Provost

Provost
Position Description

Position Summary

As the University’s senior academic officer, the Provost will provide visionary, exemplary, and innovative academic and administrative leadership consistent with the standards of excellence in teaching, research, and scholarship expected at a Carnegie-designated R1 institution. Broad and comprehensive responsibilities include: coordinating faculty, staff, and student activities in defining and implementing the University’s teaching, research, and service missions; leading efforts to support a faculty of renown and quality befitting the University through hiring, support, tenure, promotion, and appointments; pursuing and executing strategic academic planning including the direction, growth, and review of new and existing academic programs; developing academic policy; and managing the affairs of the academic enterprise in a context of shared governance. The Provost reports directly to the President and represents the President in many academic and institutional settings.

Detailed Position Information

As the chief academic officer, the Provost will promote excellence in teaching, research, and service both within and across the 14 schools, colleges, and related academic areas that are part of the University, among the other universities in The University of Alabama System, and with other educational institutions in the state, the region, and nation. The Provost will work with the President and senior staff to promote student success, support existing faculty and staff governance, enhance the University’s profile inside and outside the state of Alabama, promote the growth of the University’s research enterprise, and ensure responsible allocation of fiscal, human, and physical resources. The Provost will provide leadership of deans and other direct reports in the Office of Academic Affairs. The Provost must have a demonstrated sensitivity to the needs of students and staff, as well as faculty, and experience in stimulating collaboration of pedagogical and scholarly activity across disciplinary and institutional boundaries.

Minimum Qualifications

A successful candidate will have:

• An earned doctorate from an accredited institution.
• A record of academic achievement in teaching and research commensurate with a Carnegie-designated R1 institution which merits appointment as a full professor at the university.
• A proven record of success as an academic administrator.
• A clear vision for the role of a comprehensive public R1 university in teaching, research, economic development, outreach, and service in the 21st century.
• Evidence of commitment to the concept of a student-centered university.
• Understanding of and/or a commitment to the role and impact of a flagship public institution to its state.
• Demonstrated excellence as a nationally or internationally recognized scholar with the experience necessary to guide and contribute to UA’s aspiration and potential to be a premier and internationally recognized research-intensive university.
• Outstanding communication and interpersonal skills including evidence of ability to facilitate collaboration with and among faculty, staff, administrators, and students across the University.
• A commitment to student success.
• Experience in setting an academic agenda and leading within a complex and dynamic university and an environment of shared governance.

About The University of Alabama

The University of Alabama is located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, named one of Travel + Leisure’s 25 Best College Towns and Cities in the U.S. As one of the nation’s premier universities, UA offers bachelor’s, master's and doctoral degrees in nearly 200 fields of study. With more than 1,000 acres of tree-lined academic core campus and over 300 state-of-the art facilities, UA has been ranked among the most beautiful and most impressive college campuses in the South, in the state of Alabama, and in the nation.

UA is among the nation’s fastest-growing flagship universities. The University set a new enrollment record for fall 2025 welcoming 42,359 students. The freshman class boasts a record 362 National Merit Scholars, reinforcing the University’s status in the state and nation as a destination for high-achieving students from across the country. With students from every Alabama county, all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and 99 countries, UA is educating and graduating more students than any college in the state, awarding more than 9,500 degrees over the past year.

The Carnegie Foundation lists The University of Alabama as an R1 institution, placing it among the top doctoral research universities in the United States. UA’s world-class faculty, staff and students are leading the way to develop new technologies, advance scientific discovery, and harness the power of creative thought. Faculty members work closely with students and many involve students at the undergraduate, graduate and professional levels in basic and applied research. The University employs more than 2,100 faculty and over 5,400 staff, with 39 current faculty having received the NSF CAREER Award, one of the nation’s most prestigious recognitions of top-performing young scientists. In 2025, UA was again listed among the National Academy of Inventors' Top 100 U.S. Universities Granted U.S. Utility Patents. Forbes magazine has named UA as one of America’s Best-In-State Employers and Best Employers for New Graduates.

Application Process

The Provost Search Advisory Committee invites nominations and applications (a letter addressing how the individual’s experience and skills match the position requirements, a curriculum vita and full contact information for at least five professional references) to be submitted to the search firm assisting the University of Alabama. References will not be contacted until advanced stages of screening. Confidential review of materials will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled. For best consideration, it is preferred that all nominations and applications be submitted electronically, and in confidence, by Wednesday, February 18, 2026.

Laurie Wilder, President
Porsha Williams, Vice President and Managing Director
Jacob Anderson, Senior Principal
Scott Gaffney, Associate
Parker Executive Search
Five Concourse Parkway, Suite 2875 Atlanta, GA 30328
(678) 775-4564
lwilder@parkersearch.com || pwilliams@parkersearch.com || janderson@parkersearch.com || sgaffney@parkersearch.com

Equal Employment Opportunity: The University of Alabama is an Equal Employment/Equal Educational Opportunity Institution. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment or volunteer status without regard to any legally protected basis and will not be discriminated against because of their protected status. Applicants and employees of this institution are protected under Federal law from discrimination on several bases. More information is available on this webpage