Assistant Dean of Communications – Cornell College of Human Ecology

Cornell University is a remarkable community of scholars, educators, students, staff, and alumni who are deeply influenced by proud traditions and a set of cherished founding principles. Unique among its Ivy League peers, Cornell is a private university with a land-grant mission. It is a world-class research institution known for the breadth and rigor of its curricula and an academy dedicated to preparing young people to be well-educated and well-rounded citizens of the world. Cornell’s faculty, staff, and students believe in the critical importance of knowledge—both theoretical and applied—as a means of improving the human condition and solving the world’s problems. It embraces traditional liberal arts education, practical applications of knowledge, and interdisciplinary and collaborative approaches to research and teaching. It champions free and open intellectual inquiry and expression, treats all individuals with dignity and respect, celebrates difference and diversity, fosters a sense of belonging, and remains open and accessible to all who meet its high academic standards.

The University consists of 16 schools and colleges, four of which receive support from New York State as part of Cornell’s land-grant mission. At the Ithaca campus, the Weill Cornell Medicine campuses in New York City and Qatar, and the Cornell Tech campus in New York City, the University enrolls nearly 15,000 undergraduates and over 8,000 graduate and professional school students. Cornell employs approximately 8,100 staff and 1,600 professorial faculty members in Ithaca and at Cornell Tech, and an additional 5,000 staff and 1,700 faculty members at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City. The University is governed by a 64-member board of trustees, which includes representatives from the faculty, students, staff, alumni, and New York State.

Over its nearly 100-year history, the College of Human Ecology has been a home for trailblazers and innovators, with a commitment to interdisciplinary work that improves human lives.  As a critical leader in the College, the Assistant Dean of Communications will conceptualize, build, and oversee strategic communications and marketing across various platforms (digital and print) and units in partnership with the Dean of the College and the Division of University Relations. With a newly formed strategic vision that articulates the college’s focus on improving human health and well-being, and in the midst of an ambitious fund-raising campaign, the Assistant Dean will lead a strategy that celebrates and communicates the College’s work and impact across broad audiences.

In carrying out this work, the Assistant Dean of Communications will ensure alignment with university messaging and communications priorities, helping to enhance and preserve Cornell’s brand and reputation as a top-tier research institution and leader in higher education.

We seek an exceptional, creative, and innovative leader who has demonstrated experience developing and executing communications strategies and the vision to provide strategy development to advance the college’s mission. Our ideal candidate will be an exceptional writer with editorial, interpersonal, qualitative, and quantitative research and organizational skills with the ability to collaborate and gain support from diverse viewpoints within a dynamic university environment or comparable setting and possess the aptitude to integrate communications with overarching institutional priorities. Our ideal candidate will have a proven ability to develop successful marketing and media campaigns, and a sophisticated understanding of marketing metrics is required. Bachelor’s degree with 7-10 years of experience or equivalent combination of education and experience in communications, public affairs, marketing, public relations, media relations, or journalism, with demonstrated experience as a communications leader serving multiple stakeholders.

Cornell receives national recognition as an award-winning workplace for our health, wellbeing, sustainability, and diversity initiatives.

• Our benefits program includes comprehensive health care options, access to wellness programs, employee discounts with local and national retail brands, and generous retirement contributions. We invite you to follow this link to get more information on contract college benefits: https://hr.cornell.edu/sites/default/files/documents/benefits_overview_cc.pdf.
• Our leave provisions include three weeks of vacation and 13 holidays: e.g., an end-of-year winter break, from December 25 through January 1.
• Cornell’s impressive educational benefits include tuition-free Extramural Study and Employee Degree Program, tuition aid for external education, and Cornell Children’s Tuition Assistance Program.
• Flexible work options
• Competitive wages.

To Apply: External (non-Cornell) candidates, please submit a cover letter and resume. https://cornell.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/CornellCareerPage/job/Ithaca-Main-Campus/Communication-Mgr-II_WDR-00032215-1

Internal candidates, please submit a cover letter and apply through Workday, https://www.myworkday.com/cornell/d/inst/15$158872/9925$53910.htmld

Diversity and Inclusion are a part of Cornell University’s heritage. We’re an employer and educator recognized for valuing AA/EEO, Protected Veterans and Individuals with Disabilities.