Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences

Cleveland State University seeks an inclusive, student-centered, collaborative leader to serve as its inaugural dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

Founded in 1964, Cleveland State University (CSU) is a public, urban research institution that provides a dynamic setting for engaged learning. Serving a diverse population of nearly 16,000 students, CSU is the No. 1 public university in Ohio for social mobility. Approximately 80-percent of CSU graduates stay in Northeast Ohio, creating a talent pipeline with expertise and skills that align with high-demand fields.

Under the leadership of President Harlan Sands and Provost Laura Bloomberg, Cleveland State is reimagining its future with CSU 2.0, an aggressive, growth-oriented plan for emerging from the global pandemic a stronger, more focused institution. This exciting vision sets a goal of serving an additional 4,500 students and hiring 200 new faculty members by 2025. CSU 2.0 outlines multimillion-dollar investments in research, faculty positions and initiatives to advance student success, develop new programs and build new partnerships.

Among the priorities outlined in CSU 2.0 is the College Realignment plan, which reimagines the current structure of CSU's colleges to better reflect the University's unique strengths, create recruiting and investment opportunities, streamline administrative support and reduce costs where possible. The College of Arts and Sciences is one of the new colleges that will form as a result of this plan. The College will include the following departments: anthropology; art & design; biology, geology and environmental sciences; Black studies; chemistry; English; film & media arts; history; mathematics; music; philosophy & comparative religion; political science; physics; psychology; theatre & dance; and world languages, literatures & cultures.

The incoming dean of the College of Arts and Sciences will lead faculty, student and staff during this time of great change at Cleveland State. The dean will champion the success of CSU students as they establish a vision and strategic priorities for the newly developed College in alignment with CSU 2.0. The dean will develop strategies to recruit, develop and retain distinguished and diverse faculty, administrators and staff. The dean will strengthen and promote collaborations both externally and across the University, and find innovative ways to advance scholarship and research. As the individual responsible for the College's resources, the dean will work to identify new revenue streams through private philanthropy and other sources as well.

The successful candidate will be a leader of people and programs, with the ability to energize the College around a vision for its future within the context of CSU 2.0. The new dean will be an experienced administrator, with five or more years of leadership experience at the departmental level or higher. The dean will be a strong communicator and collaborator with experience working across and being a fierce advocate for the disciplines in the College. The dean will possess a distinguished scholarly reputation and strong record of academic and teaching accomplishments, commensurate with appointment as a full professor, including an earned doctorate or terminal degree in a discipline housed within the College.

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

WittKieffer is assisting Cleveland State University in this search. For fullest consideration, candidate materials should be received by March 7, 2022.

Application materials should be submitted using WittKieffer’s candidate portal. Nominations and inquiries can be directed to: Zachary A. Smith, Ph.D., Lauren Bruce-Stets and Kim Migoya at CSUArtsandSciencesDean@wittkieffer.com.

Cleveland State University is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to nondiscrimination. Males, Females, Individuals with Disabilities and Veterans are encouraged to apply for our vacant positions.