Dean of the Meehan School of Business Search

Summary of Opportunity

Stonehill College seeks a dynamic, entrepreneurial, and collaborative leader to serve as Dean of the Leo J. Meehan School of Business. Founded by the Congregation of the Holy Cross in 1948, Stonehill College is a private Catholic College located just 22 miles from downtown Boston on a beautiful 384-acre campus in Easton, Massachusetts. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 13:1, the College engages more than 2,400 students through its 60 majors and 50 minors in the liberal arts, sciences, and pre-professional fields. Stonehill’s culture is student-centered, and students enjoy close and supportive relationships with faculty and staff.

The Leo J. Meehan School of Business is one of two Schools within Stonehill College, both created in 2017 as part of Stonehill’s goal to become a comprehensive university. The Meehan School offers high-quality education, engagement with businesses, and career support to enable students and graduates to thrive.  

This is a unique, exciting opportunity to lead a young School on an upward trajectory, with a committed faculty, lively, hard-working students, and a beautiful new state-of-the-art building. Stonehill seeks a business school Dean who combines exemplary academic achievements with strategic leadership ability, outstanding interpersonal and communication skills, collaborative and creative energy, entrepreneurial ambition, and passion for leading a School whose mission is to educate and engage students and businesses in a collaborative community and to prepare students for professional success.  

The Leo J. Meehan School of Business

The Meehan School of Business empowers students to be adaptive, compassionate leaders in business, economics, and healthcare administration. The School leverages Stonehill’s liberal arts foundation to foster the kind of creative thinking that helps students recognize and seize opportunities in a rapidly evolving global economy. The Meehan School was created in 2017 with the announcement of a $10 million gift from alumnus and Stonehill College Board of Trustees member Leo J. Meehan, CEO of the office products company W.B. Mason. In addition to naming the School of Business, the Meehan gift led to the construction of a new building for the School, which opened in 2019.

With the creation of the Meehan School of Business and the May School of Arts and Sciences in 2017, three departments – Business Administration, Economics, and Healthcare Administration – were brought together to form the Meehan School. Business Administration is the largest department, encompassing accounting, finance, international business, management (general management and a management information systems concentration), marketing, and sports management. It received initial accreditation from AACSB in 2011 and re-accreditation in 2016; the next continuous improvement review will be completed in 2022. The Healthcare Administration Program has full certification status from the Association of University Programs in Health Administration. Each of the three departments is headed by a chair, who reports to the Dean. Currently, the Meehan School has a total of 31 full-time faculty and 30 adjunct faculty.

The Meehan School offers BA, BS, and BSBA degrees as well as two graduate degrees -- a Master of Professional Studies (MPS) in Data Analytics and a Master of Arts (MA) in Integrated Marketing Communication. The School offers eight undergraduate majors in accounting, economics, finance, healthcare administration, international business, management, marketing, and sports management. The curriculum integrates an undergraduate business education with experiential learning, leadership opportunities and a rigorous program in the liberal arts. The Meehan School promotes cross-campus engagement in an exceptionally caring academic environment, with an intense focus on guiding students to become effective, ethical leaders. Students learn to empower themselves through an expansive program of internships, externships, student research, service, and opportunities to study abroad. Students are also encouraged to double major, either within the business school or with a program in the May School of Arts and Sciences.

The Meehan School enrolls about 750 undergraduates, totaling 30% of Stonehill’s undergraduate population. The School’s two graduate programs enroll about 30 graduate students.

Meehan students also participate in school-specific organizations and professional societies that provide speakers, opportunities for networking, and support for professional development. These include the Accounting Association (AA); chapters of Alpha Mu Alpha (AMA),  Beta Alpha Psi (BAP), and Beta Gamma Sigma (BGS); Distributed Education Clubs of America (DECA); Economics Club; Financial Management Association (FMA); Healthcare Society; Lambda Epsilon Sigma; Marketing and Management Association (MMA); Omicron Delta Epsilon (ODE); Stonehill College Inspire Finance Initiatives (SCIFI); Upsilon Phi Delta; Women in Finance; American College of Healthcare Executives; National Alliance of Health Services Executives; Women in Healthcare Management; Medical Group Management Association; Healthcare Financial Management Association; and Association for Healthcare Resources & Materials Management. 

The Meehan School’s $35 million, 63,450 square-foot academic building, which opened in fall 2019, houses state-of-the-art classrooms with cutting-edge technology to foster collaborative learning, critical thinking, and future leadership. Students have access to a Bloomberg classroom, a capital markets room with a dozen Bloomberg terminals, a one-button recording studio, a simulated boardroom, and a collaboration zone to simulate experiences students can expect in the workforce.

The Business Administration Department’s 20-member Visiting Committee (Advisory Board) – composed of local alumni in financial services, industry, and technology – sustains and strengthens the Meehan’s School’s longstanding ties to the business community. The Visiting Committee counsels the Dean on strategy and provides support and guidance for planning, evaluating, and strengthening the School’s academic programs and community outreach. The Healthcare Administration Department has its own Advisory Group of alumni who also assist with community outreach and provide valuable input on emerging trends and challenges in the realm of healthcare and how the curriculum for the HCA major must evolve accordingly.

In the last few years, the Meehan School has implemented a number of curricular and programmatic innovations, including the launch of Financial Technology education -- one of the first undergraduate institutions to incorporate this field into the curriculum – to prepare students to lead in the area of digital technologies, such as blockchain, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence in the financial services industry. In addition, the School has launched a new major in sports management and collaborated with the May School of Arts and Sciences to develop a new major in actuarial mathematics.  Courses offered by the Business, Sociology, and Anthropology Departments, along with the Interdisciplinary Studies Program, have been incorporated into the new areas of concentration within the Healthcare Administration major: public health; supply chain management; priority/at-risk populations; performance improvement & consulting; and fundraising/development for not-for-profit organizations in healthcare. The Healthcare Administration Department works closely with the May School’s new Health Sciences major. Designed to prepare students for careers in allied health professions involved in clinical care, the Health Sciences curriculum includes required courses offered by the Healthcare Administration Department.

The Business Administration Department has produced a five-year plan (2020-2025) with a focus on societal impact, in line with the new 2020 AACSB standards. In support of its mission to offer an effective, high-quality business education, the plan identifies three strategic initiatives: expanding and improving experiential learning for students, exploring new programs to enhance the quality of business education and meet the evolving needs of the marketplace, and broadening the business program’s positive impact on the College, the local community, and the practice of management. There are currently 785 students completing the business major and 126 students completing the business minor.

The Economics Department offers a BA major and a minor. In a typical year, 20 to 25 majors graduate, with another 20 students completing a minor. Economics graduates go on to succeed in a wide range of fields, including industry, financial markets, law, MBA programs, academia, public policy, and nonprofit organizations. Some take advantage of the department’s articulation agreement with Boston College to accelerate their progress through BC’s Master’s in Applied Economics. Many students double major, or spend a semester abroad, or both. Economics faculty – seven when fully staffed – are active in scholarly research in various fields, including economic education, sharing their expertise and advice with Stonehill students. The economics curriculum offers a mixture of rigorous theory courses and electives, some reflecting member faculty specialties.

Since its inception in the 1970’s, the Stonehill undergraduate Healthcare Administration (HCA) Program has prepared students to go on to careers in the planning, coordination, delivery, and evaluation of healthcare services and systems. The HCA Program is one of only 48 U.S. undergraduate programs fully certified by the Association of University Programs in Health Administration. The HCA students complete courses in a variety of subjects, such as economics of healthcare, population health management, healthcare law, supervision & leadership, operations management, and statistical analysis for healthcare managers. Recognizing the rigor of the HCA curriculum, Regis College accepts four Stonehill HCA courses for transfer credits into the Regis Master’s degree in Health Services Administration, so Stonehill students have an opportunity to complete both degrees within a 4+1 framework. Beyond this formal agreement with Regis, HCA graduates often are able to transfer some undergraduate credits towards completion of a graduate degree. Many alumni of the HCA Program complete graduate degrees (MHA, MBA, MPH, MSW, MPP, and JD) during the course of their careers.

The Healthcare Administration Department faculty includes four full-time members and nine adjuncts.  Experiential learning is an important component of the curriculum for the HCA major. Each student majoring in HCA is required to complete a 400-hour internship within a healthcare organization, typically done as a full-time internship during the summer months. Graduates of the Stonehill HCA Program go on to a wide array of careers: hospital and long-term care facility management, outpatient/community-based care, public health and wellness promotion, health IT/data analysis, health policy, consulting, supply chain management, fundraising and development for nonprofit health organizations, global health, biotech/pharmaceuticals, and human resources management in healthcare. There are currently 60 students completing the HCA major and 65 students completing the HCA minor.

Role Summary

As the Meehan School’s chief academic and administrative officer, the Dean reports to the Provost and is responsible for the effective and efficient operation of the Meehan School, within the policies, protocols, procedures, directions, and plans of Stonehill College. The Dean is accountable for the quality of academic programs and faculty while aligning the School’s priorities with those of Stonehill College, enabling the School and the College to flourish. The Dean will be an advocate for each of the Meehan School’s disciplines and programs, its employees, and its students, and for the development of an overarching vision that will pull these components into an integrated whole.

The Dean is expected to provide visionary leadership to align with Stonehill College’s strategic plan. The Dean is required to support the School’s three departments in their recruitment and retention of committed faculty, hire and support excellent staff, enhance undergraduates’ educational experience, strengthen graduate programs, and elevate scholarly activity. The Dean is expected to establish and maintain a transparent, collegial work climate, cooperatively leading the academic unit towards improved productivity, relevance, and innovation.  The Dean must also demonstrate an ongoing commitment to fostering diversity and inclusion among students, faculty, and staff.

The Dean is responsible for increasing academic excellence, growing entrepreneurial activity, establishing external partnerships to support faculty and student needs, creating opportunities for students, fostering a collaborative spirit within the School, defining strategic priorities, and securing resources to fulfill those priorities. The Dean consults with faculty in periodic program reviews and sets the tone for the School in encouraging excellence, recognizing achievement, and supporting merit-based appointments and promotions. The Dean has general administrative responsibility for the Meehan School, including its compliance with AACSB, AUPHA, and other accreditation standards, community outreach, fundraising, marketing and enrollment, interdisciplinary initiatives, global outreach, and the effective management of its administrative and financial affairs. The Dean also serves as the School’s spokesperson and advocate, both within and beyond Stonehill College.

The Dean is currently supported by two staff positions: a Coordinator for accreditation, and an administrative assistant. The Dean also oversees three department chairs and works closely with the Dean of the May School of Arts and Sciences in presiding over the Council of Chairs, made up of department chairs and program directors. 

The Dean is a member of the Provost’s Cabinet and the Academic Leadership Team; chairs the Academic Appeals Board; and serves ex-officio on three Faculty Senate committees: the Governance Committee, the Curriculum Committee, and the Technology Advisory Committee.

Opportunities Ahead

The new Dean will assume leadership of a School that is poised for growth. The Meehan School of Business is characterized by:

•  A range of distinctive pre-professional programs with a strong, shared core in the liberal arts;
• A strong student-centered focus that is embraced by all constituents;
• A focus on excellent teaching that emphasizes high-quality experiential learning opportunities;
• A committed, high-caliber faculty;
• A vibrant and supportive alumni community;
• A stunning state-of-the-art building;
• A collegial culture and friendly atmosphere; and
• A holistic campus and community setting that offers a highly supportive environment.

Within this context, the new Dean will have an opportunity to: 

•   Provide leadership in building capacity and shaping future strategy for the Meehan School of Business: Stonehill’s two schools are both relatively new and still evolving. Since its creation in 2017, the Meehan School has made great progress in student enrollment, but the work of fully developing its infrastructure was delayed by COVID and remains incomplete. In collaboration with the Provost, and with the Dean of the May School of Arts and Sciences when appropriate, the new Dean will continue this work: strengthening the organizational structure, identifying areas where additional support is needed, and securing the resources needed to implement change.
• Define a distinctive brand for the Meehan School: The Meehan School sits within a highly competitive educational ecosystem in the Northeast region, especially in business education.  The new Dean will be a creative, visionary leader for the Meehan School as it works to define its niche within this ecosystem. The Dean will engage the faculty and the community in developing new programs, particularly those that will help the School cultivate a unique, distinctive brand in a competitive educational marketplace, while also remaining consistent with Stonehill's identity and mission.
•  Manage and secure resources to advance the Meehan School: The Dean must possess strong financial and strategic management skills and the ability to provide entrepreneurial leadership for the School. The Dean must be financially astute, comfortable with budgets, and experienced in building a data-driven, metrics-based operational environment. The Dean will be engaged in developing entrepreneurial initiatives and new revenue streams, and in working with faculty colleagues and the College to find innovative ways to support enrollment growth and enhance academic programs.
•  Engage the regional business and nonprofit community: The Meehan School’s vision and mission need to be widely and clearly communicated. The new Dean will be a skilled communicator who will represent the School within and outside of Stonehill, raising the School’s profile and image. Fostering community and corporate partnerships, particularly those that offer greater opportunities for students, will be a key priority.
•  Build successful relationships that expand opportunities for students and increase philanthropic support for the College: The Dean will directly participate in, and provide leadership to, efforts to increase experiential opportunities for students, including internships, externships, and ultimately, student placements. The Dean will contribute to fundraising efforts to grow philanthropic support for the College, and will advance the College’s mission and reputation among alumni, foundations, community leaders, and external partners. 
•  Increase program development and innovation: The advent of new technologies and the growth of online and hybrid learning, especially during COVID, provide opportunities for the Meehan School to consider new undergraduate and graduate programs and certificates that respond to market needs. The new Dean will lead the School in leveraging these opportunities, while also sustaining strong enrollments in existing programs. 
•  Ensure responsive, transparent communication: Meehan School faculty, staff, and students have all expressed the strong need for a Dean who is an open communicator, able to articulate and communicate a vision and a rationale in planning and decision-making; willing to be transparent with all stakeholders about the challenges and opportunities facing the School; and responsive to concerns and feedback.
• Promote student success and career preparedness: The Meehan School has a vibrant and diverse student body, including many first-generation college students for whom education will be the key to future success. The Dean will be poised to strengthen experiential learning for the School’s undergraduate students, and to further develop initiatives that enrich business education such as internships, undergraduate research projects, service learning, and other forms of student engagement. Improving retention and four-year and six-year graduation rates is an important College priority, which the new Dean will embrace.
• Promote globalization:  As part of its effort to train students to be relevant in a global business environment, Stonehill offers a number of study abroad and internship abroad opportunities, which the new Dean will work to ensure are financially accessible for all students.  
• Develop, recruit, retain, support, and lead excellent faculty: The Dean will oversee and aid departments in the recruitment and development of accomplished educators. Securing and allocating the necessary resources to build and retain faculty excellence at all levels across the School will be an important part of the Dean’s work. The Dean will collaborate with the Dean of the May School of Arts and Sciences to attract and support outstanding faculty for interdisciplinary appointments and to foster cross-disciplinary faculty collaboration.
• Promote diversity and inclusion: The new Dean should bring a mindset of access and equity for all students, faculty, and staff. The Dean must demonstrate a commitment to diversity in all its forms, and to inclusion as an essential hallmark of academic and institutional excellence. 
• Build a collaborative cross-school culture: The new Dean must be a collaborative leader, working with faculty, the Dean of the May School, and the Provost to enhance the College’s interdisciplinary culture. Stonehill seeks a Dean who broadly understands and appreciates the role of a business school in an institution with a strong commitment to liberal arts education, who will champion collaboration and build links to and across departments, and who will leverage interdisciplinary opportunities to create programs of distinction.

Addressing these challenges will require a Dean with broad intellectual interests, energy, strong external  relations skills, creativity and entrepreneurial instincts, an open-minded approach, and the ability to form collaborative partnerships within and beyond the College.

Candidate Profile

Stonehill College seeks a dynamic leader who is innovative, energetic, and entrepreneurial for the position of Dean of the Meehan School of Business. The Dean will demonstrate a broad understanding of the direction of business education, the ability to articulate and implement a vision, and the skills to successfully manage change. The Dean will have exemplary academic achievements, together with strategic leadership ability; outstanding interpersonal and communication skills; entrepreneurial spirit and high energy; the ability to garner financial and other resources; and a passion for the mission of Stonehill College. The Dean will be a collaborator, able to work effectively with a broad range of constituents, including senior leadership, faculty, students, staff, alumni, donors, and external partners.  The Dean will serve as a role model in team-building and establishing open communication and collaboration with faculty and staff.

The ideal candidate will come from a background of substantive leadership within higher education, combined with some experience working with the business community. Candidates must demonstrate evidence of excellent financial and management skills, the ability to make difficult choices, to prioritize tasks and agendas, to delegate responsibility appropriately, and to make decisions under constraints; as well as collaborative skills in working with colleagues, department heads, faculty, and staff. The Dean will demonstrate a track record of commitment to student success, to diversity, to strong engagement with diverse constituents, and to building diverse leadership teams. Above all, the Dean must be an advocate for the Meehan School and embrace Stonehill College’s vision, mission, and values. 

The following qualifications and experience are essential:

• An advanced degree; a Ph.D. or other terminal degree is preferred;
• Scholarly or professional accomplishments of a level that merit full-time faculty status in the Meehan School of Business; scholarly publication worthy of a full Professor is desirable.
•   At least five years of demonstrated managerial and leadership experience, including at least three (3) years of successful leadership at the Chair, Director, Dean, or equivalent leadership level;
• Demonstrated commitment to the mission of a business school within a liberal arts College that is moving towards becoming a comprehensive university;
• Understanding of the research process, and a record of fostering excellence in instruction, research, and service; a commitment to strengthening and broadening scholarship across the School, to actively supporting and encouraging faculty, and to promoting faculty success and ensuring opportunities for their growth and development;
•  A working knowledge of accreditation processes and oversight responsibilities; knowledge of AACSB accreditation would be particularly valuable;
•  Demonstrated success in external relations and community engagement with the necessary energy and ability to work effectively with the business community, donors, alumni, and other constituents in resource development;
•  Ability to promote and work effectively within a diverse, multicultural environment;
• Skills in identifying emerging opportunities and positioning the Meehan School to develop and implement new undergraduate and graduate programs and foster entrepreneurial spirit; a vision for using information technology and prior experience developing innovative programs.

In addition, the successful candidate will demonstrate many of the following qualities, characteristics, and competencies: 

• Exceptional leadership and vision: Evidence of ability to provide leadership in vision and strategic direction through the implementation of a strategic plan, in collaboration with faculty, and to operationalize these strategies and objectives in direct support of the College’s strategic plan and objectives;
•  A commitment to student success, and the capability to engage faculty and staff in pursuit of its attainment;
•  Organizational, management, and team-building skills; a strong sense of fiscal accountability; a commitment to transparency; a willingness to delegate; and experience leveraging limited resources to achieve innovative results; 
• Collegiality as reflected in a commitment to shared governance and participatory decision-making; the ability to build relationships and connections across disciplines, to motivate and energize others to work together, and to collaborate with multiple stakeholders; an open mindset that solicits and understands diverse viewpoints and approaches;
• Strong communication abilities, including listening skills and a passion for communicating the vision, mission, strengths, and aspirations of the Meehan School; excellent negotiation and diplomatic skills;
•  A proven record as a fair and just decision-maker with a reputation for transparency, personal and professional integrity, and high ethical standards, who will equitably and vigorously promote excellence and uphold quality in the School while understanding that excellence may be demonstrated in various ways;
• Collaborative and team-oriented leadership style; good judgment in recognizing talent and assessing where improvements are needed; the ability to make appropriate connections and build synergies; an open-minded, flexible, and creative approach to problem-solving;
•  Outstanding interpersonal skills; creativity; a high level of energy and confidence; a positive and productive attitude; combined with patience; perseverance; empathy; a willingness to learn; and a good sense of humor.