Professor & Head & Endowed Chair

MSU Jobs•Starkville, MS

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The head is a full-time administrative position and reports to the Dean of the College of Agriculture & Life Sciences (CALS) and Director of the Mississippi Agricultural Forestry & Experiment Station (MAFES), the Director of the Mississippi State University Extension Service (MSU-ES), and the Dean of the College of Engineering. The head provides visionary leadership for all aspects of the department's current and future activities in teaching, research, Extension, and service. The head is responsible for administrative management fostering teamwork among faculty, staff and students of the department by using appropriate communication, management methods, and organizational guidelines to develop, enable, implement, and evaluate programs. The head fosters relationships and communication with other academic and center/institute heads on- and off-campus, and external stakeholders. The head is responsible for managing appropriated funds, extramural support as gifts, grants and/or contracts, allocating departmental resources, making timely decisions, delegating responsibility, and motivating faculty and staff toward accomplishment of defined teaching, research, and service objectives, as well as other scholarly activities on- and off-campus. This position holds the William & Sherry Berry Endowed Chair.

Requirements

Earned doctorate from an accredited institution in Agricultural Engineering, Biological Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Agricultural Engineering Technology, or related fields.
Eligible for tenure at associate or full professor and graduate faculty membership at MSU.
Knowledge of and appreciation for the diverse interests and interdisciplinary programs in the department.
Knowledge of and experience with capital development activities and extramural grantsmanship.
Familiarity with Land Grant University system
Demonstrated successful administrative experience appropriate to the required responsibilities.
Competence in leadership and management, and exceptional interpersonal skills.
Demonstrated excellence in teaching, research, and Extension/outreach.
Experience in establishing networks with business and industry.
Achievement of national visibility through leadership in academic and professional organizations.
Willingness to pursue, promote and encourage regional, national and international opportunities for the department.
Demonstrated ability to communicate and interact effectively with administrators, faculty, staff, students, partners, consumers, and industry-related constituencies.
Demonstrated ability to facilitate linkages with appropriate local, state, national and international agencies.

Responsibilities

Effectively represent the teaching, research, Extension, and other outreach efforts of the department with agencies, clientele, stakeholder groups, civic organizations, professional organizations, and the general public.
Develops/maintains knowledge of the concepts, enabling legislation, history, and philosophy of the department and a land-grant university.
Follows policies with departmental budget/expenditure recommendations.
Develops/maintains communication with faculty/staff/other personnel, with Governmental organizations (local, state, regional, national), and the private sector on behalf of clientele, users, and cooperators.
Establishes/maintains relationships with key decision makers/leaders and communicates regularly to improve department activities.
Reports regularly to superiors. Advocates/negotiates for optimum combinations of human resources, funds, and materials to achieve program missions on a priority basis.
Reviews/evaluates plans of work, programs, publications and other educational services. Recommends continuation and/or modification to ensure complementary and supportive efforts by all faculty/staff.
Ensures Extension faculty provide statewide educational programming for dissemination of research-based information, including in-service education programs for agents and teaching programs for stakeholders to include scientific-based assessment and evaluation.
Participates in leadership meetings with the CALS Dean/MAFES Director, Bagley COE Dean, Director of MSU-ES, and others, reporting on and representing the department and sharing information back to the department.
Oversees, in coordination with departmental faculty, development of curricula, standards for formal/non-formal instruction, and continued programmatic excellence in undergraduate, graduate and Extension education.
Identifies, supports, and encourages multi- and inter-disciplinary programs that advance knowledge and technology and enhance the development and dissemination of practical applications.
Encourages teamwork and promotes cooperation/joint programming, where appropriate, within the department, among division units and across the university.
Maximizes the use of existing priority planning groups and advisory councils to identify priorities and plan programs.
Provides planning, coordination, and support for obtaining goods/services for optimum operation of the department, such as official mail, space allocations, supplies, computer support services, property control and facilities.
Manages the staffing process according to MSU policies and procedures, such as position development/requisition, application recruitment/review, candidate selection/recommendation and terms of employment.
Evaluates performance of departmental faculty on-campus and in cooperation with appropriate research and Extension center heads. Responsible for justifying the evaluation with the Dean(s)/Director(s) or their designees.
Mentors faculty for successful promotion and tenure outcomes. Recommends opportunities for employee professional growth/development, including early faculty mentorship and networking.
Works with the director of MAFES and other university research centers to enhance research, develop a research program in applied and fundamental research to meet stakeholder needs, and expand knowledge base.
Interacts with research and Extension centers to facilitate statewide research efforts.
Works with the development team to provide leadership on fundraising efforts for the department.