Director, Student Transitions and Family Programs

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The Director, Student Transitions and Family Programs provides strategic leadership and operational oversight for the College’s comprehensive orientation, transition, first-year experience, and family engagement initiatives. The Director ensures that programs and services foster belonging, resilience, and student success across the student lifecycle while building strong partnerships with families. This role directs departmental strategy, manages the departmental budget, supervises two professional staff members, and represents the unit on divisional and institutional committees.

ESSENTIAL JOB DUTIES

Strategic Leadership & Vision

• Provide leadership, long-term planning, and strategic direction for the Office of Student Transitions and Family Programs ensuring alignment with divisional and institutional priorities related to belonging, student success, retention, and persistence.

• Develop and implement a strategic plan aligned with the divisional and institutional priorities.

• Ensure orientation and transition programs are mission-aligned and grounded in best practices and professional standards.

• Oversee the department's operations, including staffing, programming, and communications.

• Lead the department’s strategic planning, assessment, and data collection efforts.

• Develop strategy for supporting special populations (transfer, off-campus, Global Bachelor of Fine Arts (GBFA), commuter, international, etc.) across the student lifecycle.

• Lead a comprehensive orientation and transition strategy that supports students across identity groups (first-year, transfer, international, off-campus, special populations), and entry points of the onboarding process (prospective, admitted, pre-arrival, orientation to first-year experience).

Administrative & Operational Management

• Develop and administer the departmental budget, including allocations for Orientation, Family Engagement, Transfer/Off-Campus programming, and special population initiatives, ensuring responsible fiscal management and compliance with College financial guidelines.

• Provide direct supervision, training, and development for two professional staff members and oversight of student staff supporting office initiatives.

• Establish and maintain clear supervision, training, and evaluation structures for student and professional staff engaged in orientation and transition work.

• Provide ongoing professional development and performance coaching to professional staff, and student leaders supporting orientation, family engagement, and transition programs.

• Guide the development, implementation, and continual refinement of orientation, transition, and family engagement programs.

• Ensure compliance with institutional policies and external standards.

• Establish and assess student learning outcomes for orientation and transition programs, ensuring alignment with divisional and institutional learning frameworks.

Partnerships & Representation

• Represent STFP on divisional and institutional committees, including those related to first-year experience, student success, and major campus events.

• Build collaborative partnerships with Admissions, Enrollment Management, Advising, Institutional Advancement, Alumni Relations, Housing & Residence Education, Office of International Student Affairs, Academic Affairs, Financial Aid and other key stakeholders.

• Serve as the primary liaison to divisional leadership regarding student and family trends, emerging concerns, and opportunities for improved support.

• Cultivate and maintain relationships with Emerson Los Angeles and Kasteel Well campuses to ensure consistency and connection across sites.

• Serves on and takes an active role in the Commencement Committee.

Program Oversight

• Provide leadership support to Orientation planning, Family Engagement initiatives, and Transfer/Off-Campus support structures.

• Ensure programs are evaluated regularly and use assessment results to inform improvements.

• Support all major College events led by the department or involving the department (e.g., Commencement, Family Weekend, major welcome programming).

• Lead efforts to eliminate barriers to participation in orientation and family engagement programs, including cost, language, disability access, and scheduling needs.

• Develop a comprehensive annual assessment pla