The Opportunitiy
Lead Virginia's most dynamic nursing school at a Carnegie R1 research university and shape the next generation of nursing leaders.
George Mason University invites applications for a Divisional Dean of the School of Nursing, a transformative academic leadership opportunity at the center of one of the Commonwealth's most rapidly ascending health sciences programs. Reporting to the Dean of the College of Public Health, Virginia's first and only accredited interdisciplinary public health college the Divisional Dean serves as the chief academic, operational, and strategic leader of a School that has earned top national rankings across its BSN, MSN, and DNP programs, and is now poised for its next chapter of national prominence.
What makes Mason Nursing distinctive is not only where it ranks, but how it educates. The School has built a model that intentionally integrates public health fundamentals across all levels of nursing education, reinforcing team-based learning, interdisciplinary collaboration, and advanced practice preparation in ways that are rare among nursing schools nationally. Housed within Virginia's only accredited College of Public Health, the School of
Nursing functions as a connective core of the College: a place where clinical preparation, population health thinking, and interprofessional education converge across disciplines.
Peterson Family Health Sciences Hall gives that model a physical home unlike almost anything else in academic nursing. Its simulation suites, immersive technology environments, and clinical training infrastructure make the School's vision of technology-forward, experiential education a living reality. The next Divisional Dean will inherit not just a ranked program, but a platform built for what nursing education must become and the resources to take it there.
This is not a caretaker role. The next Divisional Dean will build on a foundation already in motion: recruiting and inspiring exceptional faculty, forging transformative clinical partnerships, advancing research and scholarship, and driving the kind of bold innovation that defines what nursing education looks like at a world-class public research university. Your work will shape how Mason trains the nurses, nurse practitioners, and nursing leaders who will serve the Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C. region and beyond for decades to come.
About the School of Nursing
The George Mason University School of Nursing stands among the most highly ranked nursing schools in Virginia and has achieved remarkable national recognition. Anchored in the $71 million Peterson Family Health Sciences Hall and embedded within Virginia's first and only accredited College of Public Health, the School operates at a genuinely distinctive intersection where clinical nursing excellence, population health thinking, and interprofessional education reinforce one another across programs and disciplines.
This is more than a structural arrangement. The integration of public health fundamentals throughout the curriculum, from BSN foundations through MSN specialization and DNP practice, shapes how Mason's nurses are trained to think and lead. Students across the College learn alongside and in collaboration with one another, developing the team-based competencies that modern healthcare demands. The School of Nursing is not simply a tenant of the College of Public Health. It is one of its defining pillars.
The School's national trajectory reflects this distinctive model. With top program rankings across all three degree levels and a rising national profile, Mason Nursing is at an inflection point, the combination of institutional momentum, innovative infrastructure, and mission-driven impact positions the next Divisional Dean to lead a school with genuine national ambition.
Why This Role Matters
▸ Lead one of Virginia's most highly ranked nursing schools at a Carnegie R1 research institution
▸ Shape strategy across BSN, MSN, and DNP programs rising rapidly in national standings
▸ Partner with the Dean of the College of Public Health, Virginia's only accredited interdisciplinary public health college
▸ Build on deep clinical partnerships across the Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C. healthcare corridor
▸ Advance a nationally distinctive model of interprofessional education grounded in public health and powered by simulation and immersive technology
▸ Operate from Peterson Family Health Sciences Hall, a 165,000 sq ft flagship facility with state-of-the-art simulation suites, clinical labs, and research spaces
Colleges & Schools at George Mason
Mason's 10 colleges and schools cover the gamut of academic disciplines. In addition to established programs, students also have the opportunity for interdisciplinary and integrative studies and can craft their own degree programs. Mason's colleges and schools include the Antonin Scalia Law School, The Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution, College of Education and Human Development, College of Engineering and Computing, College of Humanities and Social Sciences, College of Public Health, College of Science, College of Visual and Performing Arts, Donald G. Costello College of Business, and the Schar School of Policy and Government. Mason also has an Honors College, which inspires students to pursue the most challenging and enriching educational and civic engagement opportunities available to them.
What You'll Do
As Divisional Dean, you will serve as the chief academic and administrative officer of the School of Nursing, accountable for its strategic direction, operational excellence, and sustained growth within the College of Public Health. You will supervise directors, faculty, and administrative and professional staff, and carry broad decision-making authority for academic, operational, and financial matters in alignment with College and University policies. Your core responsibilities span five areas:
Academic Leadership & Program Excellence
- Provide visionary, strategic leadership for the School of Nursing, advancing its mission within the College of Public Health and in alignment with University goals.
- Oversee all academic programs across undergraduate and graduate levels, including BSN, MSN, and DNP ensuring curriculum quality, relevance, and continuous improvement, with particular attention to the integration of public health fundamentals that distinguish Mason's model nationally.
- Champion interprofessional education as a defining strength of the School, deepening collaboration with College of Public Health partners and building team-based learning experiences that prepare graduates for complex, interdisciplinary healthcare environments.
- Lead accreditation processes and ensure ongoing regulatory compliance with all applicable program and institutional standards.
- Promote student success, innovation in pedagogy, and a commitment to high standards throughout nursing education, research, and community engagement.
Strategic Planning & Institutional Advancement
- Develop and execute a bold, forward-looking strategic plan that capitalizes on the School's rising national profile, Mason's Carnegie R1 platform, and Peterson Hall's world-class infrastructure.
- Build and sustain academic-practice partnerships with regional health systems, hospitals, and community health organizations, expanding clinical placement, workforce development, and preceptor capacity.
- Lead fundraising, philanthropic engagement, and grant development to grow the School's resources, endowment, and national positioning.
- Advance Mason Nursing's nationally distinctive technology-forward pedagogy, including high-fidelity simulation, immersive virtual reality, digital health integration, and telehealth, as a competitive differentiator and a model for the field.
- Represent the School at regional, state, and national levels, elevating Mason Nursing's voice in policy, practice, and higher education.
Faculty & Staff Excellence
- Recruit, develop, and retain a high-performing faculty and staff committed to excellence, student success, and the mission of the School.
- Oversee faculty appointment, promotion, and tenure processes, fostering a vibrant community of scholars and clinician-educators.
- Promote faculty research productivity, scholarship, and external funding in alignment with Mason's R1 research mission.
- Build an innovative, collaborative team culture where faculty and staff are empowered to lead, innovate, and grow.
Financial & Administrative Management
- Exercise full budget oversight for the School, establishing, managing, and implementing budget initiatives that align resources with strategic priorities.
- Ensure sound administrative operations, regulatory compliance, and accreditation readiness across all School programs.
- Allocate human, financial, and physical resources with transparency and fiscal discipline, maximizing the School's impact within available means.
- Manage accreditation requirements, oversee academic programs, steward financial and human resources, and maintain essential relationships with healthcare systems and community partners.
Research, Scholarship & Community Engagement
- Advance a culture of scholarly inquiry, evidence-based practice, and research productivity that elevates the School's national standing.
- Support and promote faculty scholarship, grant-seeking, and research partnerships with healthcare institutions, government agencies, and community organizations.
- Build and deepen relationships with healthcare systems, community health organizations, and alumni to ensure the School's programs address real and growing regional workforce needs.
- Engage proactively with clinical partners to strengthen practice-education integration and advance the health of the communities Mason serves.
What You Bring
Required
- Terminal degree in nursing (DNP or PhD required)
- Current licensure as a Registered Nurse (RN)
- Significant leadership experience in an academic or healthcare setting with responsibility for programs, personnel, and resources
- Experience with accreditation and regulatory processes
- Demonstrated success supporting research, scholarship, or evidence-based practice
- Experience in teaching, mentoring, or academic program oversight
- Knowledge of nursing education, healthcare systems, and public health principles
- Knowledge of academic administration, accreditation, curriculum oversight, and faculty and staff affairs
- Skill in strategic planning, organizational leadership, and change management
- Skill in financial management and resource allocation
- Ability to lead complex operations and build high-performing teams
- Ability to communicate effectively with internal and external stakeholders
- Ability to promote innovation in education and support student success
Preferred
- Leadership of complex academic or clinical organizations at the department, division, or dean level
- Budget and administrative operations management within an academic unit
- Development of academic-practice partnerships and workforce development initiatives
- Experience advancing interprofessional education programs and cross-disciplinary collaboration within a college or health sciences environment
- Demonstrated leadership in technology-forward pedagogy, simulation, virtual reality, immersive learning, digital health, or telehealth, at program or institutional scale
- Experience leading academic units in a research-intensive university
- Experience in advancement, fundraising, and national positioning of academic programs
- Familiarity with public health frameworks and their integration into nursing education and advanced practice preparation
The Ideal Candidate
The ideal candidate is a visionary nurse leader and proven academic administrator who brings both the scholarly credibility to inspire faculty and the operational sophistication to run a complex, multi-program school. You are equally comfortable presenting a bold strategic plan to University leadership and walking the simulation suites of Peterson Hall with nursing students. You understand that academic excellence and institutional momentum are not separate pursuits, they are the same goal, pursued with the same discipline and conviction.
You see interprofessional education not as a compliance checkbox, but as a genuine pedagogical commitment, one that prepares nurses to lead in the complex, team-based care environments they will enter. You understand the power of placing a nursing school within a College of Public Health, and you know how to make that structural advantage real through curriculum design, collaborative programming, and a faculty culture that values breadth as much as depth.
You are drawn to innovation. The simulation suites and immersive technology environments in Peterson Hall represent, to you, not equipment to manage but a strategic platform to advance, a chance to build a model of nursing education where students develop clinical judgment in high-fidelity environments before they ever enter a patient room. You have a track record of moving technology-forward ideas from concept to curriculum, and you understand that doing so requires both vision and the faculty development to make it stick.
You are motivated by mission and by momentum. The opportunity before the next Divisional Dean is not simply to sustain an excellent school, it is to lead it forward, building on a combination of national trajectory, innovative infrastructure, and mission-driven impact to position Mason Nursing among the defining nursing schools of the next decade. The communities this School serves, in a region with genuine and growing healthcare workforce needs, deserve nothing less.
Why George Mason University
Life in Fairfax, Virginia
George Mason's main campus is in Fairfax, Virginia, a thriving city at the heart of one of the most dynamic, educated, and economically vital regions in the United States. Nestled in Northern Virginia just minutes from Washington, D.C., Fairfax offers exceptional quality of life that combines big-city opportunities with suburban comfort, natural beauty, and a rich sense of history and community.
Northern Virginia is home to a dense concentration of federal health agencies, world-renowned academic medical centers, major hospital systems, and community health organizations. For a senior leader at Mason Nursing, this means unparalleled access to clinical partners, research collaborators, and workforce networks — from the NIH and Walter Reed to Inova Health System, Children's National, and the rapidly growing community health sector that extends across the region.
The region's cultural calendar is as rich as any major American city: Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, the Kennedy Center, Smithsonian museums, and Mason's own Center for the Arts are all nearby. Great Falls Park, the W&OD Trail, and Shenandoah National Park offer unmatched outdoor recreation. And for those with families, Fairfax County Public Schools, including the nationally ranked Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, consistently rank among the finest in the nation.
How to Apply
Interested candidates should submit a cover letter and résumé through the George Mason University online employment portal. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. George Mason University is an equal opportunity employer.
Requisition #10004173 • jobs.gmu.edu
Instructions to Applicants:
George Mason Executive Search is assisting George Mason University in this search. Applications and nominations are now being accepted. For full consideration, applicants must apply for the Divisional Dean, School of Nursing position at https://jobs.gmu.edu. Complete and submit the online application to include three professional references with contact information and a Cover Letter/Letter of Intent with Resume. Initial screening of applications will begin immediately and will continue until an appointment is made.
Please direct inquiries and nominations to:
Kunal Chadha
Executive Search | George Mason University
E-mail: [email protected]
Questions About the Role?