Center Hiring New Executive Director

The Center is hiring! We are looking for a new Executive Director to take over the role from Jake, who will be starting this summer as an Associate Professor of Law at Pepperdine Caruso School of Law. The job description is below and application instructions can be found here: https://bit.ly/3FUJyZJ.

We are happy to answer any questions about the position.

Duke University:

Duke University was created in 1924 through an indenture of trust by James Buchanan Duke. Today, Duke is regarded as one of America’s leading research universities. Located in Durham, North Carolina, Duke is positioned in the heart of the Research Triangle, which is ranked annually as one of the best places in the country to work and live. Duke has more than 15,000 students who study and conduct research in its 10 undergraduate, graduate and professional schools. With about 40,000 employees, Duke is the third largest private employer in North Carolina, and it now has international programs in more than 150 countries.

Duke University Law School
Center for Firearms Law
Center Director
(Director, Academic Center, Law School; Level 15; 2190)

Job Description
Occupational Summary
Launched in early 2019, the Duke Center for Firearms Law aims to be the primary center for the development and dissemination of reliable scholarships on legal issues relating to firearms, gun rights and regulation, and the Second Amendment. It is committed to an ambitious program of scholarship development, mentoring of scholars and fellows, colloquia, symposia, and other programming. The Center organizes and hosts conferences, shapes, and encourages scholars and scholarship, develops teaching materials, and generally serves as the hub for firearms law scholarship in the United States. Its goals are to continue developing firearms law as a scholarly field, and developing resources that lawyers, policy makers, and the interested layperson can use to develop fully informed opinions on firearms law and policy.

The Center Executive Director will provide direction and administrative oversight to all Center activities in concert with the Law School Dean and the Center’s faculty directors, Joseph Blocher and Darrell A. H. Miller.

Work Performed

• Initiate efforts to galvanize and synthesize research on issues involving firearms law.  Facilitate, create, and assist research into legal issues relating to firearms, gun rights and regulation, and the Second Amendment, including assisting faculty and students in furthering research interests in particular topic areas. (25%)
• Support, collect, and publish research on firearms law and policy, including through running the Center’s blog.  Serve as a resource to journalists and other public and private sector decision makers on firearms law and policy. (30%)
• Organize conferences, symposia, and colloquia of interest to academics, private sector leaders, and government decision makers. (15%)
• Establish and maintain contacts with outside organizations such as government agencies, professional organizations, law firms and other law schools to aid in achieving overall program objectives. (10%)
• Develop grant proposals to support Center research and conferences.  Participate as key personnel on grants, coordinate with relevant personnel on financial reporting, and prepare progress and final narrative reports. (5%)
• Participate in and help organize civic education and other legal policy projects. (5%)
• Develop teaching materials for courses and seminars on legal issues related to firearms law and policy. (5%)
• Provide staff leadership. Recommend various personnel actions including, but not limited to, hiring, performance appraisal, promotions, transfers, and vacation schedules. (5%)

Minimum Qualifications
Education
A JD or MBA in Project Management or related field required. An advanced academic degree in a related field is preferred. 

Experience
A minimum of 3 years' work experience is required. Experience in an administrative or managerial capacity is preferred OR AN EQUIVALENT COMBINATION OF RELEVANT EDUCATION AND/OR EXPERIENCE.

Preferred Education and Experience
As a primary focus of the Center is legal scholarship, candidates should have demonstrated skills in legal research and writing, and an interest in academic legal scholarship. Specific knowledge of firearms law and policy is a plus, but not required. 

Skills and Abilities

• Strong research and writing skills
• Highly effective interpersonal and communications skills 
• Demonstrated ability to work well with multiple constituencies, including faculty and university officials, policy makers, and corporate and other private sector leaders 
• Ability and willingness to organize and execute conferences, symposia, and other events
• Facility with social media 

Duke is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer committed to providing employment opportunity without regard to an individual's age, color, disability, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status.

Duke aspires to create a community built on collaboration, innovation, creativity, and belonging. Our collective success depends on the robust exchange of ideas—an exchange that is best when the rich diversity of our perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences flourishes. To achieve this exchange, it is essential that all members of the community feel secure and welcome, that the contributions of all individuals are respected, and that all voices are heard. All members of our community have a responsibility to uphold these values.

Essential Physical Job Functions: Certain jobs at Duke University and Duke University Health System may include essentialjob functions that require specific physical and/or mental abilities. Additional information and provision for requests for reasonable accommodation will be provided by each hiring department.