Vice President of Academic Affairs

Salary: $104,000.00 - $114,000.00 Annually
Location : Main Campus in Ullin, IL
Job Type: Full-Time Staff
Job Number:
Division: Executive
Department: Executive
Opening Date: 09/10/2026
Closing Date: 10/25/2026 11:59 PM Central

Staff Salary Information

Most hires are expected to fall within the posted salary range. Placement is based on qualifications, experience, and internal equity considerations within the College's compensation structure.
Summary

The Vice President of Academic Affairs (VPAA) serves as the College's chief academic officer and a member of the senior leadership team, providing strategic, collaborative, and forward-looking leadership for the full academic enterprise. The VPAA is accountable for academic quality, student learning and success, enrollment and completion strategies, workforce responsiveness, faculty and academic staff leadership, accreditation and compliance, and the continuous improvement and sustainability of the College's credit and non-credit educational offerings.

The VPAA leads academic planning, curriculum and program development and review, scheduling, assessment, institutional and programmatic accreditation, faculty qualifications, academic policy, budget and grant stewardship, and shared governance. The role also provides strategic oversight for workforce training, continuing and community education, economic development, small business development services, and specialized training programs, strengthening partnerships with business, industry, K-12 education, universities, government, workforce agencies, and community organizations.

Working closely with the President, executive leadership, faculty, staff, and external partners, the VPAA helps shape institutional strategy, lead change, promote innovation, and build an academic culture grounded in trust, accountability, collaboration, inclusion, and a commitment to student learning. The VPAA represents the College in local, state, regional, and professional forums and may act on behalf of the President as assigned.
Essential Duties or Responsibilities

The essential duties and primary responsibilities below are intended to describe the general requirements of this job and are not intended to be an exhaustive statement of duties. Other duties may be assigned.

Strategic Academic Leadership

• Provide vision and executive leadership for Academic Affairs in alignment with the College's mission, strategic plan, institutional priorities, and commitment to student success.
• Lead the development, implementation, evaluation, and continuous improvement of academic programs, services, systems, and processes across the College.
• Translate institutional strategy into measurable academic priorities, goals, and outcomes, using data to inform decisions and resource allocation.
• Identify and advance opportunities for academic innovation, including flexible delivery models, online and hybrid learning, immersive and experiential learning, competency-based approaches, and emerging instructional technologies.
• Provide executive leadership for college-wide academic scheduling to improve student access, progression, enrollment, and efficient use of institutional resources.
• Anticipate changes in higher education, workforce demand, technology, demographics, and student needs and position the College to respond effectively.

Academic Quality, Curriculum, Assessment, and Accreditation

• Ensure the quality, relevance, integrity, and continuous improvement of the College's academic portfolio through effective curriculum development, program review, assessment, and evaluation processes.
• Provide executive oversight for institutional and specialized accreditation, academic compliance, and related reporting, including requirements of the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), Illinois Community College Board (ICCB), Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE), and applicable programmatic accreditors and regulatory agencies.
• Ensure appropriate systems are maintained for faculty qualifications and credentialing, student learning outcomes, general education assessment, program outcomes, and documentation of academic quality.
• Promote a culture of evidence in which assessment and institutional data are used to strengthen teaching, learning, programs, and student outcomes.
• Ensure academic policies, procedures, operating standards, and manuals remain current, effective, and aligned with institutional, regulatory, and accreditation expectations.
• Interpret and apply applicable federal and state laws, regulations, Board policies, collective bargaining provisions, and academic requirements, and assess their impact on academic operations and institutional practice.

Enrollment, Student Success, and Academic Innovation

• Partner with Student Affairs, enrollment management, institutional research, and other areas to develop academic strategies that support recruitment, persistence, retention, completion, transfer, and career success.
• Use enrollment, completion, labor-market, program performance, and student success data to guide academic planning and identify opportunities for growth, redesign, expansion, or discontinuation.
• Lead evidence-based academic portfolio planning, including recommendations for new programs, program expansion or redesign, resource prioritization, and program suspension or discontinuation when appropriate.
• Champion student-centered pathways, accessible scheduling, effective advising partnerships, and instructional practices that reduce barriers and improve student progression.
• Support responsible use of educational technology and emerging tools, including artificial intelligence, in ways that strengthen teaching, learning, academic integrity, and operational effectiveness.

Faculty and Staff Leadership

• Recruit, select, develop, support, recognize, and retain highly qualified faculty, academic leaders, and staff.
• Establish performance expectations and ensure effective supervision, evaluation, development, and accountability for academic administrators and other assigned personnel.
• Build and sustain a high-performing academic leadership team through clear expectations, professional development, coaching, accountability, succession planning, and collaborative problem-solving.
• Foster an academic culture characterized by trust, transparency, respectful communication, shared responsibility, innovation, and continuous improvement.
• Engage faculty and academic personnel meaningfully in shared governance, curriculum, assessment, strategic planning, and institutional decision-making.
• Support faculty development and excellence in teaching across instructional modalities and changing student learning environments.
• Demonstrate ethical, fair, inclusive, and consistent leadership in personnel and academic decision-making.

Workforce, Community, and Partnership Development

• Provide strategic oversight for workforce development, continuing and community education, economic development, small business development services, and specialized training initiatives.
• Strengthen relationships with employers, industry, K-12 partners, universities, workforce agencies, government entities, and community organizations to ensure programs respond to regional educational and economic needs.
• Advance credit and non-credit pathways, short-term credentials, work-based learning, dual credit and early college opportunities, and other initiatives that expand access and support workforce and community needs.
• Represent the College in ICCB Chief Academic Officer activities and other appropriate local, state, regional, and professional forums.
• Partner with Communications/Public Relations to support accurate, timely, and compelling communication about academic programs and opportunities.
• Collaborate across divisions to ensure the accuracy and timely development of academic catalog, calendar, program, course, and related public information.

Shared Governance, Faculty Relations, and Policy

• Provide executive leadership for effective shared governance and collaborative academic decision-making.
• Work collaboratively with the President, Human Resources, academic leaders, and faculty representatives on faculty labor relations, contract administration, and implementation of the collective bargaining agreement.
• Participate in collective bargaining and labor-management processes as assigned by the President.
• Develop, review, and recommend Board policies, administrative procedures, and academic operating standards within the scope of Academic Affairs.
• Prepare reports and recommendations for the President and Board of Trustees and attend Board meetings as requested.

Financial, Grant, and Resource Stewardship

• Develop, recommend, administer, and monitor the Academic Affairs budget in alignment with strategic and academic priorities.
• Use data and institutional priorities to guide responsible allocation of personnel, facilities, technology, equipment, and other academic resources.
• Provide executive oversight for grants and externally funded initiatives assigned to Academic Affairs, ensuring appropriate implementation, compliance, outcomes, and sustainability.
• Collaborate with Administrative Services and Information Technology to ensure facilities, instructional environments, equipment, and technology effectively support teaching and learning.

Risk Management and Executive Responsibilities

• Provide executive oversight for academic risk management, including instructional and laboratory safety, clinical and affiliation agreements, academic personnel practices, and compliance requirements.
• Ensure appropriate academic procedures and continuity plans are in place for emergencies, disruptions, and crisis situations.
• Exercise sound judgment, discretion, adaptability, and composure in complex or rapidly changing circumstances.
• Participate in student conduct, grievance, complaint, and appeal processes when appropriate to the role.
• Serve as a trusted advisor to the President and collaborate as a member of the executive leadership team on institution-wide priorities and decisions.
• Act on behalf of the President when assigned and perform other executive responsibilities consistent with the position.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications - Education and Experience

• Master's degree from an accredited institution in Education, Higher Education Administration, Academic Leadership, or a related field.
• Five years of progressively responsible leadership experience in higher education, including significant responsibility for academic programs, faculty leadership or supervision, and strategic or operational planning.
• Demonstrated experience with academic program development, assessment, accreditation or regulatory compliance, and institutional policy or procedure development.
• Demonstrated experience managing budgets, personnel, grants, or complex academic operations within a college or university setting.
• Evidence of successful collaborative leadership and the ability to work effectively with faculty, staff, students, governing boards, and external partners.

Preferred Qualifications

• Doctorate (Ph.D., Ed.D., or equivalent) in Education, Higher Education Administration, Academic Leadership, or a related field.
• Senior-level academic leadership experience in a community college or comprehensive higher education environment.
• Successful postsecondary teaching experience, preferably in a community college environment.
• Experience with workforce development, dual credit or early college, online or alternative instructional delivery, and/or career and technical education.
• Experience with collective bargaining, faculty labor relations, or administration of a collective bargaining agreement.
• Experience leading organizational change, academic innovation, enrollment or completion initiatives, and cross-functional institutional projects.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Commitment to student-centered leadership and to creating a welcoming, respectful, accessible, and inclusive learning and working environment.
• Ability to represent the College effectively in local, state, regional, and professional settings and to advocate for the College's academic mission and priorities.
• Ability to cultivate productive partnerships with K-12 schools, universities, employers, industry, workforce agencies, government entities, and community organizations.
• Ability to lead and support organizational change, academic innovation, and the responsible adoption of educational technology and emerging tools, including artificial intelligence.
• Ability to build consensus and productive relationships within shared governance and collective bargaining environments while maintaining responsibility for timely institutional decision-making.
• Ability to exercise sound independent judgment, discretion, diplomacy, and composure in complex, sensitive, or rapidly changing circumstances.
• Excellent written, oral, interpersonal, facilitation, negotiation, and presentation skills, including the ability to communicate complex matters clearly to faculty, staff, students, governing boards, external partners, and community stakeholders.
• Skill in developing, coaching, evaluating, and leading high-performing teams while fostering accountability, collaboration, trust, and professional growth.
• Skill in leading complex, cross-functional initiatives; setting priorities; managing multiple demands; resolving conflict; and moving work from planning through implementation and evaluation.
• Skill in analyzing institutional, enrollment, student success, program performance, financial, and labor-market data; identifying trends; evaluating alternatives; and making evidence-informed recommendations and decisions.
• Skill in strategic and systems thinking, with the ability to connect academic priorities to institutional mission, student success, enrollment, workforce needs, community impact, and financial sustainability.
• Knowledge of shared governance, faculty leadership, collective bargaining environments, contract adminis