leadership search for higher education

Spelman Johnson is a premier executive search firm exclusively committed to serving higher education.

Spelman Johnson is a premier executive search firm exclusively committed to serving higher education.

Recruiting talented leaders on behalf of the institutions we serve, our success is strengthened by our deep and diverse relationships and our investment in the development and engagement of a leadership pipeline. Since 1991, we’ve helped hundreds of higher education institutions identify outstanding professionals, pairing exceptional leaders with positions across all facets of the academy. Spelman Johnson is nationally recognized for our thought leadership on issues of equity and diversity and for our commitment to inclusion in higher education.

during our twenty-eight year history, Spelman Johnson has cultivated and supported a diverse, national network of professionals of color within higher education.

The relationships we establish in the course of our work

with multi-cultural professional groups and associations are part of an overall corporate commitment to the advancement of underrepresented professionals within higher education. Our placements show our strong commitment to the advancement of underrepresented persons within the field of higher education.

54%

of our searches have been completed with the hire of a woman

26%

of our positions hired have been persons of color

62%

of the women we have placed throughout our history remain in their positions or have been promoted to higher positions within the client institution

68%

of the persons of color remain in their positions or have been promoted within the client institution

News and Resources

Keep one foot in the door

1/8/2019
Stephanie Jarvis — Lecturer, Sports Law & Business Program - Arizona State University

“Keep one foot in the door.” That was the advice given to me by Jon LeCrone, Commissioner of the Horizon League, when I was leaving my job of over 12 years under his leadership. Conference office life was all I had known. I had loved my time there and venturing onto a new path as the General… Continue reading >

Search Committee's Guide to a Successful Video Interview

1/2/2019 | Ellen Heffernan

Video interviewing is a wonderful way to connect with candidates and is becoming much more common, but doing a video conference with an applicant adds additional responsibilities to the search committee and search committee chair--- In addition to developing and asking good, relevant questions, remember that the dynamic of a video may prompt the candidate… Continue reading >

The Football Feasibility Study Demystified: Its Purpose, Benefits and Process

12/13/2018 | Dell Robinson

Why would an institution need a consulting firm to conduct a football feasibility study? Institutions consider adding football to their athletics programs for one or more of the following reasons depending on their Division status and institutional goals: to drive men’s enrollment as women’s enrollment in college is generally higher to increase revenue as a… Continue reading >