Executive Director

Johns Hopkins, founded in 1876, is America's first research university and home to nine world-class academic divisions working together as one university.

$100,000 - $125,000

Johns Hopkins University:
Zanvyl Krieger School of Arts and Sciences: SNF Agora Institute

The Graduate Student Intellectual Diversity Initiative (GSIDI) seeks an executive director to oversee the operations of this innovative program to promote intellectual pluralism in higher education.

GSIDI is co-sponsored by Johns Hopkins University and the American Enterprise Institute. The aim of the initiative is to help broaden intellectual pluralism on college and university campuses by attending to the pipelines that eventually produce future university faculty. GSIDI seeks to advance this mission by identifying and assisting prospective graduate students who are dedicated to pluralistic inquiry, and especially those interested in questions, hypotheses or approaches that may be labeled conservative, moderate or heterodox liberal.

The initiative provides the graduate students with general insight into navigating the academic landscape, and matches them with professors in highly-ranked PhD-granting institutions who are committed to intellectual pluralism and who have agreed to serve asmentors. Those mentors then provide general advice concerning graduate school applications, peer review publications, and the prospects of a career in academia.

GSIDI currently focuses on political science and political theory,but the executive director would be expected to begin the work of broadening it to other disciplines in Spring 2027. The position will have a joint affiliation with the Krieger School of Arts &Sciences and the School of Government and Policy.

• Working with GSIDI co‑directors to shape the initiative’songoing growth and long-term vision
• Overseeing the implementation of the initiative’s strategic direction, including by expanding the number of students reached bythe initiative, extending the program to new disciplines, and growing the cohort of faculty who are part of its mentorship program.
• Managing the operations of the GSIDI program, including:
  • Communication with senior faculty mentors
  • Outreach to young people to solicit attendance at events and webinars, and to solicit applications to the mentor program
  • Maintenance and expansion of mailing lists
  • Overseeing the organization of meetings, webinars, andevents
  • Keeping the co‑directors focused on the needed tasks
• Mentoring young people who might be interested in a career inacademia
  • Engaging in detailed discussions with participants to determine their interests and potential for graduate study;
  • Organizing the matching process with faculty mentors;
  • Keeping track of participants’ progress in developingtheirapplications, and assisting in choosing programs after they have secured offers.
• Managing and developing strategic partnerships with pipeline universities and organizations
• Conducting research or public-facing writing in an area relatedto GSIDI
  • Possible topics include: public trust in universities,ideological pluralism/ viewpoint diversity on campus, the history and future of disciplines, civic education and civic thought.

The executive director may also be asked to assist in securing philanthropic support for the initiative as it expands in future years. This is a full-time position.

Applicants should have experience in academia as well as organizational expertise and an entrepreneurial spirit. An MA orPhD is desired. The position will develop over time as the program expands. Pay will be commensurate with experience, with a target starting salary range of $100,000 - $125,000 annually.

The referenced salary range represents the…