Provost
Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion
Cincinnati, Los Angeles, New York City, Jerusalem
Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion – the academic, spiritual, and professional leadership development center of Reform Judaism – invites nominations, expressions of interest, and applications for the position of Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Provost.
Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR) is a complex and vibrant institution with campuses in North America and Israel that is animated by its powerful mission: studying the great issues of Jewish life with an egalitarian spirit, educating innovative clergy and professionals, and advancing the critical study of Judaism in accordance with the highest academic standards.
HUC-JIR has expanded from its roots as a seminary that ordains rabbis to become the largest graduate and professional school for Jewish professional life in the liberal Jewish world, operating centers of learning in New York City, Cincinnati, Los Angeles, and Jerusalem. The College-Institute educates leaders for service to North American and world Jewry as rabbis, cantors, educators, and Jewish nonprofit management professionals, and offers graduate degree programs to scholars, clergy, and working professionals. HUC-JIR enrolls approximately 300 students in graduate and preparatory programs and teaches approximately 700 undergraduates in collaboration with the University of Southern California (USC). The College-Institute has 40 full-time faculty, 4,000 alumni, an endowment of approximately $250 million, significant real estate holdings, and an annual operating budget of $43 million without significant debt.
The Provost, reporting directly to President Andrew Rehfeld, Ph.D. and serving as his closest partner as well as a member of the President’s Cabinet, will be expected to bring a forward-looking, exploratory, and expansive mindset to the continuous consideration of the College-Institute’s optimal academic footprint as well as its role training leadership for Jewish communities in Israel, North America, and around the world. The Provost will be a strategic thinker who, in their role as chief academic officer for the College-Institute and the leader of its academic enterprise, deploys data and academic best practices to ensure the continued excellence and ongoing relevance of the institution, the eminence of its distinguished faculty, and the transformative education and experience of its students.
The Provost will, at the minimum, hold an earned doctorate. The ideal candidate will possess a record of teaching and scholarly or creative work in Jewish Studies or an adjacent area of study sufficient to warrant tenure at the rank of full professor at HUC-JIR. The successful candidate will bring a sound commitment to mission; great integrity and vision; strong leadership, management, and academic administration skills; creativity and optimism; and exceptional communication skills along with the capacity for an embrace that extends across this highly complex institution’s campuses, schools, people, and offerings as well as the financial and operational infrastructure that supports it. The Provost will be based at one of the College-Institute’s four campuses and travel regularly to the other campuses.
All applications, nominations, and inquiries are invited. Applications should include, as separate documents, a CV and a letter of interest addressing the responsibilities and requirements described in the leadership profile. For fullest consideration, candidate materials should be received by December 9, 2024. Applications, nominations, and inquiries can be directed to the WittKieffer consultants supporting this search: Robin Mamlet, Randi Miller, and Corin Edwards at [email protected].
The anticipated salary range for this position is $225,000 to $275,000, negotiable based upon experience.
Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion is an Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE) and complies with all applicable laws and regulations regarding equal employment opportunities. Qualified applicants are considered for employment without regard to age, race, color, religion, sex, gender, gender identity and expression, national origin, sexual orientation, disability, or veteran status.