Chair of the Department of Social Work and Human Services

Kennesaw State University is accepting applications for a twelve-month, tenured faculty position as Professor and Chair of the Department of Social Work and Human Services in the Wellstar College of Health and Human Services (WCHHS) beginning July 1, 2022. The chair reports directly to the WCHHS Dean and provides academic and administrative leadership to a dynamic department of 12 multidisciplinary full-time faculty, a large pool of part-time faculty, two staff members, and approximately 400 students enrolled in the graduate and undergraduate programs.

The new Social Work and Human Services chair will focus on four strategic priorities of the Wellstar College: enhancing student success, growing graduate programs, engaging with research with relevance, and advancing our community and culture. The Department values diversity among its faculty, is committed to building a culturally diverse intellectual community, and strongly encourages applications from women and historically underrepresented populations.

The Department seeks a visionary and effective leader who can expand and promote innovative undergraduate and graduate programs. The primary responsibilities of the Chair include, but are not limited to:

• Strategizing with the department to implement the priorities of the University and the College
• Providing oversight and advancement of the Department’s programs, students, and faculty
• Supporting a transparent shared governance environment
• Managing and allocating resources
• Reviewing and managing the Department’s budget
• Working with external advisory boards
• Overseeing accreditation processes

The successful candidate must have an earned doctorate, or its foreign equivalent in human services, social work, or other closely related field with an academic background and appropriate credentials to be a tenured professor in an academic department at KSU.

The successful candidate should 1) be a strong, innovative, and strategic visionary with empowering, democratic team-building and interpersonal skills; 2) be able to promote the vision and mission of the Department, College, and the University; 3) possess a strong commitment to shared governance; and 4) have diverse professional experience supporting the administrative role. These include, taking leadership in strategic planning, managing budgets, managing personnel, allocating resources, maintaining accreditations, seeking external funding, building community collaborations, and promoting faculty scholarship. The Chair also serves as an instructional leader who maintains a record of teaching effectiveness and applied scholarly achievement.

The successful candidate should also have the following:

• A history of strong, decisive, and collaborative leadership working with faculty, students, staff, administrators, and external
• A breadth of direct working knowledge providing oversight and fiscal responsibility relative to departmental or college budget
• The ability to foster a culture of trust, transparency, and collegiality while serving as an advocate for the mission and values of the
• High-level interpersonal skills for communication, consultation, and collaboration.
• Experience working with and mentoring faculty in interdisciplinary setting(s).
• An entrepreneurial mindset and ability to expand and create synergies within the primary disciplines represented in the
• The ability to work across diverse groups of faculty, staff, and students, and contribute to inclusive advocacy in the department and across the campus
• A scholarship agenda that contributes to the Department’s efforts to obtain external funding, guide community-based research, and create interdisciplinary research pursuits within and beyond the
• Experience promoting, supporting, and creating infrastructure to support faculty

For more than 50 years, Kennesaw State University has been known for its entrepreneurial spirit and sense of community. Offering campuses in Marietta and Kennesaw, the university is located just north of Atlanta and combines a suburban setting with access to one of the country’s most dynamic cities. As Georgia’s third-largest university, Kennesaw State offers more than 100 undergraduate and graduate degrees, including a growing number of doctoral programs.

Designated by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia as a comprehensive university, Kennesaw State is committed to becoming a world-class academic institution positioned to broaden its academic and research missions and expand its scope on a local, regional and national level.

For a full description of this position, application deadlines, and application procedures, visit https://hr.kennesaw.edu/careers.php.

Kennesaw State University, a member of the University System of Georgia, is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer and does not discriminate on the basis of age, color, disability, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, and/or veteran status. Georgia is an Open Records state.