Associate Director, Residential Life

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Department:

Residence Life

Time Type:

Full time

Job Type:

Regular

Flsa Status:

Exempt

Work Modality:

Hybrid 01 (On Campus 3-4 Days/Week)

Union:

Excluded

Job Description:

Summary:

The Associate Director for Residence Life is a live-on position that manages all aspects of a coeducational residence life operation housing approximately 4,400 students and directly supervises 3-5 full-time professional staff members. The Associate Director for Residence Life will indirectly supervise 3 Assistant Directors and assist the Director for Residence Life with the overall leadership and development of a high-impact Residence Life operation.

The Associate Director will consult with staff, students, and parents to solve residential challenges, concerns, or needs and coordinate area-wide activities and events. The Associate Director will also serve as the primary staff member involved in the program administration for the functional living learning initiatives for their assigned residential areas.

The Associate Director will serve as a member of the Residence Life Leadership team who together will work to create and manage a cohesive and collaborative residence life program. The Associate Director will serve as a chair of 1-2 departmental committees, represent the department at university functions, and serve as a point of contact for campus constituents and stakeholders. The Associate Director for Residence Life, in the absence of the Director for Residence Life, leads, directs, and has decision-making authority for Residence Life.  

Essential Functions:

1.) Professional Staff Supervision, Selection, and Training

• Hire, train, supervise and develop direct reports. Provide developmental feedback often and consistently to ensure the continuous development of professional staff members. Indirectly supervise and provide leadership, direction and decision making for 3 Assistant Directors. Meet weekly with direct reports to discuss challenges and concerns affecting their residential area and provide guidance and support in these areas as needed. Develop a cohesive team through activities, retreats, and initiatives designed to unify their team of professional staff members. Hold all Residence Life staff members accountable to meeting departmental requirements, deadlines, and expectations set by the department, position, and the Associate Director. Consult with Human Resources and the Director for Residence Life as needed if a direct-reports performance is significantly lacking. Assist the leadership team in developing a comprehensive professional staff training program for direct reports. Oversee the development of a comprehensive professional staff training program.  

2.) Program Development and Management

• Provide leadership and direction for the development and implementation of high impact programs, and initiatives that cater to the needs of the residential population. Work with residence life staff, and department leadership to identify the current needs of the residential population, desires for engagement as well as opportunities for engagement and develop programs and initiatives around the information garnered. Develop committees as needed to support this effort with the support of the Director for Residence Life. In Conjunction with the Director and other Associate Director for Residence Life, assist in the development of a cohesive and well-integrated Residential Curriculum model that focuses on academic and co-curricular programming that supports the holistic wellness and well-being of the residential population. Establish effective campus partnerships in an effort to create collaborative programming and relationships between residence life and other offices. Oversee summer assignments for professional staff members to ensure effective use of time, and proper preparation for Housing and Residence Life operations.  

3.) Assessment and Evaluation

• Develop a rubric to evaluate and assess Residential Curriculum and engagement initiatives. Implements and analyzes annual student and staff assessment, benchmarking, performance, and retention evaluation efforts. Direct the planning, implementation, and evaluation efforts for student staff performance review processes. Provide monthly assessment of programming, judicial and behavioral trends. Coordinate, implement, and interpret assessment data and retention efforts. Oversee the mid-year evaluation process for members of the residence life team to include evaluation development, timelines for evaluation and delivery, and planning for future. Partner with institutional research to assist in the development of appropriate assessment instruments as well as understand what instruments are being utilized currently.

4.) Case Management and Administration

• Ensure that policies are uniformly and fairly enforced across the residential communities.  Read and assess staff reports on alleged violations of the student code of conduct daily each morning and provide feedback as needed to staff members on revisions needed, follow up that should take place, or immediate action that might be needed. Review the on-call log submitted by professional staff members and direct follow up as appropriate and in-line with the Residence Life Case Management workflow. Work with direct reports on assigned cases to ensure timeliness in response and appropriate follow up or adjudication.

5.) On-Call Emergency Response/After Hours Responsibility

• Provide on-call emergency coverage after hours for the residential population. Respond to a variety of student needs and coordinate response network within the department, as well as with other university departments. Provide assistance with after hours and weekend room assignments, staff selection, and staff training programs. In the absence of the Director, provide direction and leadership for Residence Life emergencies or incidents. Serve as a member of the Division of Student Affairs Response Team assisting with campus activism management.

6.) Residential Community Management and Support

• Investigate and respond to elevated concerns from students, parents, and university staff members. Coordinate assigned projects such as student staff evaluation, residence hall openings and closings, break housing, or commencement housing. For Summer operations (May – August), assist in conduct adjudication and provides follow-up care to summer residential students. Serve on special departmental committees and projects.

7.) Case Management

• Assist with case management for residential students designated through the Care Network including daily monitoring of incident reports, assigned Care reports, and providing staff support for weekly Care Team meetings in collaboration with the Dean of Students, Senior Associate Director, and Director of Residence Life. Ensure Community Directors are following up in a timely manner to incidents or Care related concerns for members of their community and communicating back the findings, support needed, or other pertinent information. Communicate upward as needed based on the information shared. Work with the Community Director for Belonging and Basic Needs Support on resource development, referrals, and case support as needed. Provide direction to the Assistant Director, Case Management & Administration as appropriate.

8.) Other Duties as Assigned

• Assist in other departmental needs when/if needed.

Supervisory Responsibility:

• This position supervises 3 - 5 professional staff members.  

Competencies:

• Championing Customer Needs.

• Evaluating and Implementing Ideas.

• Developing Plans.

• Making Accurate Judgments and Decisions.
• Building and Supporting Teams.

• Managing Talent.

• Leading and Inspiring People.

• Collaborative Leadership.

Position Type/Expected Hours Of Work:

• Full-Time.

• This position has “non-traditional” business hours.
• Extreme flexibility is required to be successful in this position.
• Attendance at campus functions, student programs, and after-hours emergency response is often required.
• The staff member should have an active interest in the development of students in their personal and academic pursuits.
• On-campus living and availability for after-hours and weekend response is required.

Salary Range:

• $66,000 - $68,000 annually.
• Housing and cell phone allowance provided.

Required Education And Experience:

• Master's degree or equivalent in Student Personnel Administration or related field.
• 4 - 6 years of relevant experience.
• A minimum of 4 years post master’s professional residence hall experience required, including experience with campus crisis management and/or on-call coverage.

Preferred Education And Experience:

• Master'S Degree.

• 5 - 8 years of relevant experience.
• Previous supervision of graduate or full-time staff.
• Experience working with residential curricula and leadership development for student populations and collaborating with administrators and faculty in out-of-classroom settings.

Other Duties:

• Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Benefits

AU offers a competitive benefits package including a 200% matching retirement plan, tuition benefits for full-time staff and their families, several leadership development certificates, and has been recognized by the American Heart Association as a fit-friendly worksite. Click here to learn about American University's unique benefit options.

Other Details

• Hiring offers for this position are contingent on successful completion of a background check.
• Employees in staff positions at American University must deliver their services to the university from either the District of Columbia, Maryland, or Virginia, or perform work on-site at the university.
• Please note this job announcement is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.
• American University is an E-Verify employer.

Current American University Employees

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Contact Us

For more information or assistance with the American University careers site, email theworkline@american.edu.

American University is an equal opportunity, affirmative action institution that operates in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The university does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex (including pregnancy), age, sexual orientation, disability, marital status, personal appearance, gender identity and expression, family responsibilities, political affiliation, source of income, veteran status, an individual’s genetic information or any other bases under federal or local laws (collectively "Protected Bases") in its programs and activities.