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March 31, 2008
University of Michigan Law School – Director of Communications
The University of Michigan School of Law invites nominations and applications
for the position of Director of Communications.
Michigan Law, one of the oldest law schools in the nation, was founded in 1859
and enjoys a reputation for academic excellence characterized by powerful
commitment to access and diversity.
Michigan is consistently ranked among the top ten law schools in the nation by
U.S. News and World Report, and enjoys international renown for its academic
rigor, stunning physical surroundings, the faculty’s preeminent scholarship, and
an academic community noted for collegiality and warmth.
Reporting to the Dean of the Law School, the Director of Communications leads
the School’s media relations and publications efforts, to maintain and advance
the School’s considerable reputation.
S/he or she will advise and collaborate with senior leadership at the Law
School and will develop a comprehensive and integrated strategic communications
plan which builds on and bolsters the School’s existing talent and
Communications resources, and creatively identifies new strategies to enhance
the School’s external recognition and rankings.
The University of Michigan
The University was chartered in 1817 by the Michigan territorial legislature and
was initially located in Detroit.
In 1837, the State of Michigan renewed the charter and relocated the University
to Ann Arbor, 35 miles west of Detroit.
Today, in addition to its 3,200-acre main campus in Ann Arbor, the
University has regional campuses located in Dearborn and Flint.
Michigan’s position of excellence in higher education rests on the outstanding
scholarly and creative contributions of its faculty and on the intellectual
quality, vitality, and passion of its students—undergraduate, graduate, and
professional. A founding member of
the Association of American Universities (AAU), the University’s nineteen
schools, colleges, and divisions are nationally and internationally recognized.
The University sustains leading programs in the arts and humanities,
social sciences and natural sciences, and in all of the major professional
schools, and it serves as home to one of the largest health care complexes in
the world. The University is also
recognized for its outstanding interdisciplinary research institutes and
centers. Overall, there are
approximately 2,800 tenured and tenure-track faculty on the Ann Arbor campus,
and an additional 2,000 lecturers, clinical instructional faculty, and
supplemental instructional staff.
Each year the Ann Arbor campus enrolls approximately 25,000 undergraduates,
11,000 graduate students, and 3,500 professional students.
Undergraduate students come predominantly from Michigan, but also from
every state in the Union and from more than a hundred countries.
Today, the University has close to 500,000 living alumni around the
globe.
Ann Arbor, with about 115,000 residents, is situated on lush, rolling terrain
along the banks of the Huron River.
Cosmopolitan and sophisticated, yet friendly and accessible, it is one of the
great college towns. Intellectual,
artistic, and recreational opportunities in the broader community abound for
people of all ages. Ann Arbor
perennially ranks in magazine polls as one of the best places in the United
States to live and raise a family.
The University of Michigan Law School
The University of Michigan Law School’s reputation for academic rigor,
collegiality and excellence in the profession has established its historic
position among the world’s finest institutions of legal education.
A philosophy of independence and diversity of thought continues to
distinguish Michigan Law as an intellectual beacon, where admission has never
been restricted to the privileged; in 1870, Michigan became the second American
university to confer a law degree on an African American.
That same year, Michigan was the first major law school to admit a woman,
and in 1871, graduate Sarah Killgore became the first woman with a law degree in
the nation to be admitted to the bar; by 1890, Michigan had graduated more women
than any other law school.
Supported by remarkable facilities, preeminent faculty-scholars, and
unparalleled architecture and physical environment, Michigan Law has a total of
1,148 enrolled J.D. candidates and 81 full-time faculty members, and boasted a
99.41 percent employment rate for the class of 2006. Contributing to the
close-knit law-school community, law students have a choice of 6 student-edited
journals and more than 50 student organizations in which to participate.
On average, one or two Michigan Law School graduates clerk with the U.S.
Supreme Court every year; fifteen graduates have done so in the last decade.
Dean Evan Caminker
has served as Dean of the Law School since 2003. His scholarship and
professional activities center on constitutional law; individual rights,
federalism, and the nature of judicial decision-making.
Dean Caminker came to Michigan from the UCLA Law School, where he was a
faculty member from 1991 to 1999. Caminker received his B.A. in political
economy and environmental studies, summa cum laude, from the University
of California at Los Angeles, and his J.D. from the Yale Law School.
He clerked for Justice William Brennan at the Supreme Court and for Judge
William Norris of the Ninth Circuit.
Dean Caminker also practiced law with the Center for Law in the Public
Interest in Los Angeles and with Wilmer, Cutler and Pickering in Washington,
D.C.
A gifted classroom teacher, Dean Caminker has received the ACLU Distinguished
Professors Award for Civil Liberties Education.
He has published articles in the Michigan Law Review, Yale Law
Journal, Columbia Law Review, Stanford Law Review, and the
Supreme Court Review. His most recent work includes an inquiry into the
nature of voting on multi-member courts.
From May 2000 through January 2001, Dean Caminker served as deputy
assistant attorney general in the Office of Legal Counsel, U.S. Department of
Justice.
The Director of Communications is an essential member of the Dean’s advisory
team. S/he provides counsel to the
Dean and other Directors within the Law School, collaborating with the offices
of Development, Admissions, Student Affairs and others, to create integrated
external communications and to promote internal messaging cohesion.
In collaboration with the Dean and the School’s senior leadership, the
Director will also develop a comprehensive, integrated communications plan,
establishing long-term strategies, directions and goals to advance the School’s
visibility and reputation. A
Communications staff of seven provides expertise in Media Relations and Web
Design and Development, as well as producing all print publications and the
alumni magazine.
The Director leads the School’s efforts to build and sustain positive
relationships with current and prospective students, faculty and alumnae through
coordinated communications activities. In this role, s/he will anticipate and
manage crisis communications and emerging issues, and proactively design the Law
School’s planning and messaging strategies.
Through use of strategic story placement, promotion of Law faculty
research and scholarship, and innovative implementation of multi-media and
web-media, the Director of Communications will emphasize and bolster the School
of Law’s elite national standing.
The next Director of Communications will provide leadership and structure to the
Communications team’s growth, deepening its involvement within the Law School
and developing a comprehensive, integrated plan containing a consistent set of
foundational messages to express the School’s strengths and commitment to
excellence. In this role, the next
Director of Communications will face several key challenges, including the
following:
§
Leading an inclusive process to develop and implement a comprehensive,
forward-thinking communications plans for Michigan Law;
§
Developing relationships and collaboration within the Law School’s offices,
bringing a broad array of communications functions to bear in advancing the
goals of Development, Admissions, Student Affairs and others, as well as the
School as a whole;
§
Refining communications materials to support a customized and engaging outreach
that is responsive to constituent interests;
§
Supporting and initiating faculty engagement with national media, positively
highlighting the great range of expertise and accomplishment present at Michigan
Law; and
§
Identifying opportunities for collaboration between the Law School’s
Communications Office and the University Communications Office to ensure the
best use of university resources and diverse media in advancing the School’s
reputation.
This challenging position requires exceptional judgment, strong leadership and
staff development skills, and a seasoned confidence in recommending and
executing new initiatives.
Qualifications:
Strong candidates will have senior-level leadership experience across a broad
array of communications functions.
Candidates should also demonstrate achievement in strategic communications
planning and implementation, in support of broad institutional goals.
Intellectual breadth, extensive experience as an energetic and inspired
manager within a top-tier organization, and a deep knowledge and understanding
of the academic mission are strongly preferred.
Personal attributes:
The new Director of Communications will be a manager of unquestionable integrity
and will possess many of the following qualities:
§
Confidence, creativity and intellectual substance;
§
Significant experience within a pre-eminent academic institution and
appreciation for the mission and goals of an elite school;
§
Proven talent in communicating and engaging effectively with a wide range of
near- and long-term constituencies across a diverse academic community;
§
Proven effectiveness in working collaboratively across units within a complex
organization to ensure consistency and accuracy of information;
§
An approach to issues management that anticipates publicity needs and ensures
effective message timing;
§
A forward-thinking and creative approach to using technology and a wide range of
media to comprehensively address communications needs;
§
Strong leadership, pioneering spirit and diplomacy in implementing
communications goals within a highly intellectual environment; and
§
A commitment to the value of diversity in all aspects of university life.
Nominations and
applications will be accepted and reviewed continually until the position is
filled. The University's dedication
to excellence is complemented by its profound commitment to building and
sustaining a culturally diverse academic community.
Individuals from historically underrepresented groups are encouraged to
apply.
Nominations and/or
applications, accompanied by a letter of interest, current curriculum vitae,
and the names and contact information of three references, should be submitted
to:
Julie
DeSorgher
Auerbach
Associates, Inc.
Belmont,
MA 02478
Electronic
submissions preferred: email
caitlin@auerbach-assc.com
The University of
Michigan is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer, and must abide by
the federal requirements to take affirmative steps to ensure its employment
process is fair, equitable, and offers equal opportunity in hiring and
employment.