Knox College, a quintessential College That Changes Lives, seeks a new Vice President for Student Development and Dean of Students. Reporting directly to President C. Andrew McGadney and serving as a member of his Senior Staff, the Vice President is Knox’s chief student affairs officer, providing leadership and vision in promoting the academic achievement, personal development and campus life experience of Knox’s undergraduates. The Vice President leads and inspires a team of more than 20 student affairs professionals in residential life, student activities and Greek life organizations, student conduct, international student services, spiritual life and health and counseling services. In addition, the Vice President oversees two centers dedicated to immersive learning and student outcomes, the Bastian Family Center for Career Success and the Kleine Center for Community Service.
The Vice President ensures that Knox’s student programs and services are responsive to students’ evolving needs, implements policies that promote both fair treatment and responsible conduct, and fosters strong and effective collaborative relationships among students and with the College. The Vice President will join with senior leadership and other campus colleagues to sustain Knox as a national leader in providing curricular and co-curricular programs that leverage the educational potential of a culturally rich and diverse campus community.
Position Qualifications
A master’s degree in higher education administration, human/student development, or a related field is required. A PhD in an arts-and-sciences discipline or higher education, or an EdD, is preferred. A minimum of seven years of professional experience, including five years of supervisory experience, is required, with a record of management and supervision of complex operations, preferably in multiple student-facing areas, preferred. Candidates should evidence active engagement with current and emerging best practices and issues in higher education and student development.
The successful candidate will be a student-centered creative thinker with the proven ability to facilitate organizational change, to improve organizational performance and to build coalitions within an academic community. Candidates should demonstrate intercultural competence and an inclusive disposition. A record of support and advocacy for individuals from diverse identities, histories, backgrounds and experiences, as well as the ability to build the capacity of colleagues in this work, is fundamental. Exceptional interpersonal skills, including the ability to exercise a high degree of diplomacy and discretion, are essential. Candidates should manifest adaptability, strong collaborative energy, integrity, sound judgment and the ability to make and explain difficult decisions.
Review of candidate materials will begin immediately and continue until the appointment. A complete application will include a letter of interest, a curriculum vitae, and contact information for five professional references who can speak about the candidate’s qualifications for this appointment. Named referees will not be contacted without the candidate’s prior consent. Expressions of interest, nominations and inquiries should be directed to Knox’s search consultant, Mr. Chuck O’Boyle of C. V. O’Boyle, Jr, LLC, at chuck@cvoboyle.com, who will furnish a detailed specification upon request.
Knox College prohibits sex discrimination and discrimination in violation of federal or state law in any education program or activity that it operates. Individuals may report concerns or questions regarding sex discrimination or other prohibited discrimination to the Director of Civil Rights & Title IX Compliance. The notice of non-discrimination is located at www.knox.edu/notice-of-non-discrimination.
Knox College is an independent, four-year, residential baccalaureate institution of approximately 1,100 students from 42 states and 56 countries. Dedicated to the liberal arts and sciences, the College currently offers 60 courses of study, a student-faculty ratio of 12-1, and a distinctive focus on immersive education. Its most popular majors include creative writing, psychology, business, computer science and biology. Known as the Prairie Fire, Knox fields 17 varsity sports in the Division III Midwest Conference and the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, with the notable recent addition of women’s flag football as a varsity sport beginning in 2027.
The College’s enduring hallmarks, dating from its founding in 1837 by abolitionists, are academic rigor; student access without regard to gender, race or financial circumstances; a social justice ethos; and a supportive student culture that inspires high affinity and loyal, active alumni devotion. The word alumni use most often in describing their Knox experience is “transformational.”
Experiential learning is an historical distinction of a Knox education, including the College’s singular immersive terms, which allow students to spend an entire 10-week term immersing themselves in a single focus of study. Terms span across disciplines, including business, theatre and the interdisciplinary Green Oaks term. Knox is a proudly diverse and broad-minded community with 71 percent domestic and 29 percent international students. It is notable for its passionate student activism, as well as its inclusivity, kindness and warmth. A member of the American Talent Initiative, Knox is among the most successful colleges in retaining and graduating first-generation and Pell-eligible college students.
Recent facility updates at Knox include the addition of the Knight Living & Learning Center, a new, 4,500 square foot year-round facility, and a renovated laboratory and classroom space, both located at Green Oaks, Knox’s prairie campus; renovations and accessibility upgrades to first-year residence halls; and a $10-million renovation to the College’s science building that is currently underway.
The College’s location, midway between Chicago and St. Louis, affords both urban proximity and a small-town setting conducive to a close-knit campus and local community engagement. Knox students have provided nearly 17,000 hours of community service over the last three years. The City of Galesburg (population 30,197), in collaboration with the College, is working on multiple development projects, including the renovation of the historic Standish Park adjacent to the north and west side of campus. Knox is deeply integrated with Galesburg, the seat of Knox County; a railroad hub three hours from Chicago; and “home to the largest number of historic houses in Illinois.” Amtrak currently provides service from Chicago on four trains daily, a journey as short as two hours, 38 minutes, and with a one-way fare as little as $28.