Vice President for Research

Position Location
Fort Collins, CO

Work Location
Position is fully in-office/in-person

Research Professional Position: No

Posting Number: 202301106AP

Position Type: Admin Professional/ Research Professional

Classification Title
Executive II

Work Hours/Week: 40

Proposed Annual Salary Range
$350,000 – $400,000

Employee Benefits

Colorado State University is committed to providing employees with a strong and competitive benefits package that supports you, your health, and your family. Visit CSU’s Human Resources website for detailed benefit plan information for eligible employees in the following University benefit areas:
https://hr.colostate.edu/hr-community-and-supervisors/benefits/benefits-eligibility/ and https://hr.colostate.edu/prospective-employees/our-perks/. To see the value of CSU benefits in addition to wages, visit our compensation calculator – https://hr.colostate.edu/total-compensation-calculator/.

Desired Start Date
01/08/2024

To ensure full consideration, applications must be received by 11:59pm (MT) on
07/24/2023

Description of Work Unit

The Office of the Vice President for Research has overall responsibility for promoting and facilitating the research enterprise at Colorado State University (CSU). The Office of the Vice President for Research will enable the University, its faculty, staff, and students to emerge as a world-class research institution complementing our learning, service, and outreach missions. The Office of the Vice President for Research will lead the 21st Century Land- Grant mission of CSU by fostering and supporting the research enterprise, promoting scholarship and artistry, instilling a culture of integrity, inclusion and diversity, and capitalizing on opportunities to address global challenges.

CSU is recognized as one of the premier research institutions and routinely ranks in the top of all American Universities in research expenditures. The university was established in 1870 as the land-grant institution for the State of Colorado. The University is committed to equity and inclusive excellence, setting the standard for public research universities in education, research, and engagement for the benefit of the citizens of Colorado, the United States, and the world. Student enrollment is approximately 34,000, and the University employs more than 7,200 staff including academic faculty, administrative professionals, and classified staff. As a premier land-grant university, CSU is addressing and solving the great global challenges of our time.

CSU is in the city of Fort Collins, a dynamic community with a population of approximately 170,000. Situated 65 miles north of Denver at the western edge of the Great Plains and at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, Fort Collins is a gateway to world-class skiing, hiking, fishing, climbing, and biking. With an average of 300 days of sunshine per year and low humidity, Fort Collins residents enjoy pleasant weather year-round. Indoor and outdoor activities are enjoyable in every season. Colorado has earned a worldwide reputation as an area that offers an unparalleled lifestyle, and Fort Collins represents the very best of Colorado with top award rankings from Forbes for Best Place for Business/Careers, Gallup Well Being Index for Healthiest Mid-Size City in America, CBS Money watch List of Top 10 Best Places to Retire, Outside Magazine Best Towns in America, among other select recognitions: http://www.fcgov.com/fcfacts.

Position Summary

The Vice President for Research leads Colorado State University’s research, discovery, and creative artistry portfolio. Reporting to the Provost & Executive Vice President and serving as a member on the President’s Cabinet and Provost’s Leadership Council, the Vice President for Research oversees annual research expenditures of more than $450 million and represents a top-100 research university to internal and external audiences. The Vice President for Research works collaboratively within a shared governance framework to set priorities for institutional growth and investment in research and scholarship and oversees policies, practices, and infrastructure. The Vice President for Research demonstrates personal commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice, and leverages professional authority and influence to provide opportunities related to research, scholarship, and artistry.

Required Job Qualifications

• Earned doctorate and a scholarly record consistent with appointment as full Professor at Colorado State University.
• Experience and success in managing a complex organization including people, resources, and operating budgets;
• Personal and professional commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice, demonstrated by persistent effort, active planning, allocation of resources and/or accountability for diversity outcomes;
• Demonstrated ability to lead change through effective communication, collaboration with stakeholders, vision, flexibility, and decisiveness;
• Successful track record of competitive funding from federal agencies, non-profit agencies, and/or industrial entities.

Preferred Job Qualifications

Below we outline thematic areas in which candidates might demonstrate past experiences, expertise, and successes aligned with this position. It is not expected that any candidate will meet all preferred job qualifications; candidates should thoughtfully address their successes and impacts in these thematic areas:

• Strategic Leadership. The ideal candidate will demonstrate a deep understanding of and respect for the higher education environment including academic freedom, processes, and culture. They will possess a track record of effective research leadership and management within a shared governance environment that includes collaboratively identifying vision, objectives, and areas for scholarly growth, investment, and reallocation. Successes will include leadership and support of transdisciplinary research initiatives. The ideal candidate will also possess the ability to diversify funding streams to support the CSU research mission. They will be a seasoned leader with excellent organizational, planning, supervisory, and problem-solving skills and the ability to balance existing research priorities, infrastructure, and needs with new research investments.
• Research Infrastructure & Resources. Ideally, the successful candidate will demonstrate impacts in managing, supporting, and growing research infrastructure on behalf of a complex organization, including leadership of initiatives to capitalize upon contemporary trends and opportunities in research, scholarship, and artistry.
• Faculty, Staff, and Student Support. The ideal candidate will energetically advocate for researchers, scholars, and creative artists on behalf of a diverse community and possess a professional track record of success in this area. They will have experience in identifying, hiring, mentoring, and retaining talent as well as experience with negotiation, conflict resolution, and change management consistent with CSU’s Principles of Community. They will have experience leading research and/or scholarship activities at an academic institution serving underrepresented students. CSU values candidates with demonstrated impacts in fostering a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion related to research, scholarship, and artistry.
• Collaboration and Partnerships. The ideal candidate will have experience with technology transfer and a history of fostering, cultivating, and capitalizing upon synergy between research, scholarship, outreach/dissemination, and economic development. They will possess the ability to leverage existing and grow new connections with external partners including federal and state government agencies, nongovernmental funding agencies, industry partners, and others.
• Research Compliance and Ethics. CSU seeks candidates with a deep commitment to personal and professional ethics. The ideal candidate will be familiar with research compliance and risk management within a complex academic organization and will possess the ability to lead and support CSU research compliance programs, initiatives, and boards. They will also possess familiarity with areas of potential research expansion including those related to general laboratory practices (GLP), general manufacturing practices (GMP), clinical trials, etc.

Diversity Statement

Personal and professional commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice, demonstrated by persistent effort, active planning, allocation of resources and/or accountability for diversity outcomes.

Job Duty Category: Research Leadership

Duty/Responsibility

• Serve as an advocate for research, scholarship, and artistry including championing continued and new investments in physical, digital, and human research capital;
• Support existing research priorities and infrastructure while also identifying new opportunities for investment and growth;
• Foster development of transdisciplinary research initiatives in a thriving, contemporary land grant university;
• Interact, on behalf of institutional and faculty interests, with industry, state, federal, and international research partners;
• Provide strategic leadership and support of a research and scholarship ecosystem that furthers institutional goals related to diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice;
• Through policy and practice, create and maintain a positive, supportive, and inclusive organizational culture related to research and scholarship.

Percentage Of Time: 40

Job Duty Category: Research Growth and Entrepreneurship

Duty/Responsibility

• Foster faculty research success, resulting in continued increases in numbers and quality of faculty research publications, proposals, and artistic and cultural performances;
• Invest in and support human research capital yielding a strong base of research faculty, senior research scientists and graduate research assistants, commensurate with higher levels of external funding and achievement of goals for teaching excellence;
• Create and support a rich and diverse intellectual climate on campus through the recruitment, retention, and recognition of excellent faculty;
• Foster an institutional environment that supports synergy and facilitates collaborative and cooperative efforts among scholars with interests in common problems;
• Encourage scholarship that addresses pressing social, political, economic and cultural issues;
• Grow levels of externally funded research by overseeing and promoting the acquisition of funding from traditional and novel funding sources to support research and associated facilities, equipment, and infrastructure needs and capabilities;
• Invest in physical research infrastructure including the construction and equipping of new laboratories and other facilities, and provision of resources and services to meet the needs of a growing research institution;
• Collaborate with other University officials and offices to expedite technology transfer and the commercialization of intellectual properties created by CSU researchers;
• Provide strategic leadership and support to CSU federal and state legislative affairs;
• Ensure appropriate CSU representation at and engagement with external organizations such as the Colorado Higher Education Competitive Research Authority (CHECRA), CO-LABS, Innosphere Ventures, etc.

Percentage Of Time: 35

Job Duty Category: Research Management and Compliance

Duty/Responsibility

• Oversee enterprise-wide research operations IT support systems;
• Foster and further develop CSU’s reputation as a leader in animal welfare;
• Ensure the responsible conduct of research and regulatory compliance;
• Maintain processes and procedures that ensure institutional compliance with safety regulations;
• Proactively adapt institutional safety-related processes and procedures as necessary and prudent;
• Advocate for and support the development and management of campus-wide, shared-use core research facilities;
• Oversee development and management of protocols, resources, and mechanisms for acquiring shared research assets;
• Lead partnerships with the Division of IT and University Libraries to support strategic research IT infrastructure, compliance, and a data management;
• Serve as the institutional official as required under regulations governing animal care and use, export control, research involving human subjects, etc.

Percentage Of Time: 25

Special Instructions to Applicants

Interested applicants must submit a cover letter that addresses how professional experiences align with the position description including the identified required and preferred qualifications, a current curriculum vita of no more than 10 pages, and the names, e-mail addresses, and telephone numbers of three (3) professional references.

References will not be contacted without prior notification of candidates. If you have questions, please contact James Pritchett, search committee chair at  James.Pritchett@ColoState.edu.

Conditions of Employment
Pre-employment Criminal Background Check (required for new hires)

Search Contact
James Pritchett, Search Committee Chair, James.Pritchett@Colostate.edu

EEO Statement

Colorado State University is committed to providing an environment that is free from discrimination and harassment based on race, age, creed, color, religion, national origin or ancestry, sex, gender, disability, veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, or pregnancy in its employment, programs, services and activities, and admissions, and, in certain circumstances, marriage to a co-worker. The University will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. Colorado State University is an equal opportunity and equal access institution and affirmative action employer fully committed to achieving a diverse workforce and complies with all Federal and Colorado State laws, regulations, and executive orders regarding non-discrimination and affirmative action. The Office of Equal Opportunity is located in 101 Student Services.

The Title IX Coordinator is the Director of the Office of Title IX Programs and Gender Equity, 123 Student Services Building, Fort Collins, CO 80523-0160, (970) 491-1715, titleix@colostate.edu.

The Section 504 and ADA Coordinator is the Director of the Office of Equal Opportunity, 101 Student Services Building, Fort Collins, CO 80523-0160, (970) 491-5836, oeo@colostate.edu.

The Coordinator for any other forms of misconduct prohibited by the University’s Policy on Discrimination and Harassment is the Vice President for Equity, Equal Opportunity and Title IX, 101 Student Services Building, Fort Collins, Co. 80523-0160, (970) 491-5836, oeo@colostate.edu.

Any person may report sex discrimination under Title IX to the Office of Civil Rights, Department of Education.

Background Check Policy Statement

Colorado State University strives to provide a safe study, work, and living environment for its faculty, staff, volunteers and students. To support this environment and comply with applicable laws and regulations, CSU conducts background checks for the finalist before a final offer. The type of background check conducted varies by position and can include, but is not limited to, criminal history, sex offender registry, motor vehicle history, financial history, and/or education verification. Background checks will also be conducted when required by law or contract and when, in the discretion of the University, it is reasonable and prudent to do so.

Minimum References Requested
3

Maximum References Requested
3