KU Provost Fellow Opportunity with the Office of Faculty Affairs

The mission of the Office of Faculty Affairs is to support faculty and faculty leadership in the development of an exceptional learning community at the University of Kansas. To that end, we seek out faculty partnerships and expertise in our initiatives of faculty advancement and recognition, faculty relations and policy, and faculty development and growth. 

To support our mission and initiatives, we are seeking applicants for a KU Provost Fellow. Please read the details below and apply if you are interested.

KU Provost Fellow

The role of KU Provost Fellows is to provide focused opportunities for faculty to develop administrative and leadership skills. Fellows collaborate with units in the Provost’s Office and leaders in KU Lawrence/Edwards units to develop campus-wide initiatives and then implement them through partnerships with academic unit leaders and faculty. The role provides a faculty member with a career development opportunity and allows the faculty member to engage their scholarly expertise and experience to provide leadership and support for institutional change.

The Provost Fellow for Faculty Affairs will work with the Office of Faculty Affairs team on policy-related projects and initiatives that intersect with the roles and responsibilities of faculty at KU. With specific outcomes defined by the Vice Provost, this position will work in collaboration with academic units and their leadership and other key leaders and stakeholders across campus (e.g., Policy Office, HR) to collaboratively revise and review policy and develop and deliver policy resources and educational programming.

Once a final collective bargaining agreement is reached between the University and UAKU, the Provost Fellow, in partnership with the Vice Provost and Associate Vice Provost, will contribute to the development of policy-related templates and educational materials which will support units in aligning their policies and practices with the terms of the agreement. They will also be part of the Faculty Affairs team that will facilitate the review and tracking of updated policies and provide units with support as policies are being written and revised. 

Based on the nature of the work of the role, the access to information required by the role and the integration and support provided to the Office of Faculty Affairs, the Provost Fellow will be considered a confidential employee, and therefore, will not be eligible to be a member of the UAKU bargaining unit while serving in the Provost Fellow role.

The responsibilities of this role will be guided by the priorities of the Office of Faculty Affairs, with specific duties to include:

Faculty Policy Development

• Engage in collaborative efforts to develop policy that defines and supports the faculty role at KU and aligns with the university’s mission and goals
• Conduct research and assessment to inform university policies and procedures
• Support academic and governance units in the development or update of policies that define and support the faculty role at KU

Faculty Policy Review

• Support the Vice Provost and Associate Vice Provost in reviewing and tracking policies submitted by units as part of the university’s review and approval process
• As part of the review process, review for alignment of unit policies with university policies and with the collective bargaining agreement and provide guidance in revisions needed to ensure alignment

Faculty Policy Education

• Contribute to the development of templates and educational materials that include policy-relevant information, best practices in the implementation of policy and policy development
• Contribute to the development and delivery of educational sessions that include policy-relevant information, and promote best practices in the implementation of policy and policy development, and policy updates for faculty and administrative leaders

Expectations, Compensation, and Time Commitment  

For the 18-month appointment, the Provost Fellow for Faculty Affairs will be appointed for .40 FTE in the Office of Faculty Affairs and .60 FTE in their academic unit, during the academic year (Spring 2026, Fall 2026, Spring 2027) and will receive an administrative supplement of $10,000 in summer of 2026 and $5,000 in summer of 2027 to continue the work during the summer. A smaller appointment percentage during Spring 2026 may be available to allow for completion of previously committed workload assignments.

Required Qualifications 

• Tenured KU faculty member
• A record of excellence in teaching, scholarship, and service
• Demonstrated experience with policy development, implementation, and review
• Demonstrated experience engaging in a team-based environment
• Demonstrated capacity for leadership
• Demonstrated ability to maintain a high level of accuracy and attention to detail in the preparation and review of policies, data, and documents

Preferred Qualifications 

• experience serving on unit or university committees responsible for developing and enacting faculty-related policy (e.g., promotion and tenure, governance)
• demonstrated leadership in a policy-related project (e.g., writing a new policy, comprehensive revision of a policy)
• current or previous formal leadership role within the academic unit (e.g., chair, associate chair, director of undergraduate studies, director of graduate studies)
• experience working with units across campus

Application Process

Interested faculty should submit a letter of interest along with a current CV to facultyaffairs@ku.edu by the end of the day on Friday, November 7th. The letter should address why the faculty member is interested in the fellow position and how they meet the listed qualifications.

Interviews are expected to occur the week of November 17th, with decisions made in early December. The start date will be January 1, 2026.

If you have any questions, please email facultyaffairs@ku.edu.