Job Announcement: Dean of the UCLA School of Public Health

The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) invites inquiries, nominations and applications for the position of Dean of the School of Public Health.

One of UCLA’s 11 professional schools, the School of Public Health consistently ranks among the top 10 such schools in the nation. Its five departments represent the core disciplines in public health: biostatistics, community health sciences, environmental health sciences, epidemiology and health services. The school is also home to 13 research centers: Cancer Prevention and Control Research; Environmental Genomics; Global and Immigrant Health; Global Infectious Diseases; Health Policy Research; Healthier Children, Families and Communities; Human Nutrition; Metabolic Disease Prevention; Occupational and Environmental Health; Public Health and Disasters; the Fred H. Bixby Center for Population and Reproductive Health; the UCLA Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Equity; and the UCLA/RAND Prevention Research Center. The school offers M.P.H., Dr.P.H., M.S. and Ph.D. programs in public health, and two interdepartmental degrees—a Doctor of Environmental Science and Engineering (D.Env.) and a Ph.D. in Molecular Toxicology. Students can combine an M.P.H. with a medical or law degree, M.B.A. or M.A. concentrating in African, Asian-American, Islamic or Latin American Studies.

The school’s faculty includes acclaimed public health experts and innovators working to support the school’s mission to enhance the public’s health by conducting innovative research, training future leaders and health professionals from diverse backgrounds, translating research into policy and practice, and serving local communities and the communities of the nation and the world. Of its 200 faculty members, 85 of whom are full-time, 16 are members of the Institute of Medicine, two are past presidents of the American Public Health Association, and three are past presidents of the International Epidemiological Association. Opportunities for cross-disciplinary collaborations abound, given the school’s close proximity to UCLA’s world-renowned hospital, and schools of medicine, dentistry, nursing, law, management, and public affairs; cross-campus initiatives in biosciences and global studies; and access to dedicated biomolecular, genetic, environmental and other science teaching and research facilities.

As the chief executive and academic officer for the School of Public Health, the dean provides strategic vision for and operational leadership of the school, which has an annual operating budget of approximately $75 million. The dean works to advance scholarship, education and civic engagement, promoting initiatives within and outside of UCLA; enhancing excellence through diversity in educational programs and faculty and student recruitment; and linking the work of the school’s faculty and students to other disciplines, communities and interests within and outside of the academy. He/she serves as the school’s public voice, articulating its contributions to local, state, regional, national and international communities, and pursuing an aggressive development program to build the school’s resources. Reporting to the executive vice chancellor and provost, he/she serves both 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.

The successful candidate will be nationally recognized with demonstrated leadership and substantial administrative experience, strong scholarly visibility within the public health research community, and the capacity to exercise policy leadership at the local, state, national and international levels. Minimum requirements include a strong commitment to research, teaching and public service; administrative leadership experience; a record of distinguished scholarly accomplishment; demonstrated intellectual leadership in the area of public health; proven success in—or aptitude for—external and alumni relations and development; a record of advancing diversity; and academic credentials that merit appointment at the rank of full professor.

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, 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 in the top five institutions nationally for research funding, having generated more than $1 billion in research contracts and grants for two consecutive 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 forward a letter of interest and curriculum vitae to UCLAPublicHealth@wittkieffer.com by January 20, 2012 (electronic files preferred). Address inquiries to Witt/Kieffer consultant Mary Elizabeth Taylor at 212-686-2676.

The University of California is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer, and seeks candidates committed to the highest standards of scholarship and professional activities and to a campus climate that supports equality and diversity.