The Dean of the College of Pharmacy will:
Serve as the executive officer for the College of Pharmacy and its campuses across Memphis, Nashville, and Knoxville and provide administrative leadership for the departments and programs of the college.
Lead and implement comprehensive strategic planning for the college.
Work to build and maintain vital relationships with clinical, research, academic and community partners.
Advance the academic mission of the college and identify priorities for investment in the research portfolio.
Set institutional financial metrics/targets and help to make final prioritization decisions for resource allocation across the college.
Oversee the final approval of all faculty recruitments into the college.
Coordinate the research and academic activities of college centers to align with the College of Pharmacy and University of Tennessee Health Science Center's overall goals.
Ensure the quality of the academic environment, including maintaining and achieving accreditation for all programs.
Assure the integrity and compliance of all college policies and activities.
Represent the college's interests and programs to appropriate university and clinical partner administrators and constituents.
Assume responsibility for the appropriate allocation of space assigned to the college, for the periodic review of space utilization, and for establishing and implementing guidelines for retention or reallocation of space based on faculty productivity.
Engage in meaningful fundraising activities to encourage corporate and philanthropic giving to the college; act as the 'face and voice' of the college to external, public and community constituents.
Goals and Objectives
The following goals and objectives have been identified as priorities for this position:
Develop and execute a clear vision for continued success
While the college has substantially grown its educational programs, statewide presence and research portfolio over the years, securing its place amongst the top pharmacy schools in the country, the incoming dean will be starting during a changing landscape for the profession requiring new strategies and innovation. One challenge for the college is student recruitment and enrollment due to national trends and the increased number of PharmD programs in the state. UTHSC remains a unique option for top students with unparalleled opportunities. The dean will convene faculty, staff, alumni, and students to create a strategic path forward for the college to help define its long-term success and continued growth.
Enhance collaborative research opportunities
Scholarly interests and productivity are a shared mission for faculty across departments and for students and staff. The success of the college's diverse and innovative research programs has helped fuel continued development and re-investment in research. Even greater opportunities exist to broaden collaborations with Tennessee's growing pharma/biotech industry, as well as with key external partners, including St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. UTHSC is enhancing its technology transfer capabilities and ability to support clinical partners across the state to enhance clinical and outcomes research. The Memphis, Nashville, and Knoxville communities, as well as partnerships across the UT system, offer additional unseized opportunities for an innovative college to collaborate to offer new care models and scholarship to address health disparities.
Ensure a Vibrant and Diverse Academic Environment
The college has a laser focus on providing superior education for students and meeting the state's workforce needs. The college is on track for a successful ACPE site visit this fall, and the next dean will be coming during this reaccreditation process. Longer term, the dean will provide ongoing leadership to continue to diversify the student body and faculty to mirror the communities it serves, while ensuring a welcoming and inclusive learning environment for all.
The pressures inherent with the trend of declining applications has also meant the college will need to compete for top students by furthering its outreach and community relations activities. A focus on non-traditional career opportunities for pharmacists and researchers will be embraced as the pharmacy profession evolves. Its successful continuing and professional education programs across the state has also helped the college remain vital for the profession.
Enhance philanthropy and community engagement
With its statewide presence and as a vital provider of healthcare and education to multiple communities throughout Tennessee, it is incumbent upon the Dean to engage with the community. The college benefits from a broad and active alumni base, and a mission that resonates with philanthropists, foundations and local and state lawmakers. The dean should work to establish relationships with community and state pharmacy association leaders in order to identify critical health needs, and support, promote and establish programs for which the college is uniquely positioned to offer to the public. Apart from continuing to advance the profession in the state, the dean and college are part of a team looking to address health disparities in the state. Tennessee's population suffers from some of the nation's highest rates of diabetes, obesity, smoking, addiction, heart disease and multiple cancers. As the public land-grant health science center for the state, UTHSC seeks to work with the state and community partners to address these challenges.
Candidate Qualifications
Education/Certification
Knowledge and Work Experience
The ideal candidate will have an exceptional record as an educator, investigator, and leader with proven ability to manage a complex academic enterprise, typically obtained through experience as a dean, associate dean, department chair, or center/institute/program director within a college of pharmacy.
Demonstrated scholarly achievement of national recognition and eligible for appointment at the level of full professor.
Broad understanding of complex issues of clinical pharmacy practice in today's healthcare environment with a vision for pharmacy practice in the future.
Strong commitment to both research and innovative clinical practice.
Administrative experience incorporating strategic and operational planning, preparation of budgets, effective management of resources within a budget, personnel organization, and management.
Track record of recruitment, retention and advancement of outstanding faculty and staff.
History of mentorship.
History of innovation in research, program development, pharmacy practice and/or curricula.
Experience with funding agencies, professional organizations, university governance and regulatory and legislative processes.
Leadership Skills and Competencies
Impeccable integrity.
Collaborative and ability to create and maintain strong partnerships across disciplines and externally.
Committed to nurturing an academic environment that welcomes people of diverse backgrounds and experience and promotes their fullest development.
Strong sense of mission and desire to impact the health of the community.
Proven ability to work effectively with students, faculty, health professionals, academic administrators, alumni, donors, public policy-makers, and community leaders.
Exceptional communication skills.
Ability to build consensus and proactively manage conflicts.
Known for good listening skills, collegiality, and university citizenship.
Innovative and entrepreneurial.
