Description



The College of the University of Chicago seeks nominations and applications for the position of Executive Director of the Writing Center.


The University of Chicago is an urban research university that has driven new ways of thinking since 1890. Its commitment to free and open inquiry draws inspired scholars to its global campuses, where ideas are born that challenge and change the world. At the University of Chicago, students are taught how to think, not what to think. A University of Chicago education is transformative. Students do more than merely acquire knowledge; they develop the critical skills necessary to examine, understand and challenge ideas and assumptions-including their own. It is a proficiency they develop in the classroom and will use throughout their careers and their lives.


The College of the University of Chicago, the university's undergraduate college, seeks a creative and collaborative leader who offers a compelling strategic vision for the College's new Writing Center. The Executive Director will work together with the Dean and Masters of the College to extend the Writing Center's reach and impact across all academic programs, departments and disciplines, elevating the art and science of writing instruction in support of the university's educational mission. The Executive Director will aid in developing a foundational writing seminar required of all first-year students, imaginative and innovative courses, curricula and programs and in articulating a persuasive role for instructional technologies. The Executive Director will also oversee the day-to-day operations and financial wellbeing of the Writing Center as well as the recruitment, retention and support of the staff who design, develop and deliver writing instruction.


Candidates for the Executive Director of the Writing Center must have a PhD or equivalent in an academic discipline; demonstrated success in writing instruction; experience administering academic programs and personnel; evidence of excellence in teaching and tutoring, ideally at both the undergraduate and graduate levels; understanding of instructional technologies; and a record of research and scholarship. Experience with the assessment of learning outcomes in writing instruction is desirable. The executive director will report to the Dean of the College and to the Deputy Dean of the College for Research and Teaching Innovations, and will receive a concurrent academic appointment at the rank of Senior Instructional Professor (open rank) in the appropriate collegiate division, with eligibility to teach up to two courses a year.


All applications, nominations and inquiries are invited. For fullest consideration, candidate materials should be received by September 18, 2023 and should include, as two separate documents, a CV or resume and a letter of interest addressing the themes in this profile. Professional references are not requested at this time.


Application materials should be submitted simultaneously to the University of Chicago Interfolio site at https://apply.interfolio.com/128722 and to WittKieffer's candidate portal at https://candidateportal.wittkieffer.com/description?jobID=24685


Nominations and inquiries can be directed to:



Lucy Leske and Meredith Davis, Ph.D.



UChicagoWritingCenterED@wittkieffer.com