POSITION PROFILE
PRESIDENT
SOUTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY
A Historically Black co-educational institution committed to providing affordable and accessible quality undergraduate and graduate degree programs; South Carolina State University announces a national search for the President of the Institution. This position offers an enviable opportunity to establish a dynamic community on a foundation of institutional strength and enhance the University’s competitiveness in the state and region. The institution has developed into a comprehensive, co-educational, culturally diverse University serving a growing population of students of all races. With a student population of approximately 5,000, the University is located on 160 acres in Orangeburg, South Carolina. The search committee is seeking a President who can embrace the ambitious goals and share the community’s belief in the value and purpose of South Carolina State University as a historically black institution. The successful candidate will assume this position on July 1, 2008.
A Distinctive Profile
South Carolina State University through instruction, research and service activities, prepares skilled, competent, economically and socially aware graduates to meet life's challenges and demands that enable them to work and live productively in a dynamic, global society.
The University is currently involved in a number of research activities which focuses on improving the quality of life for all citizens, is consistent with the institution’s mission, and has the potential to attract considerable support. Partnering with Francis Marion, the University has embarked on research in the areas of business, social sciences, economics, and health disparities, to develop a comprehensive plan to help depressed areas in South Carolina.
A Distinctive Environment
The new president will build on current program elements that help to define the campus and the community.
• Academic Program - The University offers sixty baccalaureate programs in the areas of applied professional sciences, engineering technology, sciences, arts, humanities, education and business. A small number of programs are offered at the master's level in teaching, human services and agribusiness, and doctorate programs are offered in educational administration. Faculty and students participate in research that stimulates intellectual growth, enhances and facilitates student learning and adds to the scientific knowledge base of the academy. Service activities, which are provided thro ugh programs, related to agriculture, adult and continuing education, research, cultural arts, small business development and other special interest areas, are designed to enhance the quality of life and promote economic growth. These efforts, supported by various applications of technology, are achieved in a climate of mutual trust and respect through methods of scholarly inquiry and scientific research.
South Carolina State University is consistently among the national leaders in producing African-American students with baccalaureate degrees in biology, education, business, engineering technology, computer science/mathematics, and English language/literature. Moreover, it is one of three universities in South Carolina to offer a doctoral program in Educational Administration and one of two schools in the state to offer an accredited master's degree program in Speech-Language Pathology. The University is one of the nation’s leaders in granting degrees to African Americans, ranked 29th in all disciplines combined, 10th in mathematics and statistics, 1 1th in biological and biomedical sciences and 20th in education. It is the only South Carolina institution to offer a baccalaureate degree in nuclear engineering. Currently, the institution is the most prolific producer of African American teachers in South Carolina.
• Faculty - SCSU faculty brings perspectives that are as diverse as their teaching styles and research interests. The faculty has developed national reputations for excellence in teaching and research and pride themselves on their commitment to their students. Eighty percent of faculty members possess terminal degrees and class sizes are designed to give the students the personal attention they need to achieve academic excellence. The institution also has the most diverse faculty of any South Carolina public university. T he faculty and staff are committed to the mission of the HBCU tradition and the individual help for students needed in an open-admission university.
• Students – The University currently enrolls nearly 5,000 students majoring in a wide range of programs. With a 17:1 student/faculty ratio, the institution prides itself on small class sizes and provides numerous opportunities for students to work closely with faculty members. The student body is diverse with representatives from 21 countries. Equally impressive is the diversity from geography, socio-economic background and level of personal ability. According to a 2005-06 Economic Impact Study; SCSU graduates earn $207 milli on more in additional income as a direct result of their degree. Opportunity for student/faculty research, community service outreach, and leadership development are integral to the student experience at SCSU. Students are housed in attractive apartment-style residence halls and campus life is rewarding with clubs and activities attracting student participation, including varsity athletics as a part of NCAA Division I. 113 athletes have entered the ranks of professional sports, as well as participating on U.S. Olympic teams.
• Location and Community – The University is located in Orangeburg, which is forty miles south of Columbia and seventy miles north of Charleston, SC. It is the largest city and county seat of Orangeburg County, which won the 2005 All America City award in recognition of the willingness of the County’s residents and institutions to work together to resolve community issues. South Carolina State University's 1890 land-grant legacy of service to the citizenry of the state is ensured through its collaborative efforts with local, rural, and statewide businesses, public education, colleges and industry. This symbiotic relationship provides a catalyst that spurs reciprocal economic and social growth for the University, state, nation and the international community at-large. It is imperative and in South Carolina State’s best interest, both corporately and civically, to be involved in neighborhood revitalization and economic development because communities that surround HBCU campuses are often neglected by traditional resources.
Orangeburg is a growing center for logistics and manufacturing. The area has a traditional rural, agricultural economy which has expanded to include a business and industrial focus that is both national and international in scope. A subsidiary of Dubai World announced in October that it has selected Orangeburg County for an international logistical park that will eventually employ 8,000 people and serve the ports of Savannah, Charleston, Wilmington, and Norfolk. This development has been referred to as the "Gateway to North America."
• The HBCU Mission – HBCU’s enjoy a long and storied history of being the reservoir from which main stream and corporate America has drawn its most successful talent. For this trend to continue; developing the best and brightest will require the certain standards and measurements already established or to be established, be reviewed, modified, and made the most of by South Carolina State University.
• Accomplishments - For a second consecutive year, SCSU has been ranked among the Top 10 national universities and the nation’s top “social mobility” university by Washington Monthly magazine. The University is proud to have hosted the first nationally televised presidential debate for the 2008 primaries.
.
Among its accomplishments, the University has produced the following:
• 6 college presidents;
• the 1st African American Chief Justice of South Carolina Supreme Court;
• 2005 and 2006 National Collegiate Gospel Choir of the Year;
• 113 athletes have entered the ranks of professional sports, as well as participating on U.S. Olympic teams;
• South Carolina State alumni have gone on to become graduates and faculty at the U.S. Army War College, the world's most prestigious institution for the education of strategic leaders;
• Ranked #1 in the production of African American teachers in South Carolina.
PRESIDENTIAL ATTRIBUTES
To provide the leadership required to enhance the University’s distinguished place in the higher education community, it will be important that the next President have the following attributes:
• A demonstrated commitment to academic excellence and to the ideals of a nationally recognized State University;
• The ability to articulate those ideals fearlessly and persuasively;
• A principled view of the world and the confidence to make decisions, in part, founded upon those principles;
• A strategic thinker with the capacity to build upon South Carolina State’s vision and mission;
• A deep understanding of what goes into excellent research, teaching, scholarship and service;
• An appreciation of South Carolina State’s distinctive culture and values, and its special niche in higher education;
• A commitment to embrace diversity in thought and action;
• A terminal degree with significant and successful administrative or executive experience and evidence of the ability to recruit and retain highly effective professional staff;
• An aptitude and passion for asking others to support an exceptional institution financially;
• A commitment to be a collaborative partner with the community and neighborhoods surrounding the University;
• A collaborative leadership style that builds upon relationships and a sense of community and teamwork;
• Experience in working with state and national legislatures and with the corporate and business community;
• An excellent mind with a broad vision, varied interests, a fresh perspective, balanced judgment and creativity and a person who is open to new ideas;
• A commitment to building relationships with South Carolina State’s students, faculty, alumni, community business partners and other stakeholders;
• A capacity to strategically manage growth and resource allocation, budget savvy;
• Excellent communication skills, with a comfortable public presence;
• The ability to create an inclusive and supportive educational community that is learner-centered and skill in bringing stakeholders together with enthusiasm and humor.
NOMINATIONS AND INQUIRES
The search committee will begin screening application materials immediately and continue until an appointment is made. To ensure full consideration, applications should include a letter of interest, a curriculum vitae, and the names, telephone numbers, and e-mail addresses of five references (who will not be contacted without prior authorization) and sent electronically (MS Word or Adobe PDF) to:
SCSTATE@academic-search.com