Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs

Purchase College, State University of New York, a highly regarded public, arts and liberal arts college in Purchase, New York, seeks their next Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs (VPAA).

The College: Purchase’s mission is to bring together students in liberal arts, sciences, and conservatory arts programs in a vibrant, creative community where in-depth knowledge grows from open-minded engagement, questioning boundaries, and inspiring possibility.

The college’s motto, Think Wide Open, embodies a truly distinctive educational environment where students in rigorous programs in both the liberal arts and sciences and in professional conservatory training programs inspire, inform, and collaborate with one another and with faculty members who are among the most accomplished in their fields worldwide. The Institution's proximity to New York City coupled with professional faculty connections afford Purchase College students incomparable opportunities to perform, research, and learn.

Purchase College serves approximately 3,500 undergraduate and graduate students. Roughly 83% of the college’s students come from New York State, while the remaining 17% are from 40 states and 24 countries around the world. Purchase offers its students 47 undergraduate majors, 32 minors, four graduate programs in the arts, and artist diplomas and performers certificates. As of February 2021, Purchase College was designated as a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI). The college was listed as one of the Top Ten Liberal Arts Colleges by U.S News and World Report in its 2022 college guide. The college was also listed as one of the top 20 institutions of value in the nation according to the Fiske Guide Colleges Best Buys of 2022.

Known for its dedication to civic engagement, social justice, and sustainability, the college has recently adopted the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals, which provide a framework and inspiration for activities, research, and programs both in and outside the classroom.

Designed as the “cultural gem of the SUNY system,” the college is also home to the Neuberger Museum of Art, one of the most important teaching museums in the metro New York area, as well as The Performing Arts Center, one of the biggest, professional non-profit arts presenters in the region.

As part of the college’s commitment to life-long learning, Purchase will soon welcome Broadview, Senior Living at Purchase College. This senior learning community will be home to active, engaged seniors and will expand intergenerational learning opportunities while contributing to student scholarship and faculty support funding. To find out more about Purchase College please visit: www.purchase.edu/

The Position: The Provost reports directly to the President and, as the college’s chief academic officer, provides leadership in all aspects of the college’s academic mission as articulated in the 2021-2027 Strategic Plan. The Provost is responsible for academic programs and services, broader curricular planning and assessment, general education, faculty and staff recruitment, and development, evaluation, and supervision of the academic budget. The Provost oversees the college’s three-school academic structure: the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the School of the Arts, and the School of Liberal Studies & Continuing Education. The directors of the three schools report directly to the Provost, as do the directors of the Library, computing services, sponsored research, and international programs. The leadership of the Neuberger Museum of Art and Performing Arts Center reports directly to the Provost for academic purposes as the Provost has oversight of academic programs within the Neuberger Museum of Art and the Performing Arts Center. The Provost works directly and collaboratively with the leadership of the schools, Neuberger Museum, Performing Arts Center, faculty, staff, and administration in advancing new program development, and will advance life-long learning in an intergenerational learning commons within the new Broadview Senior Living community. The Provost is a key member of the President's Cabinet and provides leadership in the fulfillment of the strategic plan and fundraising activities of the college. The Provost also serves as an officer of the college in having fiduciary responsibilities and oversight for approving budget and expenses for the schools and college in collaboration with other college officers with similar budgetary oversight and responsibilities. He, she, or they will work collaboratively across all the cabinet positions and with the directors of the college’s schools and conservatories to serve the institution’s needs and goals, and will collaborate with distinguished faculty and staff in securing grants and private funding for research activities, scholarships, and other programs.

Qualifications: The successful candidate must have excellent communication skills, and the ability to work in a large university system that includes working with unions. They will also have demonstrated experience in working with large and complex budgets, and a good grasp of the wide range of academic and artistic disciplines within a college committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Applicants must have demonstrated success at an academic institution, and proven experience in supporting a college that enjoys a full range of distinguished programs in the visual and performing arts, humanities, and natural and social sciences. The successful candidate must have a terminal degree in their field, academic qualifications that merit appointment at the rank of tenured full professor, and a strong record of service and administration to serve in a provost position.

Location: Purchase College is located on 500 acres in Westchester County, New York surrounded by the beautiful views of nature, yet is only 30 miles away from Midtown Manhattan. The surrounding area offers its residents a variety of outdoor activities such as hiking, walking, and golf courses, along with a host of cultural attractions.

Application: Interested candidates should submit only a cover letter and resume to RPA Inc. at PurchaseProvost@rpainc.org. For a confidential discussion about this opportunity or to make a nomination, please email Kira Heath, Search Manager or Amanda O’Donnell, Vice President and Senior Consultant at the email address listed above. The first review of candidates will begin on January 21, 2022 and first-round interviews will commence thereafter.

Purchase College is committed to fostering a diverse community of outstanding faculty, staff and students, as well as ensuring equal educational opportunity, employment, and access to service, programs, and activities, without regard to an individual’s race, color, national origin, religion, creed, age, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, familial status, pregnancy, predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence victim status, or criminal conviction. Employees, students, applicants, or other members of the Purchase community (including vendors, visitors, and guests) may not be subjected to harassment that is prohibited by law or treated adversely or retaliated against based upon a protected characteristic.