Vice President of Academic Affairs (VPAA) and Provost

Eureka College invites applications for the Vice President of Academic Affairs (VPAA) and Provost. Reporting to the President the VPAA and Provost serves as the Chief Academic Officer and a highly collaborative, vital strategic partner to faculty and the senior leadership team. The VPAA is avisionary, future-forward champion who prioritizes a student-centered pedagogy and identifies opportunities forpositive disruptive change, including courageously redefining traditional academic frameworks, cultivating agile educational models, and building high-impact learning ecosystems. Operating in collaboration with the President and Cabinet, the VPAA/Provost supports the College in advancing its vision, mission, core values, and strategic initiatives by aligning a transformative academic vision with financial sustainability, student success, and institutional longevity.

OVERVIEW:

Future-Forward & Transformative Academic Vision

• Positive Disruptive Innovation: Lead the faculty and staff in reimagining the academic portfolio; challenge historical assumptions to build market-responsive, digitally enhanced, and interdisciplinarity-driven programs.
• Agile Curriculum Design: Drive the creation of flexible learning pathways, stackable credentials, micro-credentials, and experiential learning models tailored for the modern learner.
• Emerging Technologies: Actively and appropriately integrate generative artificial intelligence (AI), immersive tech, and modern learning-analytics platforms into the pedagogy and operational structures of academic affairs.

Visionary & Collaborative Executive Partnership

• Cabinet-Level Co-Authorship: Partner with the Vice President of Finance/CFO to establish data-informed, sustainable economic models for new and existing academic initiatives, and with other senior leaders to explore new business models.
• Enrollment & Marketing Synergy: Work side-by-side with the Enrollment Management division to align programmatic development directly with modern student demand, retention metrics, and future career outcomes.
• Inclusive Advocacy: Cultivate an empowering campus culture by championing the Colleges founding principles and core values of inclusion, belonging, and accessibility across faculty recruitment, pedagogy, and student support.

High-Impact Faculty & Culture Development

• Culture of Boldness: Foster a healthy, entrepreneurial ecosystem among faculty where calculated pedagogical risk-taking, continuous professional experimentation, and scholarship are celebrated.
• Modernized Governance: Engage with shared governance structures in a transparent, courageous, and collaborative manner to appropriately accelerate institutional decision-making and agility.
• Holistic Student Success: Break down traditional silos between Academic Affairs and Student Affairs to build an interconnected, seamless student-lifecycle experience that emphasizes an integrated learning model.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

• Represent, serve, and lead the academic sector of the College, including the academic departments and academic support services.
  • Oversee faculty recruitment, professional development, evaluation, promotion, tenure processes.
  • Foster a culture of healthy shared governance.
  • Formulate and lead data-driven institutional change activities related to the academic sphere that seamlessly integrates into the broader institutional strategic goals (e.g., new program delivery models, new faculty workload/compensation models, new programs that meet institutional and sector demand).
  • Provide leadership to the Registrars Office, library and career development and serve as the institutional liaison with IT partner in establishing goals and objectives that facilitate growth and are consistent with the vision of the College.
• Lead academic retention and persistence efforts, including institutional research into predictive models, data collection, action planning and goal setting in collaboration with other senior leaders.
• Manage the Academic Affairs budget and provide appropriate input regarding institutional assets with a focus on entrepreneurial stewardship, optimizing resource allocation for growth and return on mission.
• Assist the President in identifying, vetting, and cultivating strategic partnerships/collaborative alliances with other educational entities and organizations that improve efficiency, help to scale and modernize the curriculum, and increase or diversify revenue.
• Represent the college externally in partnership with Advancement to identify and secure resources, including grants, that strengthen experiential learning pipelines, fund, and support student success.
• Oversee the development of the course schedule providing an environment conducive to transformative change, servant leadership, and the development of learning excellence.
• Lead faculty continuous improvement efforts in keeping program offerings, experiential learning and international studies relevant to current and future students.
• Participate as a collegial problem solver with the Presidents Council in exceeding enrollment and external development goals.
• Partner with Facilities Management on academic infrastructure needs and planning for college
• Enable and lead the College in all assessment and accreditation Understand and ensure compliance with federal and state regulations and reporting requirements.
• Serve as Program Director for academically focused federal grants.
• Promote the College in communications and exchanges with all internal and external
• Address academic misconduct and student misconduct appeals.
• Maintain a clear line of sight on all state and federal legislation and higher education trends that may affect and provide opportunities for Eureka College.
• Represent and serve as an extension of the President internally and externally, when needed.
• Participate in on-going professional development through national higher education organizations.
• Provide leadership to faculty and supervise academic support and career development staff.
• Interview, hire and train employees.
• Plan, assign and direct work.
• Appraise performance; reward and discipline employees.
• Address complaints and resolve problems.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, ABILITIES:

• Essential: Ph.D. or terminal degree in an academic discipline; Desirable: Ph.D. or terminal degree in a field taught at Eureka College.
• Essential: Experience as a full-time tenure-track/tenured faculty member in a small college environment; Desirable: Experience as a chief academic officer in a small, private college environment.
• At least three (3) years of leadership/administrative experience in the small college environment.
• High level of integrity, empathy, and emotional intelligence.
• Ability to communicate effectively both verbally and in writing.
• Ability to build relationships and interact with a variety of constituencies and a diverse population. Skilled in negotiation practices.
• Ability to build and lead a high functioning team.
• Visionary and transformative leadership acumen.
• Multi-tasking with ability to prioritize and respond quickly to a variety of tasks.
• Thorough knowledge of the small private college landscape and potential opportunities.
• Ability to be an effective change leader.
• Knowledge of Microsoft Office applications, electronic mail, and other communication platforms.

Eureka College, located in Eureka, Illinois, and chartered in 1855, cultivates excellence in learning, service and leadership while providing students uniquely personalized and custom educational opportunities. Originally founded by abolitionist members of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Eureka College holds the unique distinction of being the first college in Illinois to admit men and women on an equal basis. The college, which is located on nearly 70 wooded acres in central Illinois, is the smallest college/university to ever award a bachelors degree to a future President of the United States.

Eureka College is being assisted by the partners of Hyatt-Fennell. Submit nominations and applications to eureka@hyatt-fennell.com. Applications include a focused cover letter, a resume/CV, a leadership statement, and contact information for 3 professional references. Applications will be reviewed upon receipt and will be accepted until the position is filled. Applications and nominations will be considered highly confidential.

Eureka College is an equal opportunity employer committed to achieving diversity within its administration, faculty, staff, and students.

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