Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs & Provost
Institute for the Advancement of Science and Engineering:
Position Description of the Interim Director
The Provost seeks applications and nominations for the Interim Director of the world-class, system-wide Institute for the Advancement of Science and Engineering. This institute grew out of strategic positioning activities in 2005, and a detailed blueprint for its establishment was advanced in 2006. (click to read the blueprint and the original report of the Science and Engineering Task Force).
The Institute is a key part of the University's plan to establish its leadership position in science and engineering. Its mission is to promote world-class interdisciplinary research at the intersection of biological, chemical, physical, engineering, and computational sciences to forge science-based solutions to some of the biggest challenges in human health, energy, and the environment.
As the first leader of the Institute, the Interim Director will recruit an inaugural faculty with the energy and vision to create an environment of high risk, high reward interdisciplinary research that will push the boundaries of current knowledge. The Interim Director will work with the inaugural Institute faculty to define initial research themes. She or he will also build external collaborations and participate in fund-raising.
Specifically, the Interim Director will be responsible for moving the Institute from blueprint to reality by:
- Establishing the Institute as a magnet for excellent graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and faculty.
- Fostering teams of faculty and facilitating collaborations that will push the boundaries of current knowledge, and advance new and creative approaches to research.
- Overseeing the Grants Program that will provide critical funding for starting projects that have high potential to attract extramural funding and that fall within existing themes or initiate new themes. The Interim Director will work to solicit major donations to expand funding for the grants program.
- Raising the visibility of the Institute by implementing a series of research seminars, plus workshops to facilitate public engagement. Efforts to raise the profile of the institute also will include developing a web presence and promoting the achievements of the research teams.
- Playing an important role in identifying space needs, securing interim research space. Ultimately the (Interim) Director will oversee the design and construction of permanent research space.
The Interim Director will report to the Vice President for Research. Position will begin in Fall Semester 2007, and appointment time is subject to negotiation.
Nominations and applications will begin to be reviewed on September 11, 2007; position is open until filled.
Applicants should submit a letter of application outlining their qualifications, stating their interest in the position, and providing names of references (which will not be checked until the candidate is a finalist), and a curriculum vitae.
Please send nominations and applications to:
Interim Director Advisory Committee
Attn: Dr. Katherine Himes
234 Morrill Hall
100 Church St. SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455
hime0005@umn.edu
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