Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs
University of Colorado Denver
Denver, CO - United States
The University of Colorado Denver (CU Denver) seeks an innovative, forward-looking, and collaborative leader to serve as Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs.
CU Denver, part of the University of Colorado system, was officially founded in 1973. Located on the downtown Auraria Campus and stretching into Denver’s central business district, CU Denver brings innovation, research, creativity, and learning to the heart of a global city. CU Denver is the state’s premier public urban research university, with more than 100 in-demand, top-ranked bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degree programs.
Throughout its history, CU Denver has supported students from all walks of life—and its faculty and staff are deeply committed to providing an inclusive and transformative educational experience, leading the institution to be recognized by U.S. News and World Report as the #1 university in Colorado for social mobility for four consecutive years. The university educates over 13,500 students (70% undergraduate and 30% graduate). Students of color make up 46% of the undergraduate student body and 51% of undergraduates are first-generation college students. CU Denver is a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI) and the first Rocky Mountain region campus to gain Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution (AANAPISI) status, reflecting efforts to increase access and opportunity for those underserved by higher education. Nearly 1,000 international students come from all over the world to study at CU Denver. Learn more at: About Us | The University of Colorado Denver.
The Provost will join CU Denver at a time of great excitement and momentum. They will draw upon the university’s existing strength in teaching, research, and creative works, providing outstanding leadership that celebrates and uplifts the programs and people contributing to current successes, while working together with partners across the institution to imagine and implement changes and innovations that advance the academic enterprise. The right leader will have a tremendous opportunity to position this unique institution to enhance student outcomes and make a difference in the communities CU Denver serves—with impressive local and global impact. Reporting to Chancellor Kenneth T. Christensen, who officially began his role on February 1, 2025, the new Provost will serve as chief academic officer. Together with the leadership team, Deans, faculty, staff, and students, the Provost will partner closely with the Chancellor to help lead and drive transformation of the university to simultaneously meet the urgent demands of the moment, as well as the needs of tomorrow.
As a unifying, empathetic, and institution-wide leader, the new Provost will support current and future academic innovations on a campus that has a strong history in both traditional and online education. The Provost will build upon a transformative academic, research, and creative works agenda and will partner closely with a new Vice Chancellor for strategic enrollment and student success, ensuring that CU Denver is able to optimize its spirit and history of innovation and is positioned as a leading contemporary institution. They will also work with the Executive Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration to effectively deploy financial resources, fine tune the budget model, and ensure enrollment and financial projections are in alignment with targets across the academic enterprise. The university is committed to a nimble and responsive approach to higher education’s changing landscape—one that addresses the evolving needs of students, including social justice, public health, and other challenges impacting its community.
The Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor has responsibility for academic and faculty affairs, with a comprehensive $159 million portfolio comprised of 1,800 faculty and staff. The Provost oversees the Deans of the College of Architecture and Planning; College of Arts & Media; Business School; School of Education & Human Development; College of Engineering, Design and Computing; College of Liberal Arts & Sciences; School of Public Affairs; and affiliated academic and research departments. They also oversee the director of the Auraria Library. The new Chancellor seeks a bold and nimble academic leader who will embrace the enormous potential of this distinctive and entrepreneurial institution and the students, faculty, and staff that find themselves drawn to it. The successful candidate will be a seasoned, creative, and highly effective academic and administrative leader with a strong record in research, scholarship, and/or creative work. CU Denver’s next Provost will have effective communication skills and be able to articulate the importance and nuance of a public, urban research university that serves a diverse student population and acts as an economic driver for the Denver metropolitan community and beyond.
CU Denver is committed to an ethical foundation and a sense of shared responsibility, transparency, and culture of trust. The new Provost must possess impeccable moral character and conviction in serving the greater good of the university and in partnering with its faculty in a vibrant shared governance environment. The Provost will help lead a university in its next wave of evolution, joining an energetic new Chancellor, a strong and evolving executive team, and a campus community committed to advancing inclusive and transformative educational experiences for a diverse student body.
All applications, nominations, and inquiries are invited. Applications should include, as two separate documents, a CV or resume, and a letter of interest addressing the themes in the leadership profile. Professional references are not requested at this time.
Compensation and Benefit Information
Salary offers are determined based on final candidate qualifications and experience. The budgeted salary range that the University reasonably expects to pay for this position is $350,000-$400,000.
Benefits: The University of Colorado offers a full benefits package. Information on university benefits programs, including eligibility, is available at http://www.cu.edu/employee-services.
WittKieffer is assisting the University of Colorado Denver in this search. For fullest consideration, candidate materials should be received by March 14, 2025.
Application materials, nominations. and inquiries can be directed to: Robin Mamlet, Lauren Bruce-Stets, and Bronwen Bares Pelaez, Ph.D. at [email protected].