Executive Director Andrew Sabin Family Center Environment and Sustainability; R0008297

Executive Director of the Andrew Sabin Family Center for Environment and Sustainability (R0008297)

Wake Forest University seeks a transformational leader to serve as the next Executive Director of the Andrew Sabin Family Center for Environment and Sustainability, with a start date of July 1, 2026. The Executive Director will join a vibrant community of over 100 teacher‑scholars across our campuses and will bring a strong commitment to advancing innovative research, experiential learning, and technology and policy solutions to address global challenges in environment and sustainability.

Location:

Winston‑Salem, NC

Open Date:
Oct 23, 2025

The Sabin Center leverages the power of the university to innovate, educate, convene and support teams of scholars with a vision for a world that is sustainable, just, and abundantly wild. Tackling some of the most pressing global challenges — biodiversity loss, deforestation, climate‑driven crises, and sustainable land use — the Center applies cutting‑edge research, strategic partnerships, and academic innovation, all with an eye toward on‑the‑ground solutions.

In 2023, the Andrew Sabin family endowed the Center with a $5 million gift that was matched by a $5 million university commitment, establishing a unique opportunity for impact in this field. As the hub of the Environment and Sustainability area of academic distinction identified in the University’s Strategic Framework, the Sabin Center engages more than 100 faculty and staff members across the University in interdisciplinary research, scholarship, and collaboration, and who operate in an exceptionally open and flat manner, taking the University motto Pro Humanitate into the world.

Founded as the Center for Energy, Environment, and Sustainability in 2010, the Center operates at the intersection of enterprise, justice, and conservation, bringing together diverse stakeholders and perspectives to address the seemingly intractable environmental problems facing our world.

Reporting to the Vice Provost for Research, Scholarly Inquiry and Creative Activity, the successful candidate will be an enthusiastic, collaborative, and strategic leader. The ideal candidate will be a demonstrated bridge‑builder and will have evidence of high‑impact research and a sustained record of scholarly activities at the intersection of environment and sustainability, which may arise in any number of areas, including, but not limited to, biology, chemistry, physics, engineering, social sciences such as political science and economics, and law.

The candidate should demonstrate experience in undergraduate teaching and mentoring; experience with teaching and mentoring graduate students is highly desirable. We seek candidates who will lead across disciplines and professions, building teams to generate new ideas and research, policies, and practices. Preference will be given to candidates with strong track records of foundation and government funding, fundraising experience, and experience in fostering collaboration across a university and with external partners.

The Executive Director will represent the University in building collaborations with public, private, and nongovernmental organizations, and relationships with communities at the local, state, national, and international levels that support and make use of activities, research, and programs conducted by the Center.

The Executive Director will hold an appointment within Wake Forest University commensurate with their qualifications and experience. For candidates with traditional academic backgrounds, this will typically be a tenured appointment in an appropriate department within the Wake Forest College at the rank of Associate or Full Professor. For candidates with exceptional leadership experience and scholarship from non‑traditional academic settings (including government, NGOs, think tanks, or industry), alternative appointment structures will be considered, such as a Professor of the Practice.

The Executive Director will teach undergraduates and mentor students, staff, and junior faculty to cultivate the next generation of leaders. Salary will be commensurate with…