Associate Director of Student Advocacy

Position Title:

Associate Director of Student Advocacy

Position Type:

Fixed Term (Fixed Term)

Hiring Range:

$77,600- $85,350 Compensation will be based on education, experience, skills relevant to the role, and internal equity.

Pay Frequency:

Annual

POSITION PURPOSE

The Associate Director focuses on two key areas: 1) providing strategic leadership for first-generation college student advocacy services within the LEAD Scholars Program (LEAD) and 2) delivering direct counseling to first-generation students facing mental health, financial, academic, and personal challenges. Additionally, the Associate Director leads efforts to ensure LEAD remains an inclusive and supportive environment tailored to the unique needs of first-generation college students.

This role requires extensive experience in case management, specifically in counseling college students on mental health and wellbeing, financial hardships, and other personal or social challenges that may impede academic success. The Associate Director manages a caseload of students, while providing expert guidance on crisis management involving issues such as mental health and substance use.

The Associate Director supervises two Assistant Directors of Student Advocacy, working together as the primary responders to students facing challenges within LEAD. This role also involves overseeing recruitment efforts, planning LEAD Week, and supporting additional programmatic initiatives.

The ideal candidate will have significant experience counseling college students, particularly first-generation and historically underrepresented students, with a deep understanding of the challenges they face.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES 

Student Well-Being and Advising (30%)

• Lead holistic support initiatives for students in the LEAD Scholars Program, including expert guidance in crisis management involving mental health, substance use, and other personal and academic issues

• Provide direct counseling and advising services for a case-load of LEAD Scholars 

• Ensure student advising and support is tailored to student identities—including but not limited to: BIPOC students, undocumented students, transfer students, veterans, foster youth, and other intersecting identities

Staff Supervision and Development (15%)

• Supervise a team of two Assistant Directors of Student Advocacy

• Recruit, select, onboard, train, and evaluate staff members 

• Provide direction and leadership 

• Develop talent, skills, and abilities of those supervised 

• Set clear expectations and mutual goals for two Assistant Directors of Student Advocacy

• Meet regularly with individual Assistant Directors of Student Advocacy to provide consultation on work-related issues including programming, student support, budgeting and professional development

• Lead weekly Advocacy Team meetings 

Strategic Leadership (15%)

• Work closely with Director to develop strategies by which LEAD can advance student holistic wellness through programming  and assess those efforts in collaboration with other LEAD staff members and of Educational Assessment 

• Build a network of support that includes on and off campus resources, ensuring effective advocacy, referral and collaboration with such units as Counseling and Psychological Services, Office of Student Life, Office of Multicultural Learning, Wellness Center, Office of Accessible Education, the Drahmann Center and Financial Aid

• Provide consultation to on-campus units, faculty and staff regarding the needs of first-generation college students to ensure they are effectively supported

• Collaborate with campus and off-campus constituents to develop and implement holistic wellness support for LEAD Scholars 

• Oversee wellness programming implemented by Assistant Directors of Student Advocacy 

• Provide consultation on LEAD Peer Mentoring Program 

• Author reports on LEAD Student Advocacy work for annual reports, impact reports for donors and other needs

• Remain abreast of research, current trends, practices and legal issues pertinent to the needs of first-generation college students

Prospective Student Recruitment (10%)

• Oversee recruitment and matriculation of new LEAD Scholars in collaboration with LEAD team members, Admissions, Drahmann Center, Registrar's Office and other campus partners

• Manage the new student invitation and application process including responding to request for additional information and outreaching to potential LEAD Sch