Dean, College of Architecture
Illinois Institute of Technology invites nominations for, and expressions of interest in, the position of Dean of the College of Architecture.
Context
Through its deep commitment to a rigorous architectural education and its historic contributions to the legacy of modernism, the IIT College of Architecture enjoys an unparalleled international reputation. The College is one of the largest and most international architecture schools in the United States, with over 800 students from fifty countries and more than 100 full and part time faculty members. With a pedagogy based in the synthesis of practice and research, IIT offers B.Arch., M.Arch., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in architecture, as well as a recently accredited M.L.A. degree. The College is also home to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, the world’s leading professional body for high-rise structures.
IIT’s campus is a unique exemplar of the modernist design solutions pioneered by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and his colleagues - solutions that transformed the urban spaces and skylines of the world. The College of Architecture continues to be housed in three Mies buildings, including S.R. Crown Hall - his masterpiece and one of the most significant buildings of the 20th century - and the Minerals and Metals Building, which has recently been converted into a fully-equipped 10,000 sq. ft. fabrication shop for students and faculty. IIT’s long history of excellence in architecture continues today. Two noteworthy buildings opened in 2003: the McCormick Tribune Campus Center designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Rem Koolhaas and the State Street Village residences by Helmut Jahn.
Drawing strength from a lineage that reaches back to the Bauhaus, the faculty and curriculum of the College are committed to the material culture of the built environment, to a sophisticated integration of technology and design, and to a deep engagement with professional practice. Through education, research, and practice, the College extends this lineage by its work on a full range of contemporary issues, including sustainability, global urbanization, material and structural advances, design-build integration, digital modeling and fabrication, and design theory and criticism. The students, faculty, and alumni foster an academic environment that is intellectually stimulating, professionally challenging, committed to innovation, and international in scope.
The College’s work and life are greatly enriched by its location in the city of Chicago with its rich architectural and cultural heritage and present-day connections to progressively-minded, global practitioners. Chicago offers an extraordinary set of organizations devoted to architecture and related fields, including the Graham Foundation, the Chicago Architecture Foundation, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Museum of Contemporary Art, and the Arts Club; as well as a community of universities, including Northwestern University, the University of Illinois at Chicago, and the University of Chicago.
For students and faculty, IIT’s setting provides an urban laboratory in which to explore the complex issues facing contemporary cities - including sustainable planning, affordable housing, transportation, historic preservation, adaptive reuse, and other trends that are transforming the built environment throughout the world. The College’s mission includes a commitment to the needs of our neighborhood, city, and region. At the same time, the College supports a large and varied range of study abroad programs - including studio trips throughout the world, intensive summer travel programs, and a year-long program with a permanent base in Paris - that connect students and faculty to parallel currents around the globe.
Attributes
The Dean is the chief academic and executive officer of the College of Architecture - one of eight colleges within IIT - and is responsible for all matters related to the management of the College, including academic programs, personnel, budgets, alumni relations, and development. In response to the College’s recent growth in students and faculty, the Dean will have an opportunity to oversee both administrative reorganization and the expansion of the tenure-track and tenured faculty. He or she will coordinate the College’s activities with the University’s ongoing strategic plan and will have a strong commitment to the University’s tradition of holding diversity as a core value, working to enhance and extend the diversity of the College’s students, faculty, and staff.
The Dean will be an architectural educator of the highest quality, with a deep understanding of architectural practice and its needs. He or she will possess an internationally recognized body of experience in practice, research, and/or scholarship; and must be qualified to be hired with the rank of tenured full professor. The Dean will have a clear vision for leading the school to greater excellence by building on the existing strengths of the College and by thoughtfully expanding into new areas of education and research. Curricular areas of opportunity for the new Dean will include: the reconstitution of an urbanism program, the continued growth of the landscape architecture program, the expansion of the College’s other advanced degree programs, and the strengthening of the College’s research profile.
The Dean will have a high level of visibility and will vigorously represent, and advocate for, the College locally, nationally, and internationally, as well as within IIT. As such the Dean must have exceptional communication skills and enthusiasm for developing relationships with a wide range of constituencies, including other programs and departments at IIT, alumni, practitioners, city groups and leaders, and international professional and academic bodies. In conjunction with a major university-wide fundraising campaign, the Dean must be effective in strengthening the College’s endowment through development.
Process
Nominations and applications will be accepted until the position is filled. Interested candidates are encouraged to submit a Letter of Interest and CV. Individuals from underrepresented groups are especially encouraged to apply. All inquiries, nominations, and applications will be treated in a confidential manner. All correspondence relating to the position should be directed to the University’s executive recruitment consultant:
Alison P. Ranney
Higher Education Practice
Russell Reynolds Associates
iitarchitecturedean@russellreynolds.com
Illinois Institute of Technology is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer.