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OHIO WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY, a nationally-ranked private co-educational residential liberal arts college of approximately 1850 students located in the vibrant town of Delaware, Ohio, 20 miles from Columbus, invites nominations and applications for the position of vice president for University Relations.

This is an especially attractive position, given the strength of the institution and in light of how much President Rock Jones—in close collaboration with the faculty, staff and trustees—has accomplished since he arrived on campus in July, 2008. Specifically, the faculty and the board of trustees have overwhelmingly endorsed a new strategic plan and the framework for a new curricular initiative (The OWU Plan).

Building on many of Ohio Wesleyan’s historic strengths, the plan and the curricular framework contain many bold new initiatives designed to move students from theory to practice to theory, to substantially increase opportunities for international exposure and to create an even more tightly knit campus community.

OWU faculty, students, staff, alumni, and trustees share an unusually deep commitment to the University, the liberal arts, the art of teaching, the notion that teaching and scholarship enhance one another, academic excellence, and diversity. Indeed, their loyalty to and passion for the University is palpable.

The alumni and the board of trustees have been unusually generous in terms of their resources, their time and their talents. In the last few years, OWU has had significant fundraising success, including a record setting year in 2007-2008 with more than $35 million in gifts and pledges, which included three commitments totaling more than $6 million each. In 2006, individual trustees contributed over $2.5 million to enhance the university relations and marketing and communications efforts. Later that same year, a former board chair and her husband, both alumni of OWU, committed $3.9 million to augment the size of the development staff in support of increasing planned giving for OWU and in anticipation of a campaign.

Because of its recent fundraising successes and in light of the fact that the University in 2001 completed its most ambitious campaign, exceeding its $100 million goal and raising $105 million, the University is confident that it can achieve an ambitious goal in its next campaign. Indeed, the campus community and the board are united in their support for and enthusiasm about the broad goals of the next campaign: to continue to increase the size of the faculty and improve the student-to-faculty ratio, enhance the quality of the student body, increase the size of the endowment (particularly by adding new endowed chairs, funding the new curricular initiative and co-curricular enhancements, and increasing financial aid) and improve the physical plant by addressing significant deferred maintenance. The University also is committed to addressing its technology needs both for academic and administrative purposes.

Ohio Wesleyan has a worldwide alumni base of 34,000. In 2007-08, the Annual Fund (a budgeted line item) exceeded its goal, raising more than $4 million. Thirty-one percent of alumni contributed, although 64 percent of all alumni have given over the years. Annual Fund totals for 2008-09, as is the case nationally, are lagging but annual giving equals last year’s record. This includes the President’s Circle, a new organization of individuals who annually make gifts of $10,000 above their normal annual giving, which was formed in the summer of 2008 to generate funds for President Jones to use strategically and has now enlisted 41  members. A relatively new Parents’ Fund is proving to be successful and the student-phonathon program has been enhanced. Alumni give as well to Team OWU (for Ohio Wesleyan’s 22 NCAA, Division III athletic teams) and to the Greek Alumni Challenge.

The search is on a fast track. OWU hopes its new vice president—who will be responsible for development and alumni relations—will join the University’s senior team this fall. She or he will be joining a talented senior executive team whose members pride themselves on their close working relationships and who think institutionally rather than merely functionally and strategically, not just tactically. At present, five cabinet officers report directly to the president: the provost; the vice president for Finance and Administration, and treasurer (who also serves as treasurer to the Board); the vice president for Student Affairs; the vice president for University Enrollment and Strategic Communication; and the vice president for University Relations. The organizational chart for the Division of University Relations can be found in Appendix A.

Ohio Wesleyan is especially interested in candidates who have demonstrated success in fundraising (including both major gifts and foundation grants) and in managing a complex operation. Ohio Wesleyan’s next vice president for university relations also will be an excellent listener and communicator, both internally and externally. She or he will embrace the University’s commitment to transparency and collaboration, will provide leadership for the university relations division, will “staff” the president and will work effectively with major donors He or she will also interact with faculty, staff and students in order to understand and then be able to tell the Ohio Wesleyan story in persuasive ways, will value the loyalty of the alumni, will advance the current efforts for stewardship, will understand the importance of staff development and will have the opportunity to fill several key positions.

OWU Alumni

Known early in its history as the “West Point of Missions” because of the number of graduates who served abroad as missionaries, Ohio Wesleyan continues to emphasize service to society. As a result, OWU has been recognized for the number of alumni who served as Peace Corps Volunteers. The life-long commitment of alumni to social justice is epitomized by Branch Rickey (OWU 1904), who integrated major league baseball and who was named ESPN’s Most Influential Sports Figure of the 20th Century.

Ohio Wesleyan has throughout its history also been recognized for academic excellence. In 1906, it stood first among all universities in the number of alumni doing graduate work at Harvard. A study by the National Research Council in the 1970s, updated in 1980, ranked Ohio Wesleyan 17th among America’s 867 four-year, private, primarily undergraduate institutions in terms of the number of alumni in all fields who earned Ph.D.s in the years since 1920. In a similar study in 1982 by Standard and Poor’s Corporation, OWU ranked 15th among the same 867 institutions in terms of producing U.S. business leaders from among their undergraduates. A 1986 study, titled “Educating America’s Scientists: The Role of the Research Colleges,” identified the University as one of 48 highly selective “science-active” liberal arts institutions in the nation.

In addition to Branch Rickey, alumni from all generations have distinguished careers in economics, medicine, education, journalism, business, and the fine arts, among them Theodore Roosevelt’s Vice President Charles Warren Fairbanks 1872; clergyman Norman Vincent Peale ’20; Former President of CBS and of the American Red Cross, Frank Stanton ’30; Pulitzer Prize winners playwright and lyricist Robert E. Lee ’39 and journalist Susan Headden ’77; US District Court Judge Charles Richey ’45; 1995 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, F. Sherwood Rowland ’48; Chair of U-Texas Medical School and Director, UN Asian efforts during SARS outbreak, Herbert (Bert) DuPont ’61; best-selling novelist Richard North Patterson ’68; Professor and Director of Harvard’s US-Japan Program, Ezra F. Vogel ’50; President and CEO of Geico Corporation Louis Simpson ’58; Filmmaker, actor and writer, Melvin Van Peebles ’53; Executive Chairman of Akamai Technologies George Conrades ’61; President and Chief Operating Officer of Gilead John Milligan ’83; former Ambassador of US Delegation to the UN Commission on Human Rights Shirin Tahir-Kheli ’61; Vice President of The Dune Music Company and accomplished trumpeter Abram Wilson’95; CEO Heller Communications Design, NYC Cheryl Heller ’72; scientists on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and co-recipient, 2007 Nobel Peace Woodrow (Woody) Clark II ’67; Actresses Wendie Malick ’72 and Emmy winner Patricia Wettig ’74; Oscar-winning film producer Fred Baron ’76; Tony Award-winning actor Ron Leibman ’58; CBS news correspondent and 60 Minutes contributing correspondent Byron Pitts ’82; and New York Times Sports Editor Tom Jolly ’77; MIT and Scripps Research Institute research professor Paul Schimmell ’62; At least ten OWU graduates have become college presidents: Willa Beatrice Player ’29 (Bennett College); Elden T. Smith ’32 (Ohio Wesleyan); Thomas Wenzlau ’50 (Ohio Wesleyan); Richard Rosser ’51 (DePauw University); Melvin Vulgamore ’57 (Albion); Bruce T. Alton ’61 (Rocky Mountain College); John Bassett ’63 (Clark); Wesley Poling ’68 (Kentucky Wesleyan); Thomas Tritton ’69 (Haverford); and Dan DiBiasio ’71 (Wilmington College). Three alumni have served or are serving in Congress: David Hobson ’58, Paul Gillmor ’61, and Jo Ann Emerson ’72.

Ohio Wesleyan Today

The University attracts and serves a diverse student body: students come from 43 states and 39 countries, with roughly half coming from outside Ohio. Most students (85%) live in University housing, including six residence halls with incorporated dining facilities, nine small living units for 10 to 15 students each, and residential fraternity houses.

The University’s strong commitment to racial, ethnic, and cultural diversity is reflected in the multicultural enrollment of 20% in the 2008 first year class, including U.S. multi-cultural students (11%) and international students (9%). Fifty-two percent of the class is female, 48% male. In addition, the student body includes a number of American students who have grown up abroad. Students take pride in their sense of community and inclusiveness.

The average SAT score for critical reading and math for the freshman class is 1187. the average ACT score is 26.5, and the average high school GPA 3.38. Almost 66% of the class ranked in the top quarter of their high school class and 31% ranked in the top 10%. The faculty describes the student body as talented and motivated.

Student surveys repeatedly show that students across the institution are enthusiastic about the quality of faculty teaching and about their interactions with faculty outside the classroom. The most recent National Study on Student Engagement ranked Ohio Wesleyan among the top five percent of schools surveyed in terms of seniors who believe that they have gained from “complementary learning opportunities” that enrich their educational experience. Students also rank OWU highly in terms of the number of serious conversations they have with students of different religious beliefs, political opinions, personal values, race or ethnicities. For its part, the faculty, recognizing that teaching and scholarship benefit one another, provides ample opportunities for student-faculty research, including an extensive summer research program and numerous off-campus apprenticeship programs.

OWU is especially effective in preparing its students for life beyond college. Within five years, 50 percent of OWU graduates have earned advanced degrees. Within ten years, 70 percent have done so. OWU students’ recent acceptance rate to medical and dental school has consistently been well over 80%, far exceeding the national average of 46% in 2008.  In 2009, 100 percent of applicants were accepted to medical or dental school. The law school acceptance rate tops 95%.

The Ohio Wesleyan faculty currently includes 135 full-time faculty members and an additional 23 FTEs held by part-time faculty (including emeriti faculty and professional staff members). Nearly all full-time faculty members hold a Ph.D. or the accepted terminal degree in their field. The student-faculty ratio is 12 to 1, and the average class size is 19. The board has just approved adding two new tenure-track positions this year.

Each year, many faculty members receive research grants and fellowships, make presentations at professional meetings, publish in or serve on editorial boards of prestigious journals, and serve as officers in their professional organizations.

Ohio Wesleyan has a strong tradition of shared governance. Faculty, administrators and students actively participate in trustee, faculty and University committees and contribute to the crafting of both long-term institutional priorities and short-term objectives. As a consequence, members of the campus community are genuinely knowledgeable about the actual challenges and opportunities the institution faces.

The Campus

Ohio Wesleyan’s campus includes nine buildings with national landmark status, some beautifully restored and others which will require new funding for restoration, to make the campus distinctive. The Gray Chapel in University Hall houses the impressive 4,500-pipe Rexford Keller Memorial Organ, the largest of only six Klais concert organs in the United States. Meetings, lectures, and concerts are also held in the Chapel. The new R.W. Corns Building is home to the Woltemade Center for Economics, Business, and Entrepreneurship, the Economics Department, the Sagan Academic Resource Center, and Information Systems. The recently renovated Edgar Hall provides top-quality design workspaces for the Fine Arts Department, while the Richard M. Ross Art Museum has quickly become a well-known regional gallery.

The Conrades♦Wetherell Science Center houses a greenhouse and state-of-the-art equipment, including a scanning electron microscope and scanning and transmission electron microscopes co-owned by USDA labs, as well as a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) computer laboratory. Enhanced dining spaces across the campus serve as meeting places. The main library houses an Internet café and information commons. Two university wilderness preserves cover a total of 100 acres. OWU also has two observatories, including the historically significant Perkins Observatory, containing a 32-inch reflecting telescope.

OWU recently broke ground for the new Meek Aquatics and Recreation Center (expected completion in 2010). The building, which encompasses 24,300 square feet, will feature 10 swimming lanes, a 13-foot diving well, and 1-meter and 3-meter boards. The building also will house offices and a seminar room. This new facility will serve not only Ohio Wesleyan’s varsity swim teams, but also the campus community, the City of Delaware, and Central Ohio. It will be heated and cooled by 90 geothermal wells.

The Meek Center will be the first phase of the new Branch Rickey Sports Complex that ultimately will include a new arena and field house.

The centrally located Beeghly Library has 503,000 volumes, one of the largest collections in the country for a college of Ohio Wesleyan’s size. The library’s federal document depository is among the nation’s oldest and largest with an additional 200,000 reference documents. The collection is further enhanced by memberships in OhioLINK and CONSORT.

The Delaware and Columbus Communities

Ohio Wesleyan’s extremely attractive tree-lined campus of more than 200 acres is located in Delaware, Ohio, a vital community of 34,000 and the seat of one of the fastest growing counties in the country. Delaware is becoming increasingly diverse in ethnic and socioeconomic terms. Students take advantage of many volunteer opportunities in Delaware, whose downtown adjoins the campus, and many members of the faculty and staff are also actively involved with the community. Town-gown relationships are positive.

The University maintains an interest in the historic Strand Theatre in downtown Delaware and a number of other civic partnerships. The Central Ohio Symphony Orchestra has its headquarters on campus and performs there. University lectures, concerts, athletic events, and plays are open to members of the community, many free of charge. The Bishop Backers are community members who strongly support OWU’s programs, including athletic events.

Delaware is home to the home to the Delaware County Cultural Arts Center, better known as the Arts Castle, which offers classes ranging from ballet to fine arts) and the annual Little Brown Jug , one of harness racing’s Triple Crown events. Delaware has a community hospital that is affiliated with Ohio Health, the largest health-care provider in the state of Ohio. The downtown streets that border campus reflect the historic nature of the city and offer a number of shops and restaurants including a bookstore, a boutique wine shop, a global village shop, a music store, clothing stores, gift shops, and a number of antique shops. In recent years, $60 million of private money has funded the development of the downtown.

The University is 20 miles north of downtown Columbus which, with a population of 1.75 million, is now the largest city in the state. It is also the 15th largest city in the U.S. and the second-fastest growing major metropolitan area in the Midwest MarketWatch.com recently indicated that Columbus is now among the 10 best cities in the U.S. for economic development. Members of the campus community take advantage of the many service, cultural, and social opportunities that Columbus offers.

Context and History

Founded by Methodists in 1842, Ohio Wesleyan is affiliated with the United Methodist Church and is recognized internationally for welcoming students of all religious faiths. Ohio Wesleyan’s charter provides that “the University is forever to be conducted on the most liberal principles, accessible to all religious denominations, and designed for the benefit of our citizens in general.”

Ohio Wesleyan University is a member of the Annapolis Group (an organization comprised of the nation’s top liberal arts colleges), the Great Lakes Colleges Association (a consortium of 12 private liberal arts colleges located in Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio) and the Ohio Five, a consortium founded in 1995 with the support of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. The other Ohio Five Colleges are Wooster, Denison, Kenyon, and Oberlin.

Additional information about Ohio Wesleyan can be found at vpursearch.owu.edu.

The Search Process

Review of candidates will begin immediately and continue until a new vice president for University of Relations is appointed. Submissions received by July 15, 2009 will be assured full consideration.

In addition to the qualifications noted above, Ohio Wesleyan is especially interested in candidates who have had experience at some point in their lives in a private liberal arts college and who have had significant experience both in terms of successful fundraising and effective leadership/management of a staff.

Applications should include a cover letter that takes into account this institutional profile, a résumé or curriculum vitae, and an annotated list of five references (noting the relationship to the candidate and including an email address, a phone number, and an address). Nominations and expressions of interest will be treated in confidence. Applications and nominations (preferably in MS Word) should be sent to: OhioWesleyanVP@academic-search.com.

Ohio Wesleyan University is being assisted by:

Dr. Susan Resneck Pierce, Senior Consultant
Academic Search, Inc.
srp@academic-search.com

Ohio Wesleyan University is strongly committed to diversity within its community and encourages all interested applicants, including women and minorities, to apply.