Ball State University

Ball State University and the Miller College of Business seek a strategic, student-centered and industry/community-oriented academic leader to serve as its next Bryan Dean. This individual will have the opportunity to lead the college and serve as a member of an engaged academic leadership team as the University implements a new strategic plan and decentralized, incentive-based budget model that aligns with the university’s commitment to the values of beneficence.

Located in Muncie, Indiana, Ball State University serves approximately 22,000 graduate and undergraduate students across eight academic colleges with 190 undergraduate programs. Ball State offers more than 140 master's, doctoral, certificate and specialist degrees, many of them ranking among the best in the nation. Originally founded to help boost the city's development, Ball State has earned a Community Engagement Classification from the Carnegie Foundation, and serves as one of Indiana’s public research institutions while remaining committed to transforming entrepreneurial learners into impactful leaders. At Ball State, diversity is an integral part of our identity. Our success depends on our efforts to cultivate inclusivity within our pedagogical, scholarly and creative pursuits. Community is an inherent and crucial aspect of such efforts at local, national and international levels.

As we recruit and train a diverse administration, faculty/staff and student body, we strive to ensure that our students are prepared to engage and succeed in increasingly diverse environments. Ball State will be a place recognized for its positive climate — one where all stakeholders know that their contributions to the mission of the university are essential to our success.

With strong leadership in the recent decade, the Miller College of Business has increased its external funding, industry and community relations, high-impact student experiences and enrollments. The AACSB accredited college offers more than a dozen undergraduate majors, as well as several graduate degrees and certificates. The college has grown to over 3,200 students housed within six departments: Accounting, Economics, Finance and Insurance, Information Systems and Operations Management, Management and Marketing. With an innovative and experiential curriculum, the college is committed to transforming students into civic-minded, entrepreneurial and innovative business leaders.

Reporting directly to the provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, the Bryan Dean of the Miller College of Business serves as the chief academic and administrative officer of the college. The dean is responsible for planning, directing and coordinating the operational, personnel, budgetary, fundraising and student activities of the college and providing leadership and direction in the development and implementation of curricula and academic programming. The dean is expected to foster interdisciplinary collaborations within the college and across campus, promote open communication and facilitate strategic planning and goal development across the academic departments and units in unison with the campus's broader strategic plan. The dean will serve as a visible and external advocate for the Miller College of Business, both on campus and within the community, to sustain and deepen partnerships and generate new streams of revenue to support the teaching, research and service goals of the school. In partnership with the president, provost and leadership team, the dean will engage the college in a collaborative, inclusive planning process to execute a shared academic vision and strategic plan that aligns with AACSB accreditation standards.

The next dean should be an experienced academician with a deep understanding and knowledge of student recruitment, enrollment and retention, innovative programming and experiential learning and faculty recruitment and development. The dean should be experienced in external resource generation through industry partnerships, alumni engagement, development and fundraising. Furthermore, the incoming dean will be expected to collaborate with the institution to help develop and execute a new budget model that promotes entrepreneurial activity, innovation and accountability. The preferred candidate will have an earned doctorate in an appropriate field and demonstrated successful experience in academic administration within an accredited business school.

Qualified applicants should have evidence of scholarly and professional achievement that merits a tenured faculty appointment at the rank of professor within the college. For more information, please visit www.wittkieffer.com.

Inquiries, nominations and applications are invited. Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled. For fullest consideration, applicant materials should be received by January 18, 2019.

Candidates should provide, as three separate documents, a curriculum vitae, a letter of application that addresses the responsibilities and requirements described in the Leadership Profile, a diversity statement describing ability to promote and advance inclusive excellence and the names and contact information of five references. References will not be contacted without prior knowledge and approval of candidates. These materials should be sent via e-mail to the Ball State University’s consultants, Zachary A. Smith, Ph.D., Sophie Stava and Julia Venetos at BallStateBusinessDean@wittkieffer.com. Questions may also be directed to the consultants through the office of Francine Heymanson at 949-797-3503.

Ball State University is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer that is strongly and actively committed to diversity within its community. Women, minorities, individuals with disabilities and protected veterans are strongly encouraged to apply. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status or any other legally protected status.