University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Dean, College of Liberal Arts
The University of Minnesota (UMN), founded in 1851, is an AAU and R1 public research university ranked among the world’s most respected institutions of higher learning. At the heart of every great university is a college encompassing the fundamental disciplines of knowledge. At UMN, this is the College of Liberal Arts (CLA). CLA was formally established in 1868, 17 years after the founding of the University. The University’s largest college, CLA is central to its academic mission. UMN’s excellence as a public land-grant research university depends crucially on the excellence of CLA.
CLA consists of 31 academic units. The college leadership team includes five associate deans, two assistant deans, and four administrative officers. The college employs over 800 staff across administrative and academic units and centers; over 20% are Indigenous or staff of color.
CLA educates over 12,000 undergraduates each year. CLA students receive nationally recognized awards, including Rhodes, Truman, Goldwater, Beinecke, and Fulbright scholarships. The college offers a variety of graduate program areas and employs nearly 700 graduate assistants each semester. Several CLA graduate programs are ranked in the top 20 in their disciplines by U.S. News and World Report. These include programs in macroeconomics, clinical psychology, industrial-organizational psychology, audiology, sociology of population, psychology, international economics, statistics, industrial organization, economics, social stratification, and speech-language pathology.
Reporting to the Executive Vice President and Provost, the Dean is the chief academic and administrative officer of the College and will be instrumental in guiding its future. The Dean will set and implement the strategic direction for CLA, with responsibility for advancing its mission and operations with an articulated vision for the future of liberal arts for the 21st century public, research institution through thoughtful personnel and management decisions, retention and enhancement of faculty talent, aligning budget decisions with strategic priorities, academic program oversight, and fundraising and donor development. The Dean will guide a robust scholarship and research operation, seek to expand sponsored research, and promote excellence in undergraduate and graduate education, including the development of collaborative and innovative academic programs designed to meet existing and emerging student needs and demand.
The successful candidate will possess demonstrated scholarly excellence in a field relevant to CLA and must be able to communicate authentically and broadly, within and beyond the university, the value of art, humanities, and social science education and research in realizing the full potential of a research-intensive, land-grant university with global reach. The next dean will sustain existing collaborations within the CLA and across the other UMN colleges and campuses, as well as envision and grow new partnerships and pathways with other institutions (PK-12, Tribal colleges, affiliation agreements, etc.) within the interdisciplinary climate of the University. They will have demonstrated impact in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion and possess strengths in recruiting, nurturing, and retaining outstanding and diverse faculty, staff, and students from all backgrounds. They will have a record of effective academic and operational administration, including revenue generation, increasing philanthropic support, and a keen awareness of the current climate regarding the liberal arts and higher education.
For more information, please see the full position description here.
The University of Minnesota invites inquiries, nominations, and applications for the position of Dean of the College of Liberal Arts. Interested candidates should confidentially submit a curriculum vitae and an optional letter of interest (Adobe PDF files preferred) to
Joi Hayes-Scott and Jett Pihakis
UMN.CLA@russellreynolds.com
For priority consideration, materials should be received as soon as possible preferably by February 19.
The University of Minnesota shall provide equal access to and opportunity in its programs, facilities, and employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, age, marital status, familial status, disability, public assistance status, membership or activity in a local commission created for the purpose of dealing with discrimination, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.
