The College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences (CAES) seeks a Chair for the  Department of Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS).

The CAES seeks a dynamic leader and scholar to serve in this critical role and continue the upward trajectory of this flourishing and highly visible department. The ideal candidate is a compelling, outward- facing leader with exceptional communication skills who delivers a hands-on approach to leadership, recruitment, program and partnership development, and mentorship and will interface seamlessly with all constituents related to this position including administration, faculty, students, parents, alumni, accrediting bodies and limited resource communities in urban and rural settings. The successful candidate brings strong teaching, research and outreach experience; understands land-grant institutions and the communities they serve; and appreciates the quality and diversity of the departmental program offerings and their importance in the nexus of agriculture, food and health.

This role is excellent for a person seeking to be a part of a growing academic enterprise on the cutting edge of discovery, learning, and engagement. The Chair shall provide innovative leadership to build upon the excellent research and educational activities within the department.

The primary responsibilities of the position include: academic leadership; fund raising; enhancement of relations with alumni, accrediting agencies, government and industrial partners; student recruitment, retention, enrollment growth, curriculum planning and administrative oversight and direction.
This is a rare opportunity to join a growing and successful College and Department within an equally strong University and largest HBCU in the country:

· strong enrollment of 350 students on average

· Second largest Academic Department within the CAES and diverse degree program offerings including 1 Ph.D., 1 MS, 3 BS, 2 MAT and 2 graduate certificates

· 5-star NAEYC accredited child development laboratory

· Accredited and approved programs: AAFCS, CAEP, ACEND, CAAHEP, NCFR, CFP, and IFT

· growing multimillion dollar faculty research portfolio

· largest and top ranked public university among HBCUs in the nation

· largest agricultural college among HBCUs

· largest producer of African Americans with degrees in Agriculture

The Chairperson reports directly to the Dean, the chief administrative officer for CAES and will hold the rank of associate professor or professor as determined by qualifications presented.

The college of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences offers 9 BS degrees, 3 MS degrees and 1 PhD and educates nearly 1100 students. BS degrees include: Agricultural and Environmental Systems, Agricultural Education, Animal Science, Biological Engineering, Child Development and Family Studies, Family and Consumer Sciences, Food and Nutritional Sciences, Laboratory Animal Science and Landscape Architecture. MS programs include: Agricultural Education, Agricultural and Environmental Systems and Food and Nutritional Sciences. The CAES was recently approved for an interdisciplinary PhD in Agriculture and Environmental Sciences with a family and consumer sciences specialization track.

The Department of Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) is one of the oldest programs at North Carolina A&T. It is the only comprehensive family and consumer sciences unit on the campus of a land-grant university in North Carolina and is one of two programs in the state that is accredited by the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences.

The department offers a variety of exciting programs, including fashion merchandising and design, human nutrition (nutrition or pre-medicine equivalents), food sciences, child development and family relations, child development, early education and family studies (birth-to-kindergarten licensure), and consumer sciences. The Department of FCS offers Bachelor of Science, Master of Science in Food and Nutritional Sciences and Master of Arts in Teaching degrees. FCS also houses two graduate certificates (human lactation pathway 2 and family and consumer sciences), one undergraduate certificate in family financial planning; and two minors in child development and family studies and family financial planning. The department has a strong food and nutritional sciences program, including an ACEND accredited graduate dietetics program and an IFT-accredited food science program. The department offers well equipped facilities on the N.C. A&T campus, at the university farm in Greensboro, and the Center for Excellence in Post Harvest Technologies at the North Carolina Research Campus in Kannapolis, NC.

· PhD or equivalent terminal degree in Family and Consumer Sciences, Child Development and Family Studies, Fashion Merchandising and Design, Food and Nutritional Sciences or a closely related field

· Minimum of six years of demonstrated excellence in teaching and creative/research activities consistent with eligibility for appointment at the rank of associate professor or full professor

· Administrative experience relevant to the position

· Service-oriented leadership style

· Excellent people skills and the ability to motivate faculty, staff and students toward shared goals

· Appreciation of the land-grant philosophy

Training and experience in one of the academic fields housed in the department (Fashion merchandising and design, food and nutritional sciences, child development and family studies)

Experience in community outreach such as recruiting students and assistance to under-served communities in urban and/or rural settings.

Experience in academic administration at a land-grant institution, preferably at the chair level or
higher
Demonstrated knowledge of current trends in Family and Consumer Science education and workforce needs