The Center Director is the administrative head of the North Florida Research and Education Center (NFREC) and provides leadership and support for research, extension and teaching programs essential to the agricultural, natural resource conservation, environmental and consumer interests of the area encompassing the eastern Florida Panhandle through the Suwanee Valley and much of NE Florida. A key component of success in the Director position is stakeholder engagement across these areas that will unify efforts toward common interests and identify stakeholder needs.  The Director is responsible for encouraging development of proactive programs addressing present and future needs of surrounding agricultural, natural resource and urban communities. The primary responsibility will be administrative but there may be opportunities for research, extension, or teaching. NFREC programs seek to improve the viability of regional agricultural economics, protect and enhance natural resources, support sound urban landscape practices and encourage positive interests at the urban-agricultural interface.

The Center Director is responsible for effective management of NFREC resources - most importantly budgetary and personnel management - and for development of short- and long-term goals involving programs, equipment, physical plant and personnel. The Center Director is to actively seek private funding and endowments to enhance the sustainability of the NFREC. Encouraging and supporting faculty to seek extramural grant opportunities is a key job requirement. The Center Director will liaison with local, state, and federal agencies and will interact with UF/IFAS administration, county extension faculty, other UF faculty and staff, and agricultural and environmental leaders in accordance with the Center’s mission and goals. The Center Director is expected to use appropriate communication and management skills to promote teamwork among faculty and staff, delegate responsibility when appropriate, and make timely decisions.  The Director is responsible for evaluation of NFREC faculty programs and initiation of tenure and promotion actions in consultation with department chairs and also must actively engage in filling positions after retirement on established programs. The Center Director is expected to work strongly towards establishing new faculty positions and programs with a clear vision for future agriculture and natural resource development goals for the region and the state. The Center Director will form stakeholder advisory committees, composed of clientele, to assist with program related recommendations and decisions and to generate support for needed facilities and equipment. The Center Director should initiate and encourage cooperative research projects with national and international institutions. The Center Director reports directly to the Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources and is responsible programmatically to the Deans for Academic Programs, Research and Extension.

The Center Director must take an active role to develop and maintain goodwill for the Center among various support and clientele groups, local agencies, and consumers.  Strong ties must be developed and maintained with commodity organizations, regulatory agencies, environmental groups and local and statewide governmental agencies. The Director will cooperate with UF/IFAS Department Chairs, other UF/IFAS Research and Education Center directors, district extension directors, county extension faculty and other UF units in program development. 

Other Information:

The North Florida Research & Education Center (NFREC; http://nfrec.ifas.ufl.edu) is one of the largest and most diverse off-campus units of UF/IFAS, consisting of campuses in Quincy, Marianna and Live Oak in the eastern Panhandle and Big Bend Region of Florida. The Quincy campus established in 1921 is a 1,021-acre research and education facility located in Gadsden County. The NFREC-Marianna, a 1,288-acre facility, was originally one of the Mobile Units established in 1941 and made its permanent home in Jackson County in 1948. The NFREC-Suwannee Valley (Live Oak) consists of 388 acres, was created by the Florida Legislature in 1947 and began operation on November 1, 1950. The NFREC has 16 faculty members located at Quincy and Marianna that represent nine academic units (agronomy, animal science, entomology, environmental horticulture, forestry, horticulture, plant pathology, soil and water science, and wildlife conservation). Four Regional Specialized Extension Agents (RSA) are located at the NFREC-Suwannee Valley specialized in row crops, rural and agribusiness development, vegetable crops, and water resources, and one RSA is located at Quincy specialized in water resources. Research and Extension programs are collaborative, with a system-based focus on cropping systems, biofuel and medicinal crops, beef/forage production systems, plant breeding systems, specialty crop systems and natural resource management systems. The Center Director’s office is located at Quincy with Marianna 40 miles to the west and Live Oak 100 miles to the east. Faculty members commonly use facilities at all three campuses. The NFREC is characterized by a dynamic population of post-doctoral associates, graduate students, scientific, farm, and administrative staff. This diversity of faculty, staff and programs provides a unique setting for transdisciplinary research that ties the NFREC with faculty on the main UF campus, faculty at other Research and Education Centers around the state, as well as other universities across the nation. The NFREC also has a strong presence internationally with many faculty members involved in research, extension and teaching in many countries in South America, Europe, Africa and Asia.

The University of Florida (http://www.ufl.edu) is a Land-Grant, Sea-Grant, and Space-Grant institution, encompassing virtually all academic and professional disciplines, with an enrollment of more than 56,000 students.  UF is a member of The Association of American Universities.  The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (http://ifas.ufl.edu) includes the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (http://cals.ufl.edu), the Florida Agricultural Experiment Station (http://research.ifas.ufl.edu), the Florida Cooperative Extension Service (http://extension.ifas.ufl.edu), the College of Veterinary Medicine (http://www.vetmed.ufl.edu), the Florida Sea Grant program (http://www.flseagrant.org/ ), and encompasses 16 on-campus academic departments and schools, 12 Research and Educational Centers (REC) located throughout the state, 6 Research sites/demonstration units administered by RECs or academic departments, and Florida Cooperative Extension Service offices in all 67 counties (counties operate and maintain).  The School of Natural Resources and Environment is an interdisciplinary unit housed in IFAS and managed by several colleges on campus.  UF/IFAS employs nearly 4,500 people, which includes approximately 990 salaried faculty and 1,400 permanent support personnel located in Gainesville and throughout the state. IFAS, one of the nation’s largest agricultural and natural resources research and education organizations, is administered by a Vice President and four deans: the Dean of the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, the Dean for Extension and Director of the Florida Cooperative Extension Service, the Dean for Research and Director of the Florida Agricultural Experiment Station, and the Dean for the College of Veterinary Medicine.  UF/IFAS also engages in cooperative work with Florida A&M University in Tallahassee.