Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs

Clarke University•Dubuque, IA

23h•Onsite

About The Position

Clarke University seeks a visionary, integrative, and mission-centered leader to serve as Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs (VPASA). Reporting directly to the President and serving as a member of the President's Cabinet, the VPASA provides executive leadership for the integration of academic and student affairs, advancing a holistic, systems-based, and continuously improving approach to student learning, formation, and success now and in the future. This role unites academic affairs and student affairs in a coherent, student-centered ecosystem grounded in the charism of the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (BVM) and informed by Clarke's Catholic identity. The VPASA serves as a principal partner to the President; a visible champion of integrated learning across generations, contexts, and communities; and a trusted steward of faculty excellence, student success, and institutional effectiveness through evidence-based decision-making and continuous improvement. The VPASA leads a reimagined division intentionally designed to make Clarke's mission operational and a distinctive differentiator. Central to this structure are a commitment to active and experiential learning, a Dean of Faculty, Dean of Academic Affairs, and Dean of Student Affairs reporting to the VPASA, and an integrated, data-informed student success framework. The VPASA is expected to steward this model with foresight, clarity, disciplined execution, compassion, and a systems perspective that aligns strategy, assessment, and improvement across the institution in support of long-term agility and resilience.

Requirements

Terminal degree (PhD or equivalent)
Tenure-eligible academic background (or prior tenure)
Progressive academic leadership experience (Dean level or higher)
Deep knowledge of academic operations, including curriculum, faculty governance, accreditation, assessment
Demonstrated success in improving student retention and persistence

Nice To Haves

Visionary, integrative, and mission-centered leader
Ability to translate mission, strategy, and evidence into action through holistic, systems-based approaches
Support of presidential leadership through ongoing institutional change
Deep respect for Clarke's BVM Catholic identity

Responsibilities

Advance Clarke's BVM Catholic identity and heritage through policy, practice, and culture
Serve as a strategic partner to the President
Model values-based leadership that integrates mission, academic quality, student success, and organizational performance
Provide executive oversight of curriculum development, assessment of student learning, and accreditation as the University's Chief Academic Officer
Supervise and support the Dean of Faculty, Dean of Academic Affairs, Dean of Student Affairs, and University Registrar
Ensure academic quality and integrity through systematic assessment, use of evidence, and continuous improvement consistent with regional accreditation expectations
Provide unified leadership for advising, retention, student life, and co-curricular learning
Advance an integrated student success ecosystem that uses qualitative and quantitative data to improve outcomes and close equity gaps
Collaborate widely and effectively to integrate formation, vocation, and learning
Champion multigenerational and experiential learning models
Participate in strategic planning processes informed by strategic foresight, environmental scanning, and scenario-aware thinking
Collaborate with senior leadership to align goals with institutional strategy
Advance a culture of continuous improvement, organizational learning, and performance excellence through systems-based processes
Strengthen institutional agility and resilience by aligning planning, assessment, budgeting, and improvement cycles
Lead effectively through complexity, transition, and change with transparency and care