The Director serves as the chief executive leader of the School, providing strategic, financial, and operational leadership in support of excellence in teaching, research, creative activity, student success, and professional and community engagement. The Director advances the School’s role and visibility within a leading public research university.
Central to this role is working in partnership with faculty, staff, students, alumni, and external stakeholders to provide transparent and future-focused leadership that supports academic excellence, shared governance, and interdisciplinary collaboration. The Director is responsible for consistent communication, sound decision-making, equitable resource management, and responsiveness to the evolving journalism and media landscape.
The Director holds a tenured faculty appointment and reports to the Dean of the College of Communication Arts and Sciences.
This role offers the opportunity to direct a nationally recognized, research and grant-active School of Journalism program that offers undergraduate degrees in both Journalism and Digital Storytelling, along with a cross-department Ph.D. degree in Information & Media.
Key Responsibilities include but are not limited to:
- Provide strategic direction and vision for the School in alignment with MSU and College priorities, collaborating with faculty, staff, students, and college leadership to advance shared goals.
- Manage the School’s budget and resources responsibly and strategically, including financial planning, personnel allocations, facilities, technology, and external funding oversight.
- Foster a respectful, inclusive, and safe environment that values differing perspectives, constructive dialogue, and shared governance.
- Oversee personnel processes including reappointment, promotion, tenure, and advancement reviews in collaboration with college leadership and according to university policies and procedures.
- Promote interdisciplinary collaboration and opportunities that advance emerging areas of journalism, digital storytelling, and professional practice.
- Provide leadership and oversight for undergraduate and graduate programs in journalism, media, and related fields.
- Collaborate with faculty to advance innovative, future-focused curricula responsive to changes in journalism, technology, media industries, and audience engagement.
- Promote academic rigor, experiential learning, cross-platform storytelling, community-engaged learning, and professional preparation.
- Support assessment, accreditation, and continuous improvement efforts to maintain high standards of academic quality and relevance.
- Advocate for infrastructure, technology, and resources supporting scholarly productivity, innovation and professional dissemination.
- Foster a student-centered learning environment that promotes belonging, engagement, access, and academic success.
- Strengthen partnerships with media organizations, alumni, professional associations, and community stakeholders to advance the School’s mission and strategic priorities.
Equal Employment Opportunity Statement
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, citizenship, age, disability or protected veteran status.
Required Degree
Doctorate -Journalism, Mass Communication, Media Studies, or a closely related field.
Minimum Requirements
- Terminal degree (Ph.D.) in Journalism, Mass Communication, Media Studies, or a closely related field.
- Record of achievement commensurate with appointment as a tenured faculty member.
- Three years or more of demonstrated administrative or leadership experience in higher education.
- Demonstrated effectiveness in financial and operational management, including budget oversight, personnel management, and accreditation or program review processes. (e.g., ACEJMC).
- Strong interpersonal, organizational, and communication skills with demonstrated ability to build trust and work collaboratively across constituencies.
- Demonstrated understanding of contemporary journalism, media ethics, emerging technologies, and the evolving digital media environment.
- Commitment to inclusive, transparent, collaborative leadership.
Desired Qualifications
• Experience with advancement, donor relations, or partnership development.
• Understanding of land-grant and R1 research missions.
Required Application Materials
1. A detailed cover letter that addresses the qualifications and expectations of the position
2. Curriculum vitae
3. Names and contact information of three professional references. References will not be contacted until candidates are notified.
Special Instructions
The review of applications begins on September 11, 2026, and will continue until an exceptional candidate is selected. Questions may be directed to search committee co-chairs Serena Miller (serena@msu.edu) or Bruno Takahashi (btakahas@msu.edu). Electronic submissions of applications through MSU’s Career site (careers.msu.edu), posting #1139526 is required.
A full position description is available here.
A full job prospectus is available here.
As an institution of higher learning, Michigan State University is committed to providing a safe environment for its students, faculty, and staff in support of its educational mission. With this commitment, the University conducts criminal background checks and professional misconduct reviews of all applicants for employment in faculty, academic staff, and executive management searches.
Professional Misconduct Review
A professional misconduct review is a prerequisite for a candidate to be selected for this position. Applicants will be asked to disclose whether they are subject to any pending investigation, findings or sanctions related to professional misconduct. Professional misconduct includes misconduct related to a person’s employment, including, but not limited to, theft, embezzlement, research integrity, discrimination, or harassment under civil rights laws and policies, including protected identity harassment, sexual harassment, sexual misconduct (sexual assault, sexual exploitation, dating violence, domestic violence, stalking, etc.), and retaliation. All applicants will be asked to sign an authorization and release, which authorizes the University to contact the candidate’s current and former employers, for a period of 7 years prior to the date of application, related to any pending investigations, findings of responsibility and/or sanctions related to professional misconduct. Nothing will be sent to current or former employers unless the candidate reaches the semi-finalist stage.
The existence of professional misconduct history does not automatically exclude a candidate from employment. The University will assess the history, including any information provided by the candidate, in determining whether it is compatible with the position. The University may decline to hire a candidate based on the professional misconduct review. All records obtained from external employers will be kept in a secure location, separate from personnel files. If an applicant fails to sign the authorization and release, the application will be deemed incomplete and will be withdrawn.
Review of Applications Begins On
09/11/2026