Director, Chaifetz Center for Entrepreneurship

Saint Louis University (SLU) invites nominations and applications in its search for the next director of the Chaifetz Center for Entrepreneurship. Founded in 1818 as the first university to be established west of the Mississippi River, Saint Louis University is one of the nation’s most prestigious Catholic universities. Steeped in a 500-year-old Ignatian tradition of spirituality, pedagogy and intellectual inquiry, Saint Louis University enters its third century with a clear vision for its future, and that of a city in which students, staff and faculty can have enormously constructive impacts. Racial justice, social justice, economic opportunity, the social determinants of health, and child and adult education are local issues in which the SLU community is intent on making a difference, while working alongside residents and neighborhood and city leaders to reimagine, transform and unify St. Louis.

The director will be the leader in advancing the strategic mission to be a top entrepreneurship center in the nation. The director will work closely with the dean of the Chaifetz School of Business and university partners and actively collaborate and nurture relationships with the vibrant entrepreneurship ecosystem and the business community in St. Louis. The director will lead programming and experiential opportunities for students in startups, venture and social entrepreneurship.

The Chaifetz School of Business and Saint Louis University are uniquely located in midtown St. Louis with a thriving community of entrepreneurs in the Cortex Innovation Community and T-REX, among many others. Saint Louis was recently ranked as the #2 Best City for Entrepreneurs in the U.S. by “Fit Small Business” and has been featured on Forbes list of top 10 rising cities for startups. SLU has long been a part of these special communities.

Continuing its tradition of highly ranked entrepreneurship programs, the Chaifetz School was among a select cohort of business schools to be ranked for both undergraduate (34th) and graduate programs (22nd) by The Princeton Review, in partnership with The Entrepreneur. The U.S. News and World Report ranked the undergraduate program in entrepreneurship 36th in 2021 and the graduate program in entrepreneurship 14th in 2022. The Chaifetz School is home to nearly 1,400 undergraduate and graduate students, offering 10 undergraduate majors; 15 undergraduate minors; 16 graduate certificate, dual-degree and master’s programs; and one Ph.D. program.

A detailed leadership profile is available at this link.

All applications, nominations and inquiries are invited. Applications should include, as separate documents, a letter of interest addressing the themes in this profile and a CV or resume.

WittKieffer is assisting Saint Louis University in this search. For fullest consideration, candidate materials should be received by July 13, 2021. Application materials should be submitted using WittKieffer’s candidate portal. Nominations and inquiries can be directed to: Ryan Crawford and Bree Liddell at SLU-Entrepreneurship@wittkieffer.com

Saint Louis University is an affirmative action and equal opportunity employer committed to providing fair treatment of all in the SLU community on the basis of merit.