Associate Vice President & Senior Diversity Officer

Saint Mary’s College of California (Saint Mary’s), a vibrant and inclusive Hispanic Serving institution, is looking for a strategic thinker, a collaborative change agent, and a motivational diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practitioner to serve as the next Associate Vice President and Senior Diversity Officer (AVP/SDO). 

The AVP/SDO will integrate and center community DEI efforts by building partnerships with students, faculty, staff, administrators, the Board of Trustees, and alumni. The AVP/SDO will help build a sense of belonging for all members of the community and foster a community of empathy, compassion, and social justice by leading and guiding the college’s development of DEI competency while integrating our values, actions, processes, and policies with an eye towards building a more inclusive community.

This is a senior staff position that reports directly to the President, in partnership with the entire senior leadership team, especially the Provost, Academic Affairs leadership, Vice President for Mission, Human Resources, Student Life, and the Office of Institutional Research. The AVP/SDO and their Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion will lead Saint Mary’s to create a culture of continuous improvement and accountability by planning and assessing DEI initiatives across the college, aligned with the institutional strategic plan, Transformation 2028.

Saint Mary’s is a comprehensive university, grounded in the liberal arts, Catholic, and Lasallian traditions, which engages the intellect and the spirit with exceptional academics. Saint Mary’s provides an education that changes lives and inspires the desire to find one’s calling in a world in need of transformation. Saint Mary’s invites students to passionately embrace knowledge, the challenges of scholarship, and their own capacity to make lasting change in the world. Saint Mary’s was founded by the De La Salle Christian Brothers and remains a living legacy of the life and work of Saint John Baptist de La Salle, the 17th-century founder of the Christian Brothers and patron saint of teachers.

Saint Mary’s is seeking well-qualified, innovative, dynamic candidates for the AVP/SDO position. The ideal candidate will have the following personal and professional qualifications:

• A master’s degree;
• Minimum of 5 years of higher education administrative experience with social justice, equity, and inclusion work and/or leadership experience;
• Experience with supervision of staff and/or faculty and working collaboratively across institutional units at an accredited institution of higher education;
• Experience teaching and/or training in an academic setting;
• Demonstrated commitment to, knowledge of, and experience with DEI initiatives;
• Proven success in strategic planning, assessing progress, and using data and results for improvement;
• Demonstrated success leading change and shifting culture;
• Knowledge of key concepts, trends, and policies in higher education;
• Proven leadership skills and ability to influence and motivate constituencies spanning multiple organizational boundaries;
• Excellent planning, organizational and analytical skills with the ability to act independently and as part of a team, including budget management, use of technology, and communication skills;
• Innovation with a commitment to continual learning and understanding of emerging pedagogies; and
• Experience in staff and/or faculty development and mentoring.

 

Additional qualities and characteristics preferred but not required:

• PhD, JD, EdD, or other terminal degree;
• Fluency in multiple languages;
• Experience in Catholic higher education.

 

Compensation

 

The salary is competitive and commensurate with qualifications, ranging from $150,000 to $160,000.

 

How to Apply

Applications and nominations are now being accepted. Inquiries, nominations, and application materials should be directed to Greenwood Asher & Associates. Application materials should include:

• A letter of interest that clearly states the applicant’s qualifications for the position
• A current resume/curriculum vitae
• A diversity, equity, and inclusion statement
• The name and email addresses of five professional references

We strongly encourage submitting application materials as PDF attachments. The search will be conducted with a commitment to confidentiality for candidates until finalists are selected. Initial screening of applications will begin immediately and will continue until an appointment is made.

Please direct inquiries, nominations, and application materials to:

Lois Stetson, Senior Executive Search Consultant,

Greenwood Asher & Associates

E-mail: loisstetson@greenwoodsearch.com

 

Tracey Weldon, Vice President of Executive Search,

Greenwood Asher & Associates

E-mail: traceyweldon@greenwoodsearch.com

 

 

For more information about SMC, please visit https://www.stmarys-ca.edu/

 

Saint Mary’s College of California is an EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.

In compliance with applicable law and its own policy, Saint Mary’s College of California is committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse student and employee population and does not discriminate in its admission of students, hiring of employees, or in the provision of its employment benefits to its employees and its educational programs, activities, benefits and services to its students, including but not limited to scholarship and loan programs, on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, medical condition, physical or mental disability.