Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Position Description 

Molloy College seeks a strategic, collaborative, innovative, and responsive leader to serve as the Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (VPDEI). The VPDEI will have the opportunity to lead, educate and empower a community of engaged faculty and staff. Reporting directly to President James Lentini, D.M.A., who is in his second year at Molloy, the VPDEI will be joining the President’s Cabinet as a member of the senior leadership team. The VPDEI will find Molloy to be committed to its value-centered, multidimensional education that is grounded in the Dominican tradition of the College, rooted in the ideals of truth and respect for the dignity and worth of every individual. Molloy College lives its mission on campus, located 25 miles from New York City in Rockville Centre, Long Island, and extends its reach outward to encompass the region, country and world.

The Inaugural Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (VPDEI) is a senior leader who will serve as a catalyst to leverage best practices and resources across Molloy College to promote a culture of inclusion and equity where all individuals can thrive and be engaged. The VPDEI will provide strategic and programmatic leadership for equity initiatives that advance the importance of diversity, non-discrimination, social justice, access, and inclusion as a critical component of social, academic, and intellectual life at the College. The VPDEI will have an opportunity to more fully establish a college culture focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion inherent in Molloy’s founding as a Catholic and Dominican institution. The VPDEI will develop collaborative relations with offices, centers, and institutes of the College to advance the mission and goals related to education, accessibility, and outcomes in higher education. The VPDEI reports directly to the President and serves on the President’s Cabinet. The successful candidate will help create a culture of continuous improvement and accountability through planning and assessment of our diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. 

Specific responsibilities include:

• Collaborate with senior leaders to review and integrate equitable best practices into workplace policies, procedures, and programming.
• Engage College-wide constituent groups and external stakeholders to structure and support DEI initiatives that are key to the College’s mission.
• Provide oversight for the development, implementation and evaluation of the College’s strategic equity and justice plan, vision, and related goals.
• Chair the Diversity Council, an advisory entity that will be established under the leadership of the VPDEI. 
• Collaborate with Human Resources and other departments throughout the College to develop strategic hiring and retention efforts to attract and retain a highly talented, diverse workforce. 
• Coordinate with various stakeholders on a wide variety of equity and inclusion programming with a focus on students and student needs.
• Collaborate to create effective DEI internal and external communications strategies. 
• Serves as a spokesperson for the College on matters related to diversity and inclusion in conjunction with appropriate offices. 
• Work across departments to create professional development opportunities that advance the importance of diversity, non-discrimination, social justice, access, and inclusion as a critical component of social, academic, and intellectual life at the College. 
• Serve as the senior DEI advisor to the President and the Cabinet and manage processes to identify opportunities for institutional improvement. 
• Collect, analyze, monitor, and disseminate institutional data to benchmark and promote accountability to ensure equitable programs, policies and procedures in all areas of the Institution. 

Requirements:

• Terminal degree or doctorate preferred, or a master’s degree in a relevant field from an accredited institution, as well as five years’ experience in social justice and equity. 
• Demonstrated success at facilitating difficult discussions, shepherding change, creating and strengthening partnerships, and aligning an array of efforts across a complex organization. 
• Demonstrated success as a collaborator and relationship builder, with strong interpersonal skills and ability to build coalitions and collaborative working relationships with a broad range of diverse individuals and groups ranging from first-year students through senior administration. 
• Demonstrated success in identifying and implementing best practices around DEI and an excellent command of modern diversity and inclusion concepts and issues in higher education. 
• Demonstrated success in working collaboratively to develop and implement recruitment and retention strategies focused on building a diverse workforce and student population. 
• General knowledge and understanding of the demographic matrix of Long Island. 
• Exceptional oral and written communication skills with experience in multiple communication modes with the ability to articulate the importance of DEI to the broader educational mission of higher educational institutions. 
• Knowledge of laws, regulations and guidelines related to diversity, inclusion, access, and nondiscrimination in higher education. 
• Proven analytical skills and ability to provide oversight for assessments related to campus climate, equity, diversity, access, and inclusion. 

Nominations and Applications 

For full consideration, interested parties are encouraged to submit a letter of interest and CV as soon as possible. Review of candidates will begin immediately and continue until August 20, 2021. 

Full Position Profile

To Apply, please click here.

Human Resources Molloy College does not discriminate on the basis of an individual’s race, color, national origin, religion, creed, age, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, familial status, pregnancy, predisposing genetic characteristics, or military status; in its administration of educational policies, programs or activities; its admissions policies; or in employment practices. 

Molloy College takes its responsibility seriously to establish an environment in which the dignity and worth of all members of the institutional community are respected. In its effort to provide an optimal learning environment the College seeks the appointment of persons who are highly qualified and whose background is appropriate to fill each vacancy. It is College policy to recruit, employ, retain and promote employees without discrimination regarding sex, race, color, creed, religion, age, marital status, sexual orientation, veteran status, national or ethnic origin or physical disability. In selecting for employment, the College is committed to the highest standard of excellence and will select the best qualified candidate. In cases where there are equally qualified candidates for positions, selection will be made from those groups of persons who have been identified by the Federal and State Governments as having been discriminated against in the past.  

Molloy College takes its responsibility seriously to establish and environment in which the dignity and worth of all members of the institutional community are respected. In its effort to provide an optimal learning environment the College seeks the appointment of persons who are highly qualified and whose background is appropriate to fill each vacancy. It so doing,, it is College policy to recruit, employ, retain and promote employees without discrimination regarding sex, race, color, creed, religion, age, marital status, sexual orientation, veteran status, national or ethnic origin or physical disability. In selecting for employment, the College is committed to the highest standard of excellence and will select the best qualified candidate. In cases where there are equally qualified candidates for positions, selection will be made from those groups of persons who have been identified by the Federal and State Governments as having been discriminated against in the past.