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Presidency applicants encouraged to act by Feb. 29

This description is being circulated to solicit candidates to become CSU's next top leader.

PRESIDENT
Position Description

The Board of Regents, Chancellor Erroll Davis and Executive Vice Chancellor Susan Herbst of the University System of Georgia are conducting a nationwide search for a President of Columbus State University (CSU) to take office July 2008.

A comprehensive university in the University System of Georgia, CSU is located in Columbus, Georgia, a metropolitan area (pop. 250,000) approximately 95 miles southwest of Atlanta. Columbus, an historic mill town on the Chattahoochee River, is home to the rapidly expanding Fort Benning, as well as major corporations Aflac and Synovus. CSU has played a leading role in the city’s ongoing urban renaissance. The University, first founded as a two-year college in 1958, now enrolls more than 7,500 students, offering more than 50 undergraduate programs and more than 35 master’s or specialist programs. CSU’s mission is to promote educational, economic, social and cultural growth in Georgia and beyond. The University is dedicated to excellence in teaching in a student-centered environment, research and creative activities, service to the region and the state, and community engagement through university-community partnerships. Academic units of the University are the College of Arts & Letters, College of Science, College of Education, D. Abbott Turner College of Business, and University College. The RiverPark campus in historic downtown Columbus is home to nationally accredited visual and performing arts programs and the Coca-Cola Space Science Center. The Carson McCullers Center for Writers and Musicians, Oxbow Meadows Environmental Learning Center, and Spencer House in Oxford, England are other CSU venues that provide widespread enrichment opportunities for our students.

As the chief executive and administrative officer of the University, the President is responsible for:

• articulating its vision, mission and goals in collaboration with the institution’s internal and external stakeholders;
  
• approving and overseeing the institutional budget and securing external funding;
  
• working with the University System, area legislative delegation and foundation leadership and trustees, among others, to advance the purposes of the University;
  
• overseeing accreditation processes.

The President reports to the Executive Vice Chancellor of the University System of Georgia. A successful candidate should have:

• an earned doctorate or appropriate terminal degree;
  
• teaching and/or research experience and demonstrated and progressively responsible senior level administrative experience;
  
• demonstrated intellectual, personal and ethical qualities that inspire respect from internal and external constituencies;
  
• excellent communications skills;
  
• demonstrated commitment to shared governance;
  
• demonstrated successful experience in strategic and long-range planning;
  
• a track record of effective assessment and implementation of change;
  
• ability to foster a supportive environment for students, faculty and staff in which excellence and innovation are enhanced in a multicultural educational context;
  
• an understanding of and commitment to technology supporting instruction, research, and efficient management of University resources.

Information about the University is available at http://www.colstate.edu/.

We invite letters of nomination, application (letter of interest and philosophy, complete CV, and references), or expressions of interested to be submitted to the search firm assisting Columbus State University. Confidential review of materials will begin immediately and continue until the appointment is made. However, it is preferred that all nominations and applications be submitted prior to 29 February 2008. For a complete position description, refer to Current Opportunities on http://www.parkersearch.com/.

Daniel F. Parker, Sr.
Laurie C. Wilder, Senior Vice President
770-804-1996 ext: 109
lwilder@parkersearch.com

An Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer