Vice President for Student Life
Northeastern Illinois University invites applications and nominations for the position of Vice President for Student Life. The Vice President will lead programs and initiatives to strengthen the co-curricular experiences of NEIU’s commuting student body and to improve the quality of undergraduate student life.
NEIU is regarded as the most diverse university in the Midwest and is designated by the United States Department of Education as an Hispanic Serving Institution. Diversity is an important factor in the character of the institution and in the social fabric of the student body. Northeastern Illinois enrolls over 11,000 students on several campuses across the Chicago area. Northeastern recently developed a strategic plan that focuses on efforts to increase the level of student success. The first goal outlined in the plan is to “Ensure student success from recruitment through graduation by creating a culture in which all members of the University community are engaged in attracting, educating and graduating students who achieve the objectives for baccalaureate and graduate degrees.” Among the actions called for in the plan are: “Improve coordination among student and academic support programs and services with a focus on quality, customer service, and intentional integration with the curriculum;” and “Strive to make NEIU, as a designated Hispanic Serving Institution, an institution of choice for Latino students.” The entire plan is available on the University’s website at http://strategicplan.neiu.edu.
The Vice President for Student Life will hold an earned doctorate and have specific, progressively responsible experience in meeting the developmental needs of diverse student groups. Experience in developing, implementing and assessing strategic goals is important, as is the demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with a wide array of constituencies. The Vice President for Student Life will lead programs related to student activities and leadership, career services, counseling, health, recreation, student orientation and the Office of the Dean of Students. As implementation of the strategic plan proceeds, the scope and structure of these programs will be reviewed and the Vice President will lead this review. The Vice President also will work closely with Academic Affairs to promote a success-oriented learning environment.
Applications should include a statement of the candidate’s vision of the role of Student Life in an urban university, a curriculum vitae, a graduate school transcript and three letters of recommendation. Materials may be sent electronically to VPStudentLife@neiu.edu. Review of applications will begin on September 1, 2009 and continue until the position is filled.