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KCON Dean Search

October 20, 2021

KCON Dean Search

For more information about the search, please visit the KCON Dean's Search website. The full Kirkhof College of Nursing Dean leadership profile is available via the WittKieffer website.

Nominations and expressions of interest should be directed to Diane Smith at 267-766-0410 or Claudia Teschky at 630-575-6172, the WittKieffer consultants supporting this search.

Grand Valley State University (GVSU) seeks an innovative and visionary individual committed to promoting and fostering excellence in teaching, research, professional practice, and service as its next Dean of the Kirkhof College of Nursing (KCON). As the academic and administrative leader of KCON, the new Dean will lead a College that is among GVSU’s greatest generators of external funding. This is an opportunity for a creative and strategic leader to build on the current success of KCON and its faculty and take it to the next level of its development as a leader in nursing education. Reporting to the Provost, the new Dean is expected to be a key contributor in the implementation of GVSU’s strategic plan, “Reach Higher 2025”, to position GVSU as the top choice for students, faculty, staff, and community partners. 

KCON awards baccalaureate degrees to traditional and second-degree students as well as registered nurses. Graduate education offered by KCON includes the MSN and the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP). In Fall 2020, KCON had an enrollment of 1,326 undergraduate and 90 graduate students. There are 46 full-time faculty members and more than 6,230 alumni worldwide. KCON recently moved to the newly constructed Daniel and Pamella DeVos Center for Interprofessional Health, which includes 15 classrooms and 14 interactive laboratories. Among its highlights: spaces for electronic 3D modeling and imaging of the body and its organs and 24 standardized patient rooms and 10 hospital rooms. This center will enhance collaboration and interaction between students in GVSU’s 65 health-related programs and allow for learning on state-of-the-industry simulation and technology. 

The successful candidate will possess the vision and the communication, management, and leadership skills to continue KCON’s history of educational and research excellence. Minimum requirements include an earned doctorate from an accredited institution with at least one graduate degree in nursing; a record of achievement in teaching, scholarship, and service, which merits appointment as a tenured Professor of nursing; prior academic administrative experience; and proven success in external funding. 

Founded in 1960, GVSU has become one of the most dynamic comprehensive public institutions of higher education in Michigan with an enrollment of 22,400 students and campuses in suburban Allendale, downtown Grand Rapids, and Holland, and centers in Battle Creek, Muskegon, Traverse City, and Detroit, Michigan. Despite its growth in size and complexity since it began, GVSU has remained dedicated to its liberal education philosophy as the foundation of every academic program. 

Inquiries, nominations, and applications are invited. 

Applications should include a cover letter and curriculum vitae and be sent via email to [email protected]. Inquiries may be directed to Diane Smith at 267-766-0410 or Claudia Teschky at 630-575-6172, the WittKieffer consultants supporting this search. 

Grand Valley State University is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer, which includes  providing equal opportunity for racial and ethnic minorities, women, protected veterans and  individuals with disabilities. University policy extends protections to additional identities. See https://www.gvsu.edu/affirmative/.

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Page last modified October 20, 2021