Director - Upward Bound Grant

Southwest Tennessee Community College is a comprehensive, multicultural, public, open—access college. Southwest has four campuses/centers from which it offers over 100 programs and over 20 technical certificate programs.

We foster student success, transform lives, and increase the educational level of a growing community in Shelby County. Southwest is a Tennessee Board of Regents institution, accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

We invite you to become a part of the Southwest Team!

Title: Director - Upward Bound Grant

Employee Classification: Other Professionals

Institution: Southwest Tennessee Community College

Department: Upward Bound

Campus Location: SWTCC - Multiple Campus Locations

Job Summary

This is a full-time grant funded position reporting to the Vice President of Strategic Enrollment Management. The Upward Bound Program Director is responsible for the development and administration of the Upward Bound Program, including hiring, training, supervising and evaluating project staff, fiscal management, project development and management, and liaison to the target area communities. The Upward Bound Director will also provide direct services to Upward Bound participants.

Job Duties

• Manages and conducts all participant assessments to determine the extent of academic, personal, and academic or career counseling needs.
• Develops grant proposals and budget.
• Develops and maintain a receptive network with local TRIO programs, other youth-serving agencies and target schools, community agencies and postsecondary institutions in the target area.
• Directs participant recruitment and selection of students; meets individually and in groups with participants on a regular basis to provide information and assistance supporting successful school completion and post-secondary entry.
• Performs personnel duties, such as hiring staff and evaluating work performance.
• Plans and executes orientation and in-service training for project staff.
• Supervises the maintenance of accurate Upward Bound data to generate monthly/quarterly/annual reports and to evaluate the performance of participants and the attainment of project objectives.
• Develops and implements strategies for determining participant eligibility, methods of recruitment, documentation and follow-up, systems of confidentiality and handling of special referrals.
• Serves as a liaison to departments, target school administrators and community agencies.
• Conducts staff meetings on a regular basis.
• Participates in the process of early, regular and late registration and New Student Advising.
• Attends local, state regional and national meeting as a visible professional liaison with associations and organizations related to project activities.
• Directs a coordinated approach among processes to assess participant's needs, delivers services, and monitors participants' progress.
• May perform other duties as directed by the supervisor.

Minimum Qualifications

• Five(5) years' experience dispersing, managing and implementing educational programs for at-risk students, preferably working with low-income, first generation, and/or disabled students and/or low-income families or comparable experience (statement describing comparability of substituted experience required for comparable experience).
  
• One (1) year experience in designing, managing, or implementing programs for low-income, first generation, and/or disabled students and/or low-income families.
  
• Experience selecting, hiring, training, and supervising employees.
  
• Experience in academic or career counseling.
  
• A background check will be required for the successful candidate.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
  
• Working knowledge of TRIO, Upward Bound, and No Child Left Behind Programs.
  
• Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, and training.
  
• Knowledge of issues affecting the academic potential of low income, at-risk, first generation college-bound youth (bilingual preferred).