Associate Vice President For Health & Well-Being

About The Ohio State University

Founded in 1870 as a land-grant university, The Ohio State University is one of the nation’s finest higher education institutions, with annual research expenditures of over $1 billion. Ohio State’s Columbus campus sits within the nation’s 14th most populous city, which has been recognized not only as the fastest-growing city in the Midwest but also as an emerging hub for high-tech companies and a center for education, healthcare, and the arts. Over 67,700 students attend Ohio State’s main campus and regional campuses in Lima, Mansfield, Marion, and Newark, and the Agricultural Technical Institute co-located with the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center in Wooster. In addition to its regional importance, Ohio State has a national and global impact. Many graduates remain in Ohio, but alumni are found across the world. The Ohio State University boasts 600,000 living alumni, and its endowment stands at $7.0 billion.
The university has an astonishing intellectual range with 15 academic colleges and a wealth of disciplines. All the colleges are on the Columbus campus, which opens the possibility of working across units. The institution has enormous ambition; through its strategic planning efforts, Ohio State aspires to be the absolute model of a 21st-century land-grant university, enabling people from ordinary backgrounds to achieve the extraordinary. Students are exposed to a vast array of ideas, experiences, and cultures at Ohio State; inclusive excellence is a central tenet of the institution.

It might be expected that size would be an impediment to innovation at such a comprehensive institution. Not so at Ohio State. The university is serious about taking innovation in teaching and learning to scale and achieve institutional success through multi-disciplinary and cross-university collaboration and engagement.

About Student Life

The vision of the Office of Student Life (SL) is to be the premier student affairs division in the country, centered on the extraordinary student and staff experience with cross-cutting experiential learning and commitment to belonging and inclusion.

We believe that every student has a unique background and set of needs that drives each program and service we offer. We work with students to support them on their path to success during their time at Ohio State, inside and outside the classroom.

Our many departments provide programs and services that impact the daily lives of students. We support every Buckeye, undergraduate, graduate and professional, meeting them where they are at and connecting them with their fellow students and offerings like housing, dining, health and well-being services, belonging and inclusion programming and more.

Together, we empower our students to believe that anything is possible. We work alongside students to create the iconic Ohio State experience, fostering learning and development, enhancing the educational experience, preparing them for citizenship in a diverse global society and making impacts across campus and around the world.

Position Overview

The Associate Vice President (AVP) for Health and Well-being in the Office of Student Life serves as a strategic member of the Student Life Senior Vice President's Executive Leadership Team; collaboratively conceives, designs and implements SL strategy, organizational changes and initiatives, with the SVP of SL and the SL leadership team. Reporting to the Senior Vice President for Student Life, the Associate Vice President of Health and Well-being is responsible for the successful facilitation and delivery of health and well-being programs and services to the Ohio State community, including supervision of Counseling and Consultation Service, Student Health Services, the Student Wellness Center, Recreational Sports and Student Life staff wellness initiatives. Ensuring these services align with and are supportive of Ohio State’s overall mission, the AVP will provide strategic leadership and direction to health and well-being services staff committed to serving a diverse student body and the advancement of the strategic priorities of the Office of Student Life.
A strong administrator, leader and partner, the AVP will work with colleagues across campus and instill a strong culture of health and wellness that allows Ohio State students to enhance their capacity to engage, learn and thrive during their time at Ohio State and beyond. The AVP will advance a holistic approach to services, programs, protocols, and policies in order to positively affect the health and well-being of Ohio State students.

The AVP must have demonstrated expertise in working collaboratively across units and senior leadership to drive success. The successful AVP will be an innovative and strategic thinker with an open and collaborative style of leadership and management that fosters teamwork, sustains a learning environment for staff and supports a dedicated, results-oriented team that earns the trust of the university community.

The AVP will facilitate effective collaborations and partnership with our Chief Wellness Officer to accomplish departmental and divisional goals and priorities; collaborate with other student life departments and their teams, as well as departments throughout campus and faculty, to promote and advance health and well-being priorities and support collaborative programming; and to lead an ongoing strategic planning and assessment process for the area of student health and well-being. In addition, the AVP will oversee and champion efforts for health and wellness practices that promote personal development and student success; and actively engage with university partners to recommend and implement learning goals and objectives related to promotion of healthy relationships, mental well-being, and effective management of student care and continuously promoting a culture of appreciation, support, community and care. The AVP will understand the mission needs and value proposition of the university and Student Life and build relationships with prospective donors to increase philanthropic support for health and well-being efforts.

AVP Health and Well-being Portfolio Includes:

• Counseling & Consultation Service
• Staff Well-being
• Student Wellness Center
• Recreational Sports
• Student Health Services

Performance Objectives

The AVP develops and manages an annual operating budget of approximately $45 million and is responsible for 200 full-time staff, including 5 direct reports, as well as 900 student staff.

Specifically, this position will be responsible for:

• Within 60 days, gain a complete understanding of role duties and responsibilities. Build strategic relationships within the Office of Student Life and in collaboration with key department stakeholders across the university.
• Within 30 days, establish an understanding of Ohio State and Student Life procedures and policies. Develop effective relationships with all assigned Directors and Executive Leadership Team peers. Successfully complete all Student Life and University training courses.
• Within 90 days, make recommendation on programmatic, process and financial improvements and goals to Senior Leadership.

Experience Requirements

The successful candidate for this position will have demonstrated success in several required areas, including:

• Ability to interpret the university’s priorities, translate those priorities to the staff and integrate them into Student Life policies, procedures and plans.
• A positive attitude.
• Able to listen carefully, ask knowledgeable questions, learn the department(s) and intricacies, accept input from staff and then make well-informed decisions.
• A great collaborator with internal departments and external colleagues, with the ability to understand the importance of interconnectedness, building strong relationships and serve as an ambassador for Student Life.
• An excellent communicator (written and verbal) with the ability to reach all levels of the university and be the “face” of Student Life, especially in advocating for the needs of and promoting the vision Student Life.
• The ability to build relationships with prospective donors to increase philanthropic support for health and well-being efforts.
• An ability to assess situations and people and develop strategic paths forward to promote students' and staffs' ability to engage, learn and thrive.
• Proven extensive experience developing and managing complex organizations and operations (5 years or more).
• Strong leadership abilities that inspire staff and promote unity and teamwork, as well as human relations skills to deal effectively with personnel issues when necessary.
• Strategic vision and the ability to motivate all levels of staff to support that vision.
• An ability to recognize when and how to elevate key issues to senior leadership that could impact the broader organization.
• The ability to make difficult decisions, when necessary, to conduct difficult conversations when pertinent, to listen to all sides of an issue, to balance the needs of the people with the needs of the organization and to be resilient at all times regardless of the circumstances.
• The successful candidate will also possess a strong understanding of the value of partnerships, commitment to Student Life’s culture commitments and Ohio State’s shared values.
• Strong budgeting and finance skills, with the ability to be strategic in all budgetary decisions and forecasting.
• A strategic and data-informed decision-maker with strong assessment skills who is also able to think fast on their feet when necessary, and set expectations across the department and devise and implement plans based on evidence.
• Master’s degree in Health and Wellness field or Higher Education and/or Student Affairs or related academic or related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience. A PhD, EdD or other terminal degree (e.g., MBA, MD) is preferred but not required.
• An innovator with a futuristic orientation and willing to try new opportunities, remain informed on new trends and best practices and lead significant change processes.
• Demonstrated awareness and knowledge of health and well-being areas and ability to listen and learn about nuances related to health and well-being programming and services.
• An ability to learn, appreciate and operate within the institutional culture and context.
• Political savvy and tact.
• Demonstrated experience with organizational development, leadership and management, with the ability to motivate, inspire, support and develop a team of committed professionals.
• A student-centered philosophy in which the welfare of students and improvement of the student experience are of the highest priority.
• An ability to proactively maintain awareness of the landscape of issues in higher education and the broader campus and community.
• An individual who is adaptable to large changes on the spur of the moment, is not reactive and can address situations with a cool and collected demeanor.
• The successful candidate will have demonstrated, progressively responsible leadership or management roles in higher education, business or relevant fields, as well as the demonstrated ability to lead, develop and apply best or promising practices to a large holistic program.
• Willingness to be visible on campus, to participate in the life of the campus and to provide service wherever requested.
• A strong colleague to the other Associate Vice Presidents, and one who appreciates and views the Executive Leadership Team as their “First Team.”

Please submit resume and cover letter by Monday, June 19, 2023.