Academic Department Head

About the role

The College of Health, Education, and Social Transformation (HEST) at New Mexico State University invites nominations and applications for the position of Department Head of Kinesiology. This is an opportunity to lead a thriving academic department that combines outstanding faculty, exceptional students, nationally recognized academic programs, expanding research infrastructure, and a mission that directly improves the health and well-being of communities throughout the U.S.-Mexico Borderland. The successful candidate will join New Mexico State University at an exciting moment in its history. As New Mexico’s land-grant university and a Carnegie-designated Research 1 institution, NMSU is committed to research excellence, student success, innovation, and public engagement.

Position details

Location: Las Cruces, New Mexico
Target salary range: $135,000 – $150,000, with a department head differential pay of $21,000
Appointment type: 12-month, full-time, exempt
Standard work schedule: Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the department’s chief academic and administrative officer, providing collaborative leadership that advances excellence across teaching, research, creative activity, clinical education, outreach, and service.
• Collaborate with the college’s Executive Council and help shape the administrative landscape of the college, which includes a dean, two associate deans, and nine academic units.
• Work closely with faculty, staff, students, alumni, and college leadership to articulate and implement a strategic vision for the department.
• Support faculty success across teaching, scholarship, creative activity, and service.
• Recruit, mentor, and retain outstanding faculty and staff.
• Promote interdisciplinary research and external funding.
• Strengthen undergraduate and graduate education.
• Oversee budgeting, personnel, and departmental operations.
• Maintain accreditation and continuous program improvement.
• Cultivate partnerships across campus and throughout the Borderland.
• Foster a culture grounded in collaboration, innovation, transparency, accountability, and shared governance.

Requirements

• An earned doctorate in kinesiology, exercise science, athletic training, physical education, sport science, biomechanics, exercise physiology, motor behavior, sport and exercise psychology, dance science, or a closely related discipline.
• Qualifications sufficient for appointment as a tenured Associate Professor or Professor at New Mexico State University and the Department of Kinesiology.
• Demonstrated academic leadership experience at an accredited institution of higher education.
• Evidence of excellence in research, teaching, and service appropriate for appointment with tenure.
• Experience supporting faculty development and student success.
• Demonstrated administrative experience that may include budgeting, personnel management, accreditation, assessment, curriculum development, strategic planning, or related leadership responsibilities.
• Excellent interpersonal, organizational, and communication skills.

Preferred qualifications

• Experience leading multidisciplinary academic units.
• Experience supporting doctoral education.
• Experience mentoring faculty through promotion and tenure.
• Experience securing external funding.
• Experience leading accredited academic programs.
• Experience fostering interdisciplinary research collaborations.
• Experience supporting enrollment growth and academic innovation.
• Experience working at Research 1 universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, land-grant universities, or institutions serving diverse communities.

Working conditions and physical effort

• Environment: Typical interior office work environment.
• Physical effort: Light; no more than two hours per day.
• Lifting requirements: Handling of average-weight objects up to 10 pounds or some standing or walking.
• Risk: No or very limited exposure to physical risk.