Responsibilities:

Parsons School of Design at The New School seeks an innovative leader to serve as the inaugural director of The Joseph and Gail Gromek Institute for Fashion Business, a new academic hub that will inspire, educate, and develop future business, fashion, design, and organizational leaders. Reporting to the Executive Dean of Parsons, the Director will launch The Gromek Institute and will provide leadership and vision for its success. The Director will work closely with academic leadership within Parsons, and will cultivate and engage with external partners to provide Parsons students with professional experience and career preparation and development. In recognition of historical and contemporary under-representation of marginalized people in leadership roles in the fashion and design industries, Parsons especially seeks applications from Native American, Black, Latinx and other people of color.
The Gromek Institute will substantially enhance the interdisciplinary study of the business of fashion and design at Parsons School of Design. Today's social, economic, and environmental challenges present opportunities to design new systems of production and cultural exchange. Parsons aims to prepare students to become leaders in this rapidly changing landscape, by helping them develop skills to transform the ways in which products are produced, used, and discarded; to talk about and dismantle systemic racism and discrimination in the field; to challenge norms and develop more inclusive business practices; and to create accessible designs for people of all abilities, sizes, ages, and genders.
Building on a curricular suite of management offerings including the industry-leading Master of Professional Studies in Fashion Management as well as programs within the School of Design Strategies, this Institute will advance the breadth and depth of opportunities to educate, train, convene, and support a broad business community at the university. Under the leadership of the Director, the Institute will support the development of new and existing co-curricular programs and initiatives. The academic structure will initially include an endowed directorship, an additional faculty appointment, as well as faculty and student research, collaborative external projects, social engagement, and public programming.
The Director will oversee the Gromek Innovation Fund to provide resources for significant curricular work and to continue to improve our existing program offerings and initiatives related to business and management. The Gromek Innovation fund will also support research exploring areas of our rapidly changing economy, including topics related to systems and organizations, supply chain and design, sustainability, consumption, new technologies, labor, and social justice, finding opportunity for businesses and communities to thrive within today's world.

Responsibilities
- Launch and provide leadership and strategic direction, programming, development, and related initiatives tied to the Institute's mission and goals among various stakeholders within Parsons and the wider community of The New School.
- Initiate, direct and promote Parsons engagement with existing and new external partners.
- Liaise between external partners and college leadership overseeing curriculum and programs.
- Maintain a leadership role in fashion business discourse in New York City, nationally, and internationally.
- Work collaboratively with Parsons / New School and external partners to create programming, co-curricular opportunities, and research that foreground systemic change in fashion and design (including but not limited to issues of racism, sexism, ableism, sustainability and environmental justice practices, and labor).
- Direct the implementation of action items relating to strategic planning decisions for the Institute.
- Initiate, develop, and direct special projects, collaborative efforts, public outreach, development, fundraising, and revenue generation efforts on behalf of the Institute.
- Collaborate with the Senior Vice Presidents for On-Demand Partnerships, Global Partnerships, and Continuing and Professional Education on opportunities at the nexus of fashion business nationally, internationally, and on-line.
- Collaborate with Student Success and Alumni Affairs to help facilitate internships, student support, and career advising.
- Engage in the development of the curriculum across fashion business offerings at the university, as well as additional business curriculum at Parsons.
- Contribute to and promote a climate of equity and inclusion.
- Actively participate in the shared work and mission of Parsons and the University by working collaboratively and effectively as a university citizen to strengthen university life.
- Collaborate with the Executive Dean and academic leadership in efforts to promote Parsons and prioritize shared success within Parsons.
- Represent the Institute in University leadership meetings and to leadership at Parsons, including the Deans' Council and Parsons curriculum committees.

Minimum Qualifications:

- Demonstrated expertise in the management of complex projects in administrative leadership, including strategic and fiscal planning, and human resource management.
- Ability to mentor, support, work with and/or develop partnerships to support Native American, Black, Latinx and other students, entrepreneurs and communities who experience the impacts of systemic inequality and discrimination.
- Ability to develop, articulate, and implement a strategic vision for the area of fashion business that is mission-aligned, relevant and achievable within Parsons as a whole and within the broader university context.
- Ability to collaborate with others to foster innovation in curriculum design and pedagogy.
- A track record for developing collaborative opportunities with industry partners, non-profit organizations, and other external entities.
- Ability to work with a diverse group of students, faculty, and staff with a high degree of cultural competency.
- The presence to inspire confidence in local and international collaborators and potential partners and the ability to play a significant role in public dialogue.
- A commitment to work collaboratively with the Executive Dean of Parsons and the academic leadership of the five Schools of Parsons to develop cross-platform curricular opportunities for all Parsons students, as well as collaborative extracurricular programs that generate cross-disciplinary interest.
- A commitment to work with the other University colleges within The New School to facilitate ongoing efforts to establish joint degrees and integrated, interdisciplinary study opportunities across the university.
- Excellent communication and writing skills.

Preferred Qualifications:

- An (MBA) or graduate degree in a related field of study or equivalent industry experience.
- At least 7 years of progressive and effective leadership experience in academia or a related industry.
- Practice, scholarship and/or research of national and international significance in the area of fashion business.
- An appreciation for the context and challenges of developing world-class faculty and research.
- Experience providing instruction in business as it relates to design and creative fields.