Founding Director, School of Biological Sciences

Applications are invited for the position of Founding Director of the School of Biological Sciences, at the rank of Professor, in the Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Oklahoma.

About the Director:  The University of Oklahoma seeks a thoughtful, dynamic, purposeful, and collaborative leader to serve as the Inaugural Director of its newly established School of Biological Sciences.  The anticipated start date for this position is August 15, 2023.  Candidates must have the requisite record of research, scholarship, and teaching and mentoring to hold the rank of full professor in a biological sciences field.  Importantly, candidates should also have a Ph.D. in a biological sciences field or related field and a strong record of departmental, school, or other appropriate leadership experience and a demonstrated record of positive accomplishments in several of the following areas: program/curriculum redesign, elevation of research mission, nurturing and enhancement of undergraduate and graduate training programs, effective management of a complex physical and human infrastructure, and fundraising/donor cultivation.

About the School:  Founded in spring 2022, this new School, housed in the Dodge Family College of Arts and Sciences, brings together the currently autonomous Department of Biology, Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, and the Oklahoma Biological Survey.  The School will advance innovative undergraduate and graduate programs and to maximize convergence-based research to advance the University’s core research strategic verticals of Energy, Environment, and Sustainability, and The Future of Health.  The biological sciences at OU are home to more than 60 full-time faculty, including 10 endowed or distinguished chairs and professorships, a dozen staff, approximately 1,600 undergraduate majors and 100 graduate students, close to $10M a year in research awards, with five core buildings as well as a 10-acre aquatic research facility, and a 250-acre biological station.  To accompany the establishment of the new School, the College, University, and state legislature have committed significant resources for new research and instructional lab infrastructure, as well as faculty hires.  The biological sciences are already the largest undergraduate program at the university, and OU is committed to partnering with the new director to build a nationally renowned set of graduate and postdoctoral programs and provide the levels of faculty support necessary to drive the research mission of the university.

The University of Oklahoma has retained the services of Dr. Josh Ward at the executive search firm Korn Ferry to conduct this important search. All inquiries, nominations, and applications should be submitted to Dr. Josh Ward at Josh.Ward@KornFerry.com. In addition, the University of Oklahoma is requesting that all materials be uploaded to the following Interfolio link: https://apply.interfolio.com/119532. 

Applicants should submit the following two documents as PDFs:

• C.V. or Resume
• Cover letter that includes a summary of teaching, research, administrative responsibilities, and service activities

At this time, please do not submit letters of reference. We will request a minimum of three and up to five letters of reference for applicants who make it through the initial application evaluation phase. Confidential application review will begin immediately, although the position will remain open until filled.

For priority consideration, please submit all application materials by Wednesday, March 15, 2023. Screening of candidates will begin on this date and will continue until the position is filled. References are not requested at this time.