President

Lenoir-Rhyne University

 

SUMMARY:
Lenoir-Rhyne University (LRU), a dynamic and growing, private, liberal arts, institution seeks an innovative, visionary, and strategic leader to serve as its 13th President. The University seeks a passionate and enthusiastic leader who will inspire our community to achieve new heights of excellence. The ideal candidate will possess a deep commitment to our mission of providing a transformative liberal arts education, being a student-focused university, and positioning graduates for success in their professional, personal, and spiritual lives.

INSTITUTION:
Lenoir-Rhyne University is a co-educational, private, masters, comprehensive liberal arts institution founded in 1891, with its traditional campus located in Hickory, North Carolina, a town of more than 40,000. The University has additional campus centers in Asheville, NC, and Columbia, SC.

Situated in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Lenoir-Rhyne is less than an hour’s drive from Charlotte, and the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton Metropolitan Statistical Area has a population of about 365,000. The University now offers more than 50 undergraduate and 20 graduate degree programs to approximately 2,200 students. Lenoir-Rhyne also offers a vibrant athletic program as part of the NCAA’s Division II.

Lenoir-Rhyne University seeks to liberate mind and spirit, clarify personal faith, foster physical wholeness, build community, and promote responsible leadership for service worldwide. Affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), Lenoir-Rhyne promotes diverse campuses open to people from all religious and non-religious backgrounds.

For more information, please visit www.lr.edu/about.

REPORTS/RELATIONSHIPS:
The President of LRU reports to the University Board of Trustees. The President is a full voting member of the Board of Trustees and serves as a voting member of the Executive Committee, the Finance and Investment Committee, the Nominations Committee, and the Honors and Awards Committee. The President also serves as a non-voting member of all other committees of the Board.

Reporting to the President will be a Cabinet consisting of the Provost/Vice President of Academic Affairs, Vice President for Business and Finance, Vice President for Institutional Advancement, and Athletic Director. Ultimately the President is responsible for leading the University’s 285 full-time employees, which includes approximately 130 full-time faculty.

BASIC FUNCTIONS:
The President serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the University with responsibility for ensuring the success of the institution’s mission, enrollment management, academic integrity, fiscal stability and viability, marketing and fundraising efforts, personnel development, and physical plant management. In doing so, the President works closely with the Board of Trustees in developing, communicating, and executing a strategy consistent with the overall mission and values of the University.

Specific responsibilities for this position include, but are not necessarily limited to:

• Provide transformational leadership, including recruiting, retaining, managing, motivating, and evaluating a professional staff, which in turn provides leadership through all functional disciplines associated with the University.
• Articulate the vision for the future of the University and coordinate planning processes to ensure the University is constantly moving forward, remaining relevant and consistent with current needs.
• Provide strategic and operational business and financial leadership to meet enrollment objectives and maximize the effective and efficient use of resources.
• Serve as the face of the University and seek appropriate opportunities to promote and market the University in the community, the region, and nationally (if desired by the Board) via the media, public relations activities, community activities, etc.
• Maintain and enhance aggressive fundraising programs to support the University’s mission; actively participate in fundraising activities, particularly the execution of capital campaigns, major gift solicitations, and fostering of growth to the endowment.
• Provide strategic business and financial leadership to achieve institutional goals while ensuring fiscal sustainability and operational excellence.
• Provide leadership, along with the Provost, in recruiting, retaining, and motivating a high quality faculty in an environment that appreciates life-long learning and focuses on meaningful careers and skills for ethical citizenship; establish policies and procedures for governance of the University.
• Appoint, train, and lead an administrative staff that operates in a professional manner consistent with the values of the University.
• Ensure that the academic programs and curriculum are up-to-date and consistent with the direction of the University.
• Maintain regular and consistent contact with alumni, faculty, staff, and the student body to facilitate open communication.
• Work with University support groups including the Board of Visitors, Bears Club, Alumni Association, and Business Council.
• Recommend, develop, and implement strategies and/or directives as approved or determined by the Board of Trustees.
• Ensure strong ties to the ELCA through the North Carolina Synod.

REQUIREMENTS:

• Passion and enthusiasm for a student-centered, liberal arts education that supports the ELCA vision of Lutheran higher education.
• A visionary, strategic thinker; able to think innovatively and explore new ideas and strategies while considering the needs of multiple constituencies and respecting the history and tradition of the institution.
• Proven record of successful leadership and managerial skills within an academic environment.
• Demonstrate a strong understanding of higher education finance, financial modeling, and risk management; must be able to effectively navigate complex financial landscapes and make sound decisions to support the institution’s long-term success.
• Successful experience leading aggressive fundraising in support of endowment, programs, and facilities.

• A sincere commitment to teaching and learning, at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
• Exceptional people skills and interpersonal abilities; engaging; accessible; energetic and enthusiastic; able to build and maintain close relationships and engender trust; willing and eager to use these attributes for financial development.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills; good listener.
• Inclusive and genuine in information gathering, but decisive; able and willing to make difficult decisions.
• Integrity; character above reproach.
• Appropriate academic credentials; a terminal degree required.

COMPENSATION:
Compensation will be commensurate with experience including a competitive base salary, benefits, housing, and relocation assistance.

DEI STATEMENT:
Diversity, equity, and inclusion are integral to Lenoir-Rhyne University’s commitment to excellence in engagement and education. The University is particularly interested in candidates who have demonstrated experience engaging with diversity and equity through activities such as fostering an inclusive environment, working with faculty and/or students from diverse backgrounds, and/or incorporating diverse perspectives in their current or previous positions.

CONTACT INFORMATION:
To make a referral or nomination, or for more information, please use the contact information below. To be considered, please submit a cover letter and resume/CV, to:

Coleman Lew Canny Bowen
6101 Carnegie Blvd., Suite 300 – Charlotte, NC 28209
Shana Plott, Chief Executive Officer
Chris Shade, Consultant
704.377.0362
[email protected]
704.377.0362