Dear members of the Ithaca College community,
I am pleased to announce that we have formally launched the search for a new Vice President for Marketing and Enrollment Strategy.
Our enrollment strategy is essential to the success of our college, and this search gives us an opportunity to explore the potential of the structure of this division, which currently consists of admission, enrollment planning, analytics and institutional research, and student financial services. These capabilities are critical to advancing the college strategically while fostering student-centered practices. They are also heavily entwined with many aspects of the college’s marketing efforts: the ways in which we tell our story as an institution, and the ways in which we strategically position ourselves among our peers and with our families and students.
Because of this, we are looking for a vice president who brings to the college a deep understanding of the complex interplay between the institutional and national research that informs our enrollment efforts and the critical importance of intentional, innovative marketing. These are two vital, interconnected areas and we will ask this new leader to envision and advance a symbiotic, creative, and trailblazing enrollment and marketing strategy, rooted deeply in data and analytics.
By the end of this academic year, our Imagining Ithaca strategic planning process will deliver a clearer picture of our roadmap for the future, one that acknowledges and leverages the strengths, ideas, and potential of our amazing college community. Now is precisely the time for us to think intentionally about opportunities to better integrate critical functions of the college in an effort to help them achieve the greatest success they can.
I know there has already been recent change in our communications structure at IC, and I want to reiterate my deep commitment to college communications as a whole being a core part of the senior leadership strategy for our entire institution. Associate Vice President Jennifer Campbell and her team have been in conversations with me about the centrality of the incredible work they do, and the important role that all facets of our communications efforts play in not only enrollment and admissions, but in creating a dynamic institutional identity that positions Ithaca College as a destination for learning, work, and life.
As I shared at last month’s All-College Gathering, this will be a very ambitious and expedited search to identify a strong pool of talented strategists from around the country who have the skills, expertise, and vision necessary to address the challenges and opportunities that exist at Ithaca College. We are partnering once more with search firm Witt/Kieffer, which knows our institution very well, and we have tremendous confidence that this exciting position will attract the interest of strong leaders.
I am pleased to announce the members of the committee for this critical vice president search, and thank them for stepping forward to serve our community in this important way: committee co-chairs Linda Petrosino, Dean, School of Health Sciences and Human Performance, and Jeane Copenhaver-Johnson, Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Education; and committee members Peter Johanns, Associate Professor, Media Arts, Sciences, and Studies; Benjamin Costello, Executive Director, Constituent Engagement Strategy; Erienne Roberts, Associate Director, Intercollegiate Athletics; and Alyse Harris ’19, Communication, Marketing and Design.
Witt/Kieffer will be working closely with me and with our search committee over the course of the next several months, with the goal of announcing our new Vice President for Marketing and Enrollment Strategy by early summer.
As with our other leadership searches, the investment of our community in this effort is critical. I welcome your confidential nominations of possible candidates, and encourage you to email your suggestions to IC-MES@wittkieffer.com. Thank you in advance for your support of this search, and for your continuing interest in the success and the future of Ithaca College.
All my best,
Shirley M. Collado
President