 that it had exceeded its $500 million comprehensive campaign goal one year ahead of schedule. The market value of the University’s pooled endowment as of May 31, 2018 totaled $531 million.

Vermont’s land-grant and only comprehensive university, UVM was founded as a private institution in 1791; it has always been an essential civic force in Vermont. UVM operates as separate corporate entity from the State of Vermont serving as an instrumentality of the State. The University owns its own land and buildings, manages its own capital and operating budget, sets its own tuition and fees, and employs its own faculty and staff. UVM’s governance is an explicit blend of public and private, with a 25-person Board of Trustees balanced between private and public members. The President reports to the Board of Trustees and is a member by right of office.

UVM derives much of its distinctive character from Vermont’s unique culture and intense sense of place. Reflecting the natural environment that Vermont occupies and nurtures, the UVM campus sits atop Burlington’s highest ridgeline overlooking Lake Champlain, between the Green Mountains to the east and the high peaks of the Adirondacks to the west. Surrounded by Burlington, a thriving, livable, historical city perennially voted one of America’s most exciting places to live, UVM boasts a classic New England campus that is both well designed and beautifully restored. Complementing the beautiful historical buildings on campus is an array of new, state-of-the-art academic and residential facilities.

UVM embraces both a strong teaching mission and a dedication to advancing knowledge through research achieved by a distinguished faculty of accomplished teacher-scholars. Its rich environment for teaching, research, and scholarship in many realms of human inquiry has led to UVM being recognized in an array of national surveys. UVM is consistently recognized for its academic excellence and great overall value. UVM has been consistently ranked among the nation’s top 50 public universities in U.S. News & World Report.

UVM seeks in its new President a leader with the intellectual and aspirational vision, worldview, strong academic background, great energy and emotional intelligence, and personal integrity to inspire the University community to new levels of excellence across the breadth of the academy. UVM seeks a leader that will continue to build a distinctive position and reputation for the University among the nation’s leading small research universities recognized for overall academic quality fortified by excellence in undergraduate and professional education, and in research, scholarship, and creative activity. As the future landscape of higher education is evolving and challenging and becoming increasingly competitive, the next President will need to energize and lead the University community to achieve new levels of academic excellence, innovation, and distinction. UVM seeks a leader that will inspire all members of the University community—faculty, students, and staff—to dedicate themselves to the realization of this vision of academic destiny, quality, and excellence.

Candidates should have a history of collaborative organizational leadership, the ability to attract financial support for the University and its programs, and a strong record of creating and supporting a climate of openness, understanding, and mutual respect. Candidates will share the institution’s unwavering commitment to diversity and inclusion as an indispensable element of academic excellence and our commitment to preparing students to be leaders in diverse workplaces, diverse communities, and a diverse world. Additional information, including a Leadership Profile, can be found at www.wittkieffer.com.

The University of Vermont has retained Witt/Kieffer, a national executive search firm, to assist in this search. Review of candidates will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled. Nominations, inquiries, and applications, including a letter of interest describing the individual’s qualifications for the position and curriculum vitae, should be sent to:

Robin Mamlet, Managing Partner, Education Practice

Dennis M. Barden, Senior Partner

UVMPresident@wittkieffer.com

Electronic submission of materials is strongly encouraged. Materials that must be mailed can be sent to:

Witt/Kieffer

2015 Spring Road, Suite 510

Oak Brook, IL 60523

The University of Vermont is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. Applications from women, veterans, individuals with disabilities, and people from diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds are encouraged.