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Director of the School of Natural Resources and the Environment

Employer
University of Arizona
Location
Tucson, Arizona, US
Salary
Competitive
Closing date
Oct 17, 2021

View more

Sector
Academic / Research
Field
Conservation science
Discipline
Climate Change
Salary Type
Salary
Employment Type
Full time
The University of Arizona seeks a Director of the School of Natural Resources and the Environment
Click here to view position profile: https://summitsearchsolutions.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/UA_Director_SNRE_Profile.pdf
Click here to view Spanish translation of position profile: https://summitsearchsolutions.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/UA_Director_SNRE_Profile_Spanish.pdf
Location: Tucson, Arizona

The Position:
The University of Arizona (UArizona) School of Natural Resources and the Environment (SNRE) seeks an enthusiastic, innovative, growth-minded, and entrepreneurial Director to lead one of UArizona's largest and most complex schools. The new director will build upon a tradition of excellence to grow SNRE's reach, profile, and programming, working closely with nine college academic unit heads, academic unit heads in other colleges, seven associate/assistant deans, the Extension Director, Director of International Initiatives, Associate Vice President for Advancement, Advocacy, Alumni Affairs and Corporate Relations, the Dean of the Rogers College of Law, and the Vice President & Dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. The School houses more than 250 employees, including 36 faculty (including four Extension specialists), 78 staff members, 292 undergraduate majors and 76 graduate students. Current course enrollment is >3100 undergraduate and >300 graduate students annually. The directorship will be accompanied by a Tenured Professorship commensurate to the rank and qualifications of the applicant.

SNRE's teaching, research, and extension programs address today's critical natural resources and environmental challenges. The School's teaching and research program areas include Natural Resources; Conservation Biology; Climate Change and Society; Ecology, Management, and Restoration of Rangelands; Fisheries Conservation and Management; Global Change Ecology and Management; Geographic Information Science and Technology; Watershed Management and Ecohydrology; Water, Society & Policy; and Wildlife Conservation and Management. SNRE contributes to UArizona's Land Grant Mission through its Cooperative Extension Programming, which includes Animal Foraging Behavior and Distribution; Climate Change Adaptation Planning; Climate Services; Community-Based Sustainable Rangeland Livestock Production; Improving Range Management on Public Lands: Planning, Analysis, and Monitoring; Noxious, Invasive Plants; and Rangeland and Natural Resource Ecology and Management.

Outstanding UArizona benefits include health, dental, and vision insurance plans; life insurance and disability programs; sick leave, and holidays; UArizona/Arizona State University/Northern Arizona University tuition reduction for the employee and qualified family members; state and optional retirement plans; access to UArizona recreation and cultural activities; and more!

The University of Arizona has been recognized for innovative work-life programs. For more information about working at the University of Arizona and relocation services, please click here.

Duties and Responsibilities:
The School Director, who will have both College and Extension appointments, must be a proven entrepreneurial and innovative leader with demonstrated excellence and outstanding achievements warranting appointment as Full Professor. Reporting directly to the VP and Dean, the Director is responsible for:
  • Building and leading all aspects of the School.
  • Driving additional excellence in enrollment, programming, advancement, and partnerships.
  • Increasing and maintaining connections with private, state, and federal agencies.
    • Working with commercial and governmental partners in funded projects.
    • Partnering with donors and community organizations to secure philanthropic funding.
  • Leading financial and budget administration for the School.
  • Recruiting diverse students and faculty.
  • Advocating for an inclusive environment.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:
  • Exemplary communication and interpersonal skills.
  • Collaborative leadership with impeccable integrity.
  • Proven innovative and entrepreneurial leadership and management skills.
  • Experience with finance and budgeting in a growth-oriented environment.
  • Experience overseeing undergraduate and graduate instructional programs.
  • Experience with Cooperative Extensions and relating these activities to all external stakeholders and user groups.
  • Leadership focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Minimum Qualifications:
  • A terminal degree.
  • Track record of successful leadership, management, and accountability for an academic or research organization.
  • History of successfully working with a broad diversity of stakeholder groups, such as federal and state agencies, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector.
  • Experience in an all-funds activity-based environment.
  • Experience with advocacy efforts and with effectively interacting with alumni, corporations, and advisory board members.
  • Evidence of securing and maintaining philanthropic support.

About the School of Natural Resources and the Environment:
The School of Natural Resources and the Environment (SNRE) is a world leader in pursuing science that informs how environmental change impacts arid and semi-arid systems and how best to adapt to environmental challenges. The School is a cohort of students, faculty, and staff who take great pride in a focus on problem-driven research, teaching, and extension encompassing all aspects of environmental stewardship. SNRE research answers important questions about how ecosystems respond under environmental or human pressures and develops strategies to help mitigate the effects of these pressures, helping to create and maintain healthy and sustainable ecological systems.

The SNRE's undergraduate and graduate educational programs are interdisciplinary and focused on real-world problems and experiences, preparing students for the demands of leadership positions in natural resource science and management. SNRE offers a variety of degree options that allow students to tailor their degrees to suit their interests and career goals. Students are at the heart of the School, as they develop their projects, fieldwork, and complete their academic course work, they gain both the theoretical and the practical skills they will need to be the resource managers of the future.

SNRE is unique among its peers in terms of the breadth of focus and depth of expertise, integrating across the boundaries of biology, physical science, resource management, and international resource issues. SNRE is unmatched in the number and diversity of partnerships it has established with organizations in Tucson, County, State, and Federal agencies that foster an atmosphere of collaboration and collegiality.

In addition, SNRE is focused on actively building a diverse and welcoming environment for all. It is the School's goal to ensure that the SNRE community respects and embraces diversity, and to encourage and support activities and conversations that promote a genuine climate of mutual respect, empathy, and inclusion.

SNRE offers Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, and Doctor of Philosophy degrees in Natural Resources, and a Master of Science degree in Water, Society & Policy. SNRE offers the advantages of a large research university while providing a more intimate setting for students to explore working with natural resources and applying science to real-world conservation.

The Environment and Natural Resources 2 Building (ENR2)
The School of Natural Resources and Environment is located within a new facility completed in 2015. The Environment and Natural Resources 2 Building (ENR2) is part of the University of Arizona's commitment to environmental sustainability and interdisciplinary research and studies that focus on earth science, environmental programs, and natural resources. The building contains offices, classrooms, auditoriums and gathering rooms for public programs, in addition to a café and a stunning central courtyard that foster circulation and gathering.

About the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences:
With an education and research portfolio that stretches from soil sciences to resource management to retailing, and from beneath the soil to outer space, the University of Arizona's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) offers 20 undergraduate degree programs across four schools and six departments. CALS research touches on nearly every aspect of modern life and has played a pivotal role in Arizona's and the global economy throughout its 134-year history.

Uniquely positioned in the southern Arizona desert to offer solutions to problems affecting much of the world in the 21st century, the College continues to build on its heritage of advancing the frontiers of science to improve the human condition.

The College's Strategic Plan can be found HERE.

The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences is committed to these Four Strategic Intents:
  • Be a leading economic development engine for Arizona.
  • Produce employable graduates, who can do jobs that do not yet exist and create new jobs.
  • Be the most effective, efficient, responsive, flexible, and financially sustainable enterprise on campus.
  • Be the most sought-after place to be a part of.

College Leadership: Shane C. Burgess, MRCVS, FLS
Dr. Shane Burgess serves as the Vice President for the Division of Agriculture, Life and Veterinary Sciences, and Cooperative Extension and the Charles-Sander Dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at the University of Arizona.

Under Shane's leadership, the division launched the Yuma Center of Excellence in Desert Agriculture and the Gary and Barbara Pasquinelli Career Center. He also led the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences in the creation of new undergraduate degrees in Biosystems Analytics and Technology, Food Safety, Nutrition and Food Systems, and Personal and Family Financial Planning.

A "first-generation student," Shane graduated with distinction as a veterinarian in 1989 from Massey University, New Zealand. He has worked in and managed veterinary clinical practices in Australia and the United Kingdom, with services in horses, farm animals, pets, wild and zoo animals, and emergency medicine and surgery. He did a radiology residency at Murdoch University in Perth, Western Australia, where he co-founded Perth's first emergency veterinary clinic concurrently, and he has managed aquaculture facilities in Scotland. Shane did his Ph.D. in virology, immunology, and cancer biology, conferred by University of Bristol Medical School, U.K. while working full time outside of the academy between 1995 and 1998.

About University of Arizona:
Established in 1885, the University of Arizona (UArizona), the state's land-grant university, is a member of the prestigious Association of American Universities. Recognized as a global leader, and classified as a Carnegie R-1, UArizona conducts more than $687 million in annual research expenditures and is currently ranked in the top 40 among all public universities surveyed. UArizona produces graduates who are real-world ready through its 100% Engagement Initiative. The UArizona is advancing the frontiers of interdisciplinary scholarship and entrepreneurial partnerships and benefits the state with an estimated economic impact of $4.1 billion annually. With a total faculty of 3,144, UArizona currently enrolls 36,503 undergraduate students in more than 300 majors, in addition to 10,429 graduate and professional students.

Located in the city of Tucson, with a campus size of 392 acres, UArizona offers students a wide range of activities and academic opportunities. This includes three levels of intramural sports and more than 30 fraternities and sororities, and many other student organizations. The Arizona Wildcats NCAA Division I teams compete in the Pac-12 Conference. Classified as a highest research institution, UArizona involves both undergraduate and graduate students in research projects. The University has a wide range of graduate programs, including the Eller College of Management, the College of Veterinary Medicine, the James E. Rogers College of Law and a College of Medicine.

The University of Arizona values its inclusive climate because it knows that diversity in experiences and perspectives is vital to advancing innovation, critical thinking, solving complex problems, and creating an inclusive academic community. As a Hispanic-serving institution, UArizona translates these values into action by seeking individuals who have experience and expertise working with diverse students, colleagues, and constituencies. Because UArizona seeks a workforce with a wide range of perspectives and experiences, the institution provides equal employment opportunities to applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or genetic information. As an Employer of National Service, UArizona also welcomes alumni of AmeriCorps, Peace Corps, and other national service programs and others who will help advance the institution's Inclusive Excellence initiative aimed at creating a university that values student, staff, and faculty engagement in addressing issues of diversity and inclusiveness.

The University of Arizona demonstrates diversity in every area with 24% of graduates being students of color. In fact, the graduate programs demonstrate exceptional diversity as enrollment is the most diverse among all public institutions belonging to the Association of American Universities. UArizona is ranked #1 in the number of PhDs awarded to Native American students and #9 in the number of PhDs awarded to Hispanic students.

Why Consider the Opportunity?
  • Excellence. Highly productive and committed faculty and staff.
  • Impact. Opportunity and support for entrepreneurial growth and development.
  • Location. Tucson offers unparalleled opportunities for partnerships and research. It is the epicenter for issues related to the School.
  • Exceptional facilities. The School is in a modern, advanced environmental science building built in 2015.
  • Professional development. The Division is committed to the development of its faculty and staff.
  • Innovation. Autonomy to manage and lead the School, including all finances.
  • Support. The School has a dedicated support team, including dedicated budget and development officers.

To Apply:
Confidential review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled; parties who apply before or by November 9, 2021 will be given first consideration. Interested candidates should submit a curriculum vitae and a letter of interest. To apply online, go to: https://theapplicantmanager.com/jobs?pos=su259

For more information or to offer recommendations or nominations:
Stephanie Rivas-Fowler
Senior Consultant
Summit Search Solutions, Inc.
Direct: (530) 677-9945
srivasfowler@summitsearchsolutions.com

At the University of Arizona, we value our inclusive climate because we know that diversity in experiences and perspectives is vital to advancing innovation, critical thinking, solving complex problems, and creating an inclusive academic community. As a Hispanic-serving institution, we translate these values into action by seeking individuals who have experience and expertise working with diverse students, colleagues, and constituencies. Because we seek a workforce with a wide range of perspectives and experiences, we provide equal employment opportunities to applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or genetic information. As an Employer of National Service, we also welcome alumni of AmeriCorps, Peace Corps, and other national service programs and others who will help us advance our Inclusive Excellence initiative aimed at creating a university that values student, staff and faculty engagement in addressing issues of diversity and inclusiveness.
The Chronicle of Higher Education. Keywords: School Principal, Location: Tucson, AZ - 85721

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