Director, Maxine Platzer Lynn Women's Center

The University of Virginia (UVA), one of the nation’s leading public institutions, seeks an experienced, mission-driven, and collaborative leader to be the next Director of the award-winning Maxine Platzer Lynn Women’s Center (Women’s Center). The Women’s Center is a non-partisan vital hub of resources and opportunities across the University. The Center works every day at the intersection of social justice issues that affect people everywhere, especially UVA’s students, faculty and staff, and neighbors and friends in the surrounding community.

As a team member in the Office of the Provost and Executive Vice President, the Director will (1) provide executive leadership for a strong team of faculty and staff and (2) provide oversight of all aspects of the Women’s Center. The director will possess intellectual acuity and will be conversant in engaged scholarship in the following areas: academic learning linked to experiential and/or service learning and mentoring; and domestic and global gender issues and their relationship to other pressing social justice issues.

The Director of the Women’s Center will join a group of passionate professionals who strive to uphold a mission and vision that are more crucial than ever. The values of the Women’s Center are rooted in diversity and inclusion, equity and equality, and compassion and solidarity. Through these values, the staff’s expertise allows them to uphold the highest professional standards through a commitment to student support and reciprocal learning with those who choose to join such experiential opportunities.

KEY PRIORITIES  
In this role, the Director’s primary priorities will broadly include:

• Supervision of senior staff, financial and HR management, strategic planning, and assurance of excellent service to the University (55%)

• Representing the Women’s Center on pan-University committees and working groups on such topics as students’ well-being and safety, diversity, equity, and women’s leadership; representing the Women’s Center at the state, regional, national, and international level (30%)

• Strategic engagement with alumni, parents, and friends supporting the Women’s Center (15%)

Sustaining and building active partnerships across the University is a key aspect of the Director’s charge, as is creative vision, which includes a strong emphasis on diversity and inclusion. With the Women's Center team and stakeholders, the Director will collaborate in strategic planning to ensure relevance and to establish a shared vision for the Women’s Center and lead in its implementation. The Director will be responsible for the ongoing guidance, growth, and evaluation of Women’s Center staff, initiatives, and goals, and will engage academic partners, alumni, parents, and the community with the Women’s Center, cultivating and stewarding their friendship and financial support. The Director will represent the Women’s Center and the University regionally and nationally, and therefore, some travel will be required.

In support of long-term fiscal health and stewardship, the Director will work closely and consistently with the business manager to develop and administer responsible program budgets; to manage the overall finances and daily operations of the Women’s Center in a manner consistent with University policies and procedures; and to respond to requests from the Provost’s Office for updates on Women’s Center activities and other required documents. Likewise, with the Communications and Development Officer, the Director will review outreach communications and participate in all fundraising efforts as needed. The Director will also closely and consistently engage with the Chair of Programs (who leads the Women’s Center's team of program directors) and with the Director of Counseling.

IDEAL SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

The Great and Good, 2030 Strategic Plan provides a roadmap for UVA’s future as it enters its third century. In addition to an ability to articulate ways in which this role – and, more broadly, the Women’s Center – can further the University’s strategic plan, the successful candidate should possess many of the following professional qualifications, skills, experience, and personal qualities:  

• Previous experience developing, directing, and/or managing a significant program in a higher education or non-profit setting; previous experience in a women’s center or other similar program preferred

• Outstanding servant leadership ability and understanding of organizational and human dynamics with an ability to develop, motivate, and retain a high-performing staff

• Experience in student engagement, mentorship, and institutional events of all kinds

• Influential written and verbal communicator, supe