Vice President of Marketing & Communications

Dear U of R Community,

As I begin my second semester as your president, I continue to be impressed by the enormous strengths that are our trademarks as an institution. From outstanding academics taught by world-class professors; to strong experiential learning opportunities including groundbreaking research, travel experiences, and creative works; to transformational residential and student life experiences; and, the superior athletic opportunities we offer, the University of Redlands is a phenomenal place. And, the beauty of our campuses is clearly second to none.

As we know, this is a challenging time for higher education. With rising costs, changing demographics, and increased competition, all universities, including Redlands, need to be ever more strategic and adept at identifying and marketing our institutional strengths and effectively communicating our value proposition to prospective students and their families. I believe that a more streamlined focus in these areas will translate into attracting even more quality students to Redlands and increasing our reputational standing as an institution.

I commend the dedication of our enrollment and communications teams who have achieved countless and well-deserved successes through their creativity and hard work. They are to be applauded for attracting and recruiting our remarkable students and promoting all that Redlands has to offer. We know that, because of their efforts, the students who apply to Redlands have a higher chance of yielding than most schools see from their applicant pools. Where we have seen a decline is in inquiries and applications.

For the University to continue to thrive into the future, rethinking how we can better coordinate, centralize and maximize our marketing and communications efforts is critical, given the reach these efforts have across our university and the impact they have on our future success.

Today, I am announcing that we will be hiring a Vice President of Marketing & Communications who will lead these efforts on behalf of the entire University and report directly to me. In making this announcement, I want to stress that my focus is fixed on the Vice President accomplishing these main priorities:  to strategically lead our collective marketing and communication efforts as one University to increase student enrollment across all schools, to raise awareness about the University and our reputational standing in a way that truly reflects the strengths of a Redlands education, and to accomplish these goals with the greatest efficiency. This position will oversee the current University Communications team as well as the integrated marketing professionals who have and will continue to support our schools.

The search for a new Vice President for Marketing & Communications has been launched. I have asked Kevin Dyerly, Vice President for Finance and CFO, to serve as the Chair for this search and he has agreed. I am also pleased to announce the composition of the Search Committee with the members listed below. This 11-member search committee represents a diverse group of faculty, staff, and students who are dedicated to identifying candidates committed to upholding and effectively promoting the mission and values of the University of Redlands. I have deep trust in this search committee’s ability to identify such candidates.

The committee is assisted by the search firm The Ward Group, a nationally known and highly respected search firm that is a leader in recruitment for marketing professionals. Vice President Julie Ried, who has over 17 years of experience recruiting positions like this one, will be leading The Ward Group team. If you have questions or suggestions, please email presidentsoffice@redlands.edu.

Near the end of the search, in the spring 2022, finalists will be invited to campus for review and feedback by the University of Redlands community. Following on-campus interviews, campus input, and unranked committee recommendations given to me, I will make the final hiring decision.

The plan is to hire the Vice President for Marketing & Communications by early summer 2022.

I want to thank the search committee for contributing their expertise and time to this important process, and to all of you for your continued hard work and support.

Sincerely,

Krista

Krista Newkirk

 

Members of the Vice President for Marketing & Communications Search Committee:

  • Kevin Dyerly, VP of Finance/CFO, Chair of Search Committee
  • Darlene Bailey, Director of Integrated Marketing, School of Education
  • Lance Franey, Sports Information Director
  • Laura Gallardo, Director of Advancement Communication and Donor Relations
  • David Hazward ’22, Undergraduate student, College of Arts & Sciences
  • Liz Huntington, Senior Director of Integrated Marketing, Marin Campus
  • Amy Moff-Hudec, Ph.D., Director of School of Continuing Studies
  • Stacey Neeley, Associate VP of Enrollment Systems, Operations & Analytics
  • Belinda Sandoval Zazueta, Associate Vice President of Admissions
  • Nancy Svenson, Associate Dean of Enrollment, School of Business & Society
  • Xin Zhao, Ph.D., Professor of Marketing, School of Business & Society