Employment Opportunities at ACU

ACU is affiliated with the fellowship of the Church of Christ. All applicants must be professing Christians and willing to support the Christian mission and purpose of Abilene Christian University while employed by the university.

1. Research support and growth

2. Compliance and research infrastructure

3. Innovation, Research Development and Commercialization

4. Promote research and scholarship internally and externally

A. Research support and growth

1. Initiate and maintain programs to enhance faculty development in the areas of research, scholarship, creative activity and extramural funding.
2. Oversee all aspects of grants and contracts including pre-award, post-award, grant accounting, research compliance and reporting.
3. Assist in the development and oversight of major research initiatives with external partners.
4. Collaborate with academic leaders and faculty for the strategic development, implementation and communication of research, scholarship and creative work at ACU.

B. Compliance and research infrastructure

1. Ensure federal, state and university assurance and compliance in all areas of research, including the use of human subjects (IRB), animals (IACUC), and issues of research integrity and conflicts of interest.
2. Oversee research infrastructure of the university, including university-wide research initiatives and laboratories.
3. Oversee the continued development and implementation of all research policies and procedures.

C. Innovation, Research Development and Commercialization

1. Develop and implement a strategic plan for research at ACU.
2. Ensure apt intellectual property and technology transfer policies and procedures through regular reviews and updates.
3. Oversee all activities relating to intellectual property including validating and protecting discoveries and technology transfer issues relating to licensing and partnerships for developing and commercializing discoveries.
4. Build and maintain cooperative relationships with faculty to spark a culture of innovation throughout the university.

D. Promote research and scholarship internally and externally

1. Represent research and scholarship to all relevant internal and external audiences to increase knowledge of our work and strengthen our position with external funding sources and strategic partners.

1. Qualified to hold a faculty appointment in an ACU academic department. 

2. Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively through speaking and writing.

3. Demonstrated ability to multi-task diverse projects and work cooperatively with others

1. ACU is affiliated with the fellowship of the Church of Christ. This position requires the employee to be a professing Christian and willing to support the Christian mission and purpose of Abilene Christian University while employed by the university.

2. Doctorate is preferred.

3. At least 10 years in higher education or commensurate experience in a research setting or a research lab is preferred.

4. At least 5 years in higher education administration is preferred.

5. Demonstrated success as a VPR (or Assistant VPR at another university) is preferred.

6. Strong record of scholarly and/or creative activities, including demonstrated success in attracting support for research from public and private sources, preferably as a principal investigator. 

7. Demonstrated knowledge of research administration, management and compliance. 

8. High ethical standards.

9. Excitement for leading faculty and academic leaders in setting research, scholarship and creative activity agendas and for developing systems to facilitate external partnerships to support those agendas. 

1. Must be able to remain in a stationary position at least 50% of the time.

2. Frequently operates a computer and other office productivity machinery.

3. Frequently moves about to attend meetings and access files and office machinery.

4. The person in this position frequently communicates with faculty, senior leaders and external constituents. Must be able to exchange accurate information in these situations.

Review of applications will begin immediately. For priority consideration, please submit your application by July 15, 2025; the position will remain open until filled.

ACU does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, sex, disability, genetic information, national or ethnic origin in employment opportunities, in keeping with applicable state and federal law.

ACU is committed to maintaining a safe and secure campus environment and protecting the university's financial and physical assets.  Therefore, Abilene Christian University conducts background checks on all candidates for employment in security sensitive positions.