President

SUNY College of Technology at Alfred (Alfred State College), a premier college of technology in the State University of New York system, has launched the search for their next President. This is an extraordinary opportunity for an academic leader who is focused on driving dynamic diversification efforts among faculty and staff and committed to providing high-quality, affordable education to students from all social and economic backgrounds. The College Council and SUNY invite applications from leaders committed to the College’s mission: to deliver outstanding associate and baccalaureate degree programs through hands-on learning, preparing in-demand and involved students in a caring community.

The Position: The President will be responsible for all aspects of campus academic and administrative operations, faculty development, and philanthropy. Working in collaboration with internal and external constituencies, the President will provide overall leadership and direction for the College. This direction will include cultivating an environment of shared governance; promoting a campus climate of diversity, equity, and inclusion; enhancing Alfred State College’s visibility within SUNY; and building on the already successful partnerships across business, industry, and the state. The President will represent the College’s interests within the SUNY system to local and state elected officials as well as surrounding communities. The President of Alfred State College reports to the Chancellor of the SUNY system. An eight-member College Council advises the President. The President has six direct reports including three Vice Presidents who lead the areas of Enrollment Management, Student Affairs, and Economic Development; the Provost who directs Academic Affairs and Technology Services; the Chief Financial Officer who leads the Financial Management and Facilities Services Departments; and the Chief of Staff who leads Human Resources and the Center for Community Education and Training (CCET). The administration at Alfred State College is committed to shared governance. Over the past seven years, the College has instituted concerted and intentional measures to promote collaborative, productive, and respectful relations.

The Institution: Established in 1908 by the New York State Legislature, the SUNY College of Technology at Alfred began as a state school of agriculture. Today, Alfred State College is a selective residential institution that offers both two- and four-year degree programs; emphasizes academic excellence; and integrates hands-on applied learning throughout its scientific, technical, and professional programs. Additionally, the College maintains a commitment to local, national, and global civic engagement opportunities for students that fosters a culture of social responsibility, including nursing students’ mission trips to Haiti and building trades students’ rebuilding trips to assist communities that have been devastated by natural disaster. Alfred State College is devoted to fostering meaningful, positive, and long-lasting student learning and success. Students, faculty, staff, and administration value the institutional culture, which is built on the core principles of respect, integrity, service, and dedication.

Ranking in the top 2.5% of colleges in the U.S. for impacting social mobility and exemplifying a commitment to their slogan of “Hit the Ground Running,” Alfred State College enrolls approximately 3,700 full-time students annually. Approximately 600 teaching faculty and professional staff support 80 associate and bachelor’s degrees in agriculture, applied technology, architecture, business, digital media, engineering technology, healthcare, information technology, nursing, veterinary technology, plus liberal arts and sciences. Alfred State College is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. A multi-campus College, the College includes a main campus in Alfred, NY, which houses academic programs for the School of Architecture, Management & Engineering Technology and the School of Arts and Sciences, along with residence halls, a production dairy farm, and other support services. Most of the academic programs for the School of Applied Technology reside on the nearby Wellsville campus. The School of Applied Technology programs offer an Associate of Occupational Science (AOS) degree that includes an intensive hands-on component and block scheduling that places students in the lab/classroom setting for thirty hours each week. Alfred State College also works with Northland Workforce Training Center to provide students a curriculum for hands-on training at the Buffalo, NY facility. Alfred State College maintains a progressive and rapid response in developing curriculum in response to regional, national, and global workforce needs, including housing the Center for Renewable Energy and implementing programs focused on green building technology.

As a leading educational institution in western New York, Alfred State College plays a critical economic role. The College is the largest employer in Allegany County, with close to 700 employees. Alfred State College also helps fuel the New York economy by preparing well-trained and highly motivated employees to meet the state’s workforce needs. Alfred State College’s outcomes and success are demonstrable with a history of strong enrollment, retention, and a placement or transfer rate at or above 98% among graduates in each of the past 11 years. For more information about Alfred State College, please visit www.alfredstate.edu.

Qualifications: Ideal candidates will possess significant experience in or understanding of executive-level higher education administration, including enrollment, academic affairs, student affairs, finance, strategic planning, and institutional development. They will have the ability to lead and support faculty and staff within a transparent culture of shared governance. The President must possess an enthusiasm for the College’s technology-focused, student-centered mission and respect for the values and traditions of the College. They must bring exceptional communication and interpersonal skills; model the ability to energize and inspire students, faculty, staff, parents, alumni, College Council members, and other external constituencies; and be able to build upon a history of programmatic strength. Additional key criteria will include a successful record in building institutional diversity, a commitment to a student-centered, hands-on learning environment, a passion for technical education, the ability to work well with people at all levels and from various backgrounds, and a dedication to sustainability and civic engagement. The successful candidate will be able to maintain and grow external relationships with donors and build rapport as well as visibility within the local community and region, including with corporate, educational, and government leaders as well as with manufacturing and industrial entities to benefit Alfred State College. Honesty, integrity, and an open approachable style are highly desired. Leading candidates will have appropriate academic credentials. An earned doctorate or terminal degree from an accredited institution of higher education is preferred.

Location: Alfred, New York, home to the College, is located in Allegany County in the scenic Southern Tier of New York. Nestled between the foothills of the Allegheny Moun­tains and the Finger Lakes region, Alfred is 70 miles south of Rochester and 90 miles southeast of Buffalo. Allegany County’s pristine lakes and streams, abundant wildlife, woodland trails, and scenic countryside offer extensive possibilities to nature lovers, photographers, hunters, and anglers. There are many options for hiking, biking, skiing, and kayaking. The county has 23 state forests and more than 56,000 acres of public land. Alfred is a center of higher education in western New York, home to both Alfred State College and Alfred University, a private university that offers a full range of liberal arts and science majors and includes the New York State College of Ceramics. Other academic institutions in the local area include Houghton College and St. Bonaventure University. The College’s two campuses—one in the village of Alfred and the second in Wellsville—are approximately 12 miles apart. In addition to excellent school systems, the immediate area also maintains two hospitals within ten miles, both affiliate of and supported by the University of Rochester Medical Center, a renowned quaternary Medical Center.

About SUNY: The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive system of higher education in the United States, and more than 95 percent of all New Yorkers live within 30 miles of any one of SUNY’s 64 colleges and universities. Across the system, SUNY has four academic health centers with each having a medical school, three hospitals, two dental schools, the state’s only college of optometry and college of maritime studies, as well as one U.S. Department of Energy National Laboratory. In total, SUNY serves about 1.3 million students in credit-bearing courses and programs, continuing education, and community outreach programs. SUNY oversees nearly a quarter of academic research in New York. Research expenditures system-wide were more than $1.0 billion in fiscal year 2020, including significant contributions from students and faculty. There are more than three million SUNY alumni worldwide, and one in three New Yorkers with a college degree is a SUNY alum. SUNY’s leadership structure consists of a Board of Trustees, led by Dr. Merryl H. Tisch; the Chancellor, Dr. Jim Malatras; System Administration Senior Staff; and Campus Presidents, each working together to advance the mission of the state university system: “…to provide to the people of New York educational services of the highest quality, with the broadest possible access, fully representative of all segments of the population in a complete range of academic, professional and vocational postsecondary programs including such additional activities in pursuit of these objectives as are necessary or customary.” The Chancellor increasingly looks to the campus Presidents to work collaboratively with other SUNY colleges, administrators, faculty and staff, and surrounding communities to lower cost, enhance productivity, and elevate the importance of degree completion at each institution.

COVID-19 Response: Alfred State College’s priority is the health and safety of the campus community, including its students, faculty, and staff. Information regarding Alfred State College’s COVID-19 response can be found at www.alfredstate.edu/covid-19.

Application: Interested candidates should submit only a cover letter and resume to RPA Inc. at AlfredStatePresident@rpainc.org. For a confidential discussion about this opportunity or to make a nomination, please email Kira Heath, Search Manager; Amanda O’Donnell, Vice President and Senior Consultant; or Dana John Cohick, President at the email address listed above. The first review of candidates will begin on May 27, 2021, and first-round interviews will commence thereafter.

Alfred State College is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer. The College does not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, religion or religious philosophy, Veteran status, sexual orientation, or genetic information, in its programs and activities. Additionally, it is the policy of the State University of New York to provide equal opportunity in employment for all qualified persons, to prohibit discrimination in employment, and to promote the full realization of equal employment opportunity through a positive continuing program for the University as a whole and for each constituent unit of the University.