Executive Director, VCU Continuing and Professional Education

Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is seeking an experienced Executive Director to provide bold and human-centered leadership to its reinvigorated Continuing and Professional Education unit. The next Executive Director will step into an opportunity to build on recent momentum in order to launch the phase of this organization in service to VCU and the greater Richmond region.

Reporting to the Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs (SVPAA) and serving as a member of the Senior Vice Provost's leadership team, the Executive Director for VCU Continuing and Professional Education will provide leadership and oversight for the development, implementation and evaluation of noncredit courses and programs.

The Executive Director will advise and collaborate with the Senior Vice Provost, leadership team and other stakeholders to develop an institutional approach for bridging credit and noncredit spaces. The result will be an integrated ecosystem of exciting, in-demand and diversified instructional courses and programs. A key mechanism for this collaborative effort will be the Instructional Innovation Council, composed of 22 representatives from VCU's academic schools/colleges, which the Executive Director will co-convene.

The Executive Director will provide key leadership and strategic vision to the VCU Continuing and Professional Education staff for the research, development and implementation of innovative and fiscally profitable noncredit courses and programs in high demand areas. These offerings will leverage VCU's in-house talent for the development of original content.

Crucially, the Executive Director will maintain an active on-the-ground presence in the community in order to build and nurture industry relationships.

Success in this position will include attaining key benchmarks and industry standards, including achieving an operating margin of 40% or greater within open enrollment courses and programs (and 50% of greater for contract training), securing 20% of new course development within a one-year period, and maintaining a repeat rate of at least 30%. These benchmarks are starting points for discussion, and the incumbent should be prepared to demonstrate their position on them in an interview.

This position is in-person locally based in Richmond, VA. Flexible Work Arrangements are available.