Chief Academic Officer

THE OPPORTUNITY

Southwestern College (Santa Fe, NM) invites nominations and applications for the position of Chief Academic Officer. As we celebrate our 50th anniversary, we are building on a strong foundation while imagining what the next chapter of our institution might become. We seek a collaborative, innovative, and mission-centered leader who will help us shape that future.

Since its inception, Southwestern has offered a distinctive approach to graduate education, grounded in transformational learning, consciousness-centered inquiry, and professional preparation for meaningful service. Our students come to us seeking more than a credential. They seek the knowledge, skills, self-awareness, and purpose needed to make a difference in the world. We believe the most powerful form of education is one that transforms both the learner and the teacher, and through them, the wider communities they serve.

Today, we are poised and called upon to deepen our impact. Through our graduate degree programs, continuing and community education initiatives, and behavioral health services, we are responding to growing needs in New Mexico and beyond. We are also engaged in our One Southwestern planning effort, bringing together academic excellence, student and employee success, community engagement, institutional effectiveness, and long-term sustainability into a shared vision for the future. The Chief Academic Officer will play a vital role in that work.

We are looking for a leader who values relationships as much as results, who believes academic excellence and human development are deeply connected, and who is energized by the opportunity to work alongside talented, dedicated, and engaged faculty, staff, and students and a supportive governing board. We seek someone who leads with curiosity, integrity, and a deep respect for the people and relationships that bring our mission to life. For a leader drawn to purpose-driven work, we believe this is a remarkable opportunity.

THE ROLE OF THE CHIEF ACADEMIC OFFICER (CAO)

The Chief Academic Officer serves as Southwestern College's senior academic leader and chief advocate for educational excellence. As a member of the Executive Council, the CAO provides strategic leadership for academic affairs, student affairs, accreditation, assessment, faculty development, and academic planning.

Working in partnership with faculty, staff, students, and fellow administrators, the CAO advances the College's mission and helps cultivate an integrated and transformative student experience. The CAO serves as the primary academic liaison across the institution, fostering collaboration among departments and representing the College in regional, professional, and community settings.

The CAO is a champion of shared governance and works closely with faculty and academic staff leaders to support a culture of collaboration, transparency, and meaningful participation in institutional decision-making. The successful candidate will value faculty expertise, ensure broad engagement in planning and innovation, and help build consensus around academic priorities while providing clear and effective leadership.

The CAO supervises key academic and student affairs leaders, including academic program administrators, the registrar, library services, academic support personnel, and student affairs administration. The CAO also serves as the College’s Higher Learning Commission accreditation liaison officer, provides leadership for institutional and programmatic accreditation, assessment, and continuous quality improvement, and oversees the College’s Title IX responsibilities and related compliance efforts.

At a time of opportunity and institutional renewal, we seek a leader who can build upon Southwestern's strong academic reputation while helping position us for a sustainable and innovative future. The next CAO will think strategically, lead collaboratively, and help shape the future of the College while honoring the mission, values, and distinctive culture that have defined Southwestern for fifty years.

STRATEGIC PRIORITIES AND LEADERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

Building on our momentum, the Chief Academic Officer will have the opportunity to:

Advance Academic Excellence

Provide leadership for academic quality, curriculum innovation, assessment, and faculty development while maintaining Southwestern’s distinctive transformational and consciousness-centered approach to education.

Strengthen Student Success

Further integrate academic and student affairs to enhance retention, persistence, graduation, and overall student engagement across all programs and modalities.

Support the One Southwestern Initiative

Collaborate with campus leaders to align academic planning, enrollment strategy, organizational development, community engagement, and financial sustainability into a unified institutional vision.

Lead Accreditation and Quality Improvement

Serve as institutional accreditation leader and maintain a culture of evidence-based planning, continuous improvement, and accountability.

Enhance and Expand Academic Innovation

Explore new opportunities in graduate education, continuing education, professional development, online learning, behavioral health workforce development, and interdisciplinary programming.

Deepen Community Partnerships

Strengthen relationships with employers, practitioners, professional associations, accrediting bodies, community organizations, and educational partners throughout New Mexico and beyond.

PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS AND PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS

Southwestern College seeks a Chief Academic Officer who is both an accomplished academic leader and a deeply relational colleague. The successful candidate will demonstrate the ability to inspire, guide, and empower a community dedicated to transformational learning and service.

Ideal candidates will possess:

• An earned terminal degree from an accredited institution.
• Significant and progressively responsible leadership experience in higher education.
• Demonstrated experience in academic administration, planning, budgeting, and faculty leadership.
• Successful leadership of institutional or specialized accreditation processes.
• Experience with assessment, continuous quality improvement, and evidence-informed decision making.
• A strong commitment to student success and transformational learning.
• Experience with online graduate education and adult/professional learners.
• Exceptional communication, relationship-building, and collaboration skills.
• An understanding of current trends affecting higher education, behavioral health education, and graduate enrollment.
• An appreciation for innovation in online, hybrid, and distributed learning environments.
• The ability to lead organizational change while maintaining trust, transparency, and shared purpose.
• A demonstrated commitment to diversity, inclusion, belonging, and equitable student outcomes.
• Personal and professional alignment with Southwestern College’s mission and consciousness-centered educational philosophy.

Minimum salary entry point is $129,200.

WHY SOUTHWESTERN? WHY NOW?

The CAO will join Southwestern College at a pivotal moment in our 50-year history. As we celebrate this milestone anniversary, we are building on a distinctive legacy of consciousness-centered, transformational graduate education while charting an ambitious vision for the future. Through our programs and people, we are helping address critical workforce and community needs in New Mexico and beyond.

At the same time, we are engaged in our comprehensive One Southwestern planning effort, aligning academic excellence, enrollment growth and stability, community engagement, institutional effectiveness, and long-term sustainability around a shared vision. The CAO will be central in shaping that future, helping us strengthen existing programs, explore new opportunities for innovation, and ensure continued academic quality, relevance, and impact.

Our mission and culture make this opportunity especially compelling. Guided by our values of Service, Empowerment, Mindfulness, Partnership, and Love, we believe that professional preparation and human development are inseparable. Leadership here is not simply about managing programs; it is about cultivating transformative learning, fostering meaningful relationships, and helping students become agents of positive change in their professions and communities.

For a leader seeking purpose-driven work, meaningful influence, and the opportunity to help shape the future of a distinctive graduate institution, we believe Southwestern College offers something special. We invite you to learn more about our community, explore the possibilities ahead, and consider joining us as we shape the next chapter of Southwestern College together.

To view the complete position profile, visit https://www.swc.edu/jobs/. To apply, send a cover letter, curriculum vita, and three preliminary references which will not be contacted without prior notification to donnnajaramillo@swc.edu by November 16, 2026.

Confidential inquiries and nominations may be directed to Thom D. Chesney, President, at thomchesney@swc.edu.