"Vice President for Enrollment and Dean of Admission and Financial Aid"

Located in Lewiston, Maine, Bates—a nationally renowned liberal arts and sciences institution—seeks its next vice president for enrollment and dean of admission and financial aid.

Founded in 1855 by abolitionist Freewill Baptists, Bates has long challenged social hierarchies and advanced a mission rooted in realizing human potential. Today, Bates is known for its rigorous and engaged liberal arts education that fosters intellectual discovery, civic action, and creative collaboration in a close-knit community with a 9-to-1 student-to-faculty ratio. Offering 38 majors, including an interdisciplinary option for students who wish to design their own program, the curriculum emphasizes critical thinking and global perspectives, and culminates in a capstone project or senior thesis. Bates partners with Columbia University and Dartmouth College, among others, for its dual-degree engineering program.

A Bates education centers on deep and sustained interactions among students, faculty, and the broader community. It reflects a commitment to opportunity and excellence that grows directly out of its history and mission and responds to contemporary geographic, demographic, and economic realities. Purposeful Work, a signature program, is built on the premise that preparing students for lives of meaning—both personal and professional—lies at the heart of the liberal arts mission. For 14 consecutive years, since the 2011-2012 academic year, Bates has been named a Fulbright Student Top Producer, placing it among an elite group of just 11 undergraduate liberal arts colleges with such a long-running record. Twice in the past seven years, Bates has been the top producer of Fulbright Student awards.

Set on a stunning 133-acre campus of historic and modern architecture, green spaces, and gardens, Bates offers a peaceful and inspiring environment for learning and growth for a community of approximately 1,800 students. The college has close ties to the surrounding city of Lewiston, Maine's second-largest city, which balances the conveniences of an urban center with the warmth of a close-knit community. Once a thriving mill town, Lewiston today is defined by resilience, affordability, and ongoing renewal and growth, with healthcare, education, and the arts playing central roles in its future. The city's diverse cultural fabric reflects both its Franco-American roots and the vibrant contributions of more recent immigrant communities, including families from Somalia, Congo, and Afghanistan, among others. A revitalized riverfront, lively community events, and a thriving arts scene add to Lewiston's historic character and sense of belonging, making it a distinctive and welcoming place to live and work for Bates employees, residents, students, and visitors alike. The college also owns a stunning 600+ acres on the coast of Maine known as the Bates Morse Mountain Conservation Area. This serves as a fantastic resource for field work and research, along with being open to the public so that visitors can enjoy the landscape and a two-mile hike to the ocean.

The new enrollment leader will join an ambitious and innovative institution poised for its next chapter—steadfast in its founding mission and ready to evolve to meet the challenges and opportunities of the present and future. In fall 2025, Bates welcomed 496 first-year students from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences. Building on this strong foundation, the new vice president, together with the staff of the Offices of Admission and Student Financial Services, will lead efforts to recruit and enroll future classes at Bates.

This is a critical role in shaping the future of Bates. The vice president will lead strategic direction, planning, coordination, execution, and analysis for enrollment, ensuring Bates thrives in today's dynamic higher education landscape. Reporting to President Garry W. Jenkins, who began his tenure as the ninth president of Bates in July 2023, the new leader will be part of a strong, forward-thinking, and highly collaborative senior leadership team.

The vice president will assume a role that is deeply respected and valued at Bates, providing both strategic insight and visionary leadership to navigate the national and global liberal arts education landscape. The ideal candidate will be an analytical thinker with the ability to lead with clarity, accountability, and urgency. They must be skilled in developing actionable enrollment plans and be a strong communicator and transparent leader who fosters a culture of continuous growth for themselves and their team. Central to this work is the ability to mentor staff, embrace feedback, and build meaningful connections across campus, treating all stakeholders as partners in Bates' success. This leader will bring creativity, adaptability, and a competitive spirit, along with a deep understanding of the evolving issues impacting enrollment. A collaborative partner and effective advocate, the vice president will contribute meaningfully to senior leadership while championing innovation and inclusive decision-making. Ultimately, they will recognize and fully embrace the distinctiveness of Bates and bring a similarly distinctive leadership approach to their work.

All applications, nominations, and inquiries are invited. Applications should include, as separate documents, a CV or resume and a letter of interest addressing the themes in the profile at Wittkieffer.com.

WittKieffer is assisting Bates College in this search. For fullest consideration, candidate materials should be received by November 10, 2025.

Applications, nominations, and inquiries can be directed to:

Robin Mamlet, Amy Crutchfield, and Randi Miller

Bates-VPEnrollment@wittkieffer.com

Bates College is committed to the principle of equal opportunity and providing an educational and work environment free from discrimination. The college prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, age, disability, genetic information or veteran status and other legally protected statuses in the recruitment and admission of its students, in the administration of its education policies and programs, or in the recruitment of its faculty and staff. Bates College adheres to all applicable state and federal equal opportunity laws and regulations.