Job Announcement: Dean of the UCLA School of Dentistry
Dean of the UCLA School of Dentistry
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) invites inquiries, nominations and applications for the position of Dean of the UCLA School of Dentistry.
Founded in 1964, the UCLA School of Dentistry offers highly competitive programs including the D.D.S. program; M.S., Ph.D. and D.D.S./Ph.D. programs in oral biology; the Professional Program for International Dentists; continuing education courses; and postgraduate training. The school’s faculty (74 full time, 171 associated part time and 308 volunteer) are organized in six divisions including advanced prosthodontics, constitutive and regenerative sciences, diagnostic and surgical sciences, growth and development, oral biology and medicine, and public health and community dentistry. The school, which received more than $24 million in external research funding during the 2014-15 fiscal year, is home to three research centers – the Center for Oral/Head and Neck Oncology Research, the Clinical Research Center and the Weintraub Center for Reconstructive Biotechnology – and six centers of excellence in bioengineering, bone biology, cancer biology, health services, molecular microbiology and salivary diagnostics. As a fundamental part of its mission, the school serves the community through 30 clinics in the region.
As the chief executive and academic officer for the school, the dean sets the standard for intellectual engagement and accomplishment, providing strategic vision for and operational leadership of the academic programs, and conceiving and managing policy and resource allocation to achieve its mission. He/she ensures that the school continues to provide academic and scholarly programs of the highest quality and effectiveness in the dental sciences and education, promoting initiatives within and outside UCLA; enhancing excellence through diversity in educational programs and student and faculty recruitment; and linking the work of dentistry faculty and students to other disciplines, communities and interests within and outside the academy. He/she serves as the school’s public voice, articulating its contributions to local, state, regional, national and international communities; pursuing an aggressive fund development program to build the school’s resources; and overseeing the school’s outreach to the community.
UCLA seeks a visionary leader to build upon the school’s tradition of excellence; further advance scholarship, education and civic engagement; enhance diversity; and promote an environment and community that supports its members. The ideal candidate will be nationally recognized with strong scholarly visibility; substantial administrative and program-building experience, preferably in a research university; and demonstrated leadership as an innovator, ambassador and partner in collaborating with leaders from various institutional and community sectors. Minimum requirements include a record of distinguished scholarly accomplishment; intellectual and administrative leadership in the field; success in external and alumni relations and development; an established record of advancing diversity; and credentials that merit appointment at the rank of full professor.
Reporting to the executive vice chancellor/provost, he/she serves on the deans council and the council of professional school deans, and collaborates with the chancellor, executive vice chancellor/provost, vice chancellors and vice provosts, deans and department chairs at UCLA and across the University of California system. As a member of UCLA’s health sciences council, he/she collaborates with the deans of medicine, nursing and public health and with the vice chancellor for health sciences in the creation of increased opportunities for education and research across the health professions, as well as with the dean of life sciences and representatives from affiliated institutions.
Situated on 419 acres, five miles from the Pacific Ocean, UCLA is enriched by the cultural diversity of the dynamic greater Los Angeles area, as well as the geographic advantages of Southern California. One of the world’s preeminent public research universities, UCLA is an international leader in breadth and quality of academic, research, health care, wellness, cultural, continuing education and athletic programs, with more than 4,000 faculty members who teach approximately 40,000 students in the College of Letters and Science and 11 professional schools. UCLA is consistently ranked among the top institutions nationally for research funding, having generated an average of $1 billion in research grants and contracts annually over the past five years.
Confidential review of applications, nominations and expressions of interest will begin immediately and will continue until an appointment is made. To be ensured full consideration, please email a letter of interest and curriculum vitae to UCLA’s Witt/Kieffer consultants, Mary Elizabeth Taylor and Jeffrey Schroetlin, at UCLADentistry@wittkieffer.com by Monday, November 30, 2015.
The University of California is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer committed to excellence through diversity, and seeks candidates committed to a campus climate that supports equity and inclusion.