Advertising Summary: 

Virginia Commonwealth University's (VCU) School of Dentistry seeks qualified candidates as an Orthodontics Department Chair to lead faculty, advance education, research, and patient care, and shape future dental leaders at Virginia’s only dental school. Apply today!

Unit: School of Dentistry

Department: Department of Orthodontics

Department Summary: 

The Department of Orthodontics Dentistry at Virginia Commonwealth University’s (VCU) School of Dentistry advances oral health through education, research, patient care, and leadership. As part of Virginia’s only dental school—founded in 1893 and affiliated with an academic medical center—it contributes to a long tradition of excellence in dental education and health sciences.

Duties & Responsibilities:

Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) School of Dentistry invites candidates to apply for the position of Chair of the Department of Orthodontics. This position involves examining the operations of the department as a whole and the relationship to the institution and patients. In this role, the incumbent will help departmental faculty with balancing research, teaching, and patient care. The Chair will provide leadership for the educational, scholarship, patient care, and service mission of the department and the School of Dentistry. The Department of Orthodontics at VCU is recognized for academic leadership, clinical innovation, and research.

The Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) School of Dentistry is located in downtown Richmond, Virginia. With 133-year history, Virginia’s only dental school provides opportunities for selected, qualified individuals to study dentistry and oral health through a Doctor of Dental Surgery (D.D.S) program, graduate specialty training programs and a dental hygiene program. The VCU School of Dentistry is one of a small number of dental schools in the country affiliated with an academic medical center, the only dental school in the Commonwealth, and one of the oldest dental schools in the United States founded in 1893. It is one of six health sciences academic programs on the Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Campus of VCU.

Position Responsibilities:

Administrative: The chair will provide leadership and management of the department’s faculty and staff to include annual review and evaluation, mentoring for development and promotion and/or tenure review. The chair is also responsible for the departmental academic and clinical financial affairs, for ensuring compliance with school, university, and state policy and regulations. The Chair will be expected to provide and encourage specialty support to all departments for the DDS program in the School of Dentistry’s General Practice model.

Teaching: The chair is expected to lead the teaching responsibilities of the department and support the overall teaching of the DDS, dental hygiene, advanced dental education, and graduate programs. The chair will foster interdisciplinary educational programs involving the different departments within the School of Dentistry and the university. The chair should set an example and promote excellence in teaching. As appropriate, the chair provides clinical and classroom teaching and supervision in both the predoctoral and postdoctoral Orthodontic clinics and may act as a course director. The chair will support the preparation of postdoctoral residents for specialty board examination.

The chair, like all faculty members, is expected to teach in an integrated curriculum system that includes baccalaureate, graduate, and professional education. Teaching across traditional departmental lines and in multidisciplinary teams is required. Faculty members are expected to foster transformative learning that is informed by interdisciplinary and translational research, scholarship, and creative expression. Faculty members must demonstrate the ability to contribute to and participate in a humanistic environment of learning, as well as to adapt to change and embrace modern technologies. Faculty members must demonstrate the ability, or acquire and develop such ability, to incorporate adult learning theory, evidence-based oral health care, innovation in student learning, and critical thinking.

Clinical: The chair will provide a leadership role in supporting patient care, working with students and residents, and working collaboratively with other faculty and staff to deliver high-quality patient-centered care, promote best business practices, and increase clinic productivity. Participation in faculty practice is optional.

Service: The chair will be expected to represent the Department of Orthodontics, the School of Dentistry, and Virginia Commonwealth University by serving on committees and task forces as requested. Participation in state and national level professional organizations as appropriate for the position and candidate’s expertise is required. Participation and/or support of the department’s participation in dentistry-related community service activities is required.

Research: The chair is expected to conduct original research, seek extramural funding to support research and be a productive scholar. The chair will also provide mentoring to faculty members, students and postdoctoral trainees to develop research protocols and work collaboratively with other research programs and investigators within the School of Dentistry and the university.

Qualifications:

Required Qualifications

• DDS or DMD degree from a CODA-accredited dental school/college or international equivalent degree
• Certificate from a CODA-accredited advanced education program in Orthodontics
• Board certification by the American Board of Orthodontics
• Eligible for licensure in Virginia
• Didactic and clinical teaching experience at a dental school
• Record of scholarship in a defined area of expertise
• Demonstrated ability to adapt to change and embrace modern technology
• Demonstrated ability to contribute to and participate in a humanistic environment of learning
• Demonstrated ability to incorporate adult learning theory, evidence-based oral health care, innovation in student learning, and critical thinking, or acquire and develop such ability
• Demonstrated ability to work in and foster an environment of respect, professionalism, and civility with a population of faculty, staff, and students from all backgrounds and experiences, or a commitment to do so as a faculty member at VCU
• For tenure eligible positions at the Assistant Professor rank, an established research agenda and a clear potential for external funding, as well as potential for scholarship or creative expression to complement and expand existing expertise in the department is required
• For tenure eligible positions at the Associate Professor or Professor rank, a well-developed scholarly/research portfolio with evidence of multi-disciplinary applications and external funding appropriate to complement and expand existing expertise in the department is required

Preferred Qualifications

• PhD and post-doctoral training in a related field
• Clinical practice experience, practice growth, and management experience
• Prior administrative or program leadership experience and/or advanced management degrees such as Master of Business Administration, Master of Science in Health Administration, or Master of Health Administration
• Participation in organized dentistry at the local, state, or national level
• Collaboration in grantsmanship with various dental schools/colleges and advanced education programs in dentistry

Salary Range: Commensurate

Benefits: All full-time university staff are eligible for VCU’s robust benefits package that includes comprehensive health benefits, paid annual and holiday leave, generous tuition benefits, retirement planning and savings options, tax-deferred annuity and cash match programs, employee discounts, well-being resources, abundant opportunities for career development and advancement, and more.

FLSA Exemption Status: Exempt

Restricted Position: No

ORP Eligible: Yes

Flexible Work Arrangement: Fully Onsite

Rank: Open

Tenure: Open

Months: 12 Months

Contact Information:
Contact Name: Dr. Mary Pettiette
Contact Email: pettiettem@vcu.edu