Department Head, Health Policy and Administration

The Pennsylvania State University•University Park, FL

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The Pennsylvania State University invites applications for the Department Head of Health Policy and Administration (HPA), an academic unit in the College of Health and Human Development at University Park. The Department Head serves as the department’s chief academic and administrative officer, leading its faculty, staff, students, academic programs, research initiatives, and external engagement across residential and online education. The position reports to the Dean of the College of Health and Human Development. HPA is a nationally recognized, multidisciplinary department focused on improving health care delivery, health outcomes, public health, and health policy through teaching, research, and outreach. It serves more than 400 undergraduate and graduate students through residential and online bachelor’s and master’s programs and graduate programs leading to M.S. and Ph.D. degrees. The department also oversees an emerging undergraduate public health initiative. Its faculty include 13 tenured and tenure-track faculty members and 18 teaching and research faculty members, supported by staff, adjunct faculty, preceptors, alumni, and health system partners. The department’s work includes an active research portfolio with NIH, state, and foundation grants, collaborations with college and university research centers and institutes, and administrative oversight of the Pennsylvania Office of Rural Health. The Department Head also oversees the department’s online education portfolio and public health initiatives. The Head provides strategic leadership for the department’s academic, research, operational, and outreach missions. The role includes visioning and strategic planning; oversight of academic and research programs; management of operations, finances, faculty, and staff affairs; fundraising and development; and cultivation of external partnerships. The Head is expected to recruit, develop, and retain outstanding faculty and staff, advocate for the department, enhance its visibility and reputation, and foster a cohesive, multidisciplinary, inclusive culture that supports innovation, collaboration, well-being, and work-life balance. The Head will support research productivity, external funding, teaching excellence, interdisciplinary scholarship, and engagement with health systems, communities, and policymakers. The position also encourages the Head to maintain an active scholarship program and mentor graduate student research, and requires advancing opportunities in undergraduate, graduate, and online education. Candidates must hold an earned doctorate, have an active and focused research program in health services research, health administration or management, population health, or a related field, and have previous teaching experience. Candidates must have scholarly credentials meriting appointment with tenure at the rank of Associate Professor or Professor in the College of Health and Human Development. The successful candidate will bring academic leadership experience, strategic vision, strong interpersonal and communication skills, and a collaborative, transparent, and inclusive leadership approach. Experience working in a large, complex university environment is desirable; experience with performance-based budgeting or similar resource-allocation models is preferred but not required. Priority review is given to applications submitted by November 15, 2026. Applicants should submit a cover letter of up to three pages, a curriculum vitae, and names and contact information for five references. References will be contacted only before invitations for on-campus interviews. Employment is contingent on successful completion of background checks, including a credit history check because of the position’s financial and fiduciary responsibilities.

Requirements

Earned doctorate.
Evidence of an active and focused research program in health services research, health administration or management, population health, or a related field.
Previous teaching experience.
Scholarly credentials necessary for appointment with tenure at the rank of Associate Professor or Professor in the College of Health and Human Development.
Experience with undergraduate and graduate education programs, including significant exposure to degree programs in health policy and administration and public health.
Experience and aptitude for building relationships and partnerships with constituencies within and beyond the University, including faculty colleagues, Penn State Health, other health systems, public health practice organizations, community partners, and alumni.
Commitment to an organizational culture emphasizing inclusivity, transparency, collaboration, and engagement among faculty, staff, and students.
Recognition of the importance of undergraduate and graduate education and willingness to support innovation and continuous improvement across programs and delivery modalities.
Established record of scholarly excellence and success developing, sustaining, and managing a robust, externally visible research program.
Demonstrated administrative and leadership experience in an academic, research, outreach, or similarly complex organizational setting, including strategic planning, personnel management, budgeting, program development, and resource stewardship.
Ability to articulate and advance a compelling vision that leverages the department’s strengths in research, education, outreach, partnerships, and emerging opportunities.
Strong interpersonal, communication, and consensus-building skills, including the ability to build support among diverse stakeholders and enhance departmental visibility, reputation, and external partnerships.
Collaborative, transparent, and inclusive leadership approach, with strong strategic thinking skills and an innovative spirit.

Nice To Haves

Experience working effectively within a large, complex university environment is desirable.
Experience with performance-based budgeting or similar resource-allocation models is preferred but not required.

Responsibilities

Provide strategic leadership for the department’s academic, research, operational, and outreach missions.
Develop the department’s vision and strategic plans.
Oversee academic programs, research programs, and online education initiatives.
Manage departmental operations, finances, and procedural matters.
Oversee faculty and staff affairs, including recruiting, developing, and retaining outstanding faculty and staff.
Oversee fundraising and development activities and cultivate external partnerships.
Support faculty in securing external funding, expanding collaborative research, and translating scholarship into impact for health systems, communities, and policymakers.
Advance teaching excellence, interdisciplinary scholarship, research productivity, and external engagement in alignment with College and University priorities.
Foster a cohesive, multidisciplinary, inclusive culture that encourages innovation, creativity, collaboration, well-being, and work-life balance.
Advocate for the department and enhance its visibility, reputation, and external partnerships.
Oversee the Pennsylvania Office of Rural Health, whose director reports to the Department Head.
Oversee Penn State’s emerging undergraduate public health initiative.
Identify and advance opportunities in undergraduate, graduate, and online education.
Maintain an active program of scholarship and mentor graduate student research, as encouraged by the position.
Build support among diverse stakeholders and strengthen partnerships within and beyond the University.