Senior Director of Nursing

At Aspire Living & Learning, we don't just talk about making an impact, we live it. For more than 40 years, we've supported neurodiverse children and adults across New England and Maryland as they discover their passions, unlock their potential, and live more independently in their communities. Our person-centered services evolve with people's needs, from education and behavioral health to residential and community-based supports. We empower people to live lives shaped by their own interests, choices, and strengths. Join our collaborative, mission-driven team and bring your skills to work that makes a real difference every day.

Aspire Living & Learning is currently seeking a Senior Director of Nursing to serve as Aspire’s senior nursing leader, responsible for the overall quality, consistency, and strategic direction of nursing services across Aspire’s multi-state footprint. This role strengthens Aspire’s nursing infrastructure in response to increasing medical complexity, aging populations, and organizational growth. The Senior Director of Nursing establishes enterprise standards for nursing practice and medication management, reduces clinical and regulatory risk, and ensures nursing investments translate into measurable improvements in quality, compliance, and outcomes for the people we serve. The role works in close partnership with Operations, Quality, Finance, and Workforce Development to ensure nursing services are aligned, sustainable, and responsive to evolving needs. This leader must reside within and be willing to travel regularly throughout Aspire’s service footprint (MA, CT, NH, MD, VT).

Key Responsibilities:

Enterprise Clinical Leadership & Risk Reduction 

• Serve as Aspire’s senior nursing authority, accountable for nursing practice quality, patient safety, and regulatory compliance across all states and service lines. 
• Reduce clinical and regulatory risk by strengthening medication oversight, standardizing documentation practices, and proactively addressing trends in incidents through root cause analysis, hospitalizations, and audit findings. 
• Ensure consistent, timely nurse involvement in medication changes, hospital discharges, program transitions, and high-risk incident review, positioning nursing as a proactive clinical partner. 
• Establish nurse-led oversight of medication administration practices to reduce risk exposure for DSPs and programs. 
• Oversee our multi-state footprint, ensuring alignment with regulatory expectations and best practices.  

Nursing Structure, Scope of Practice & Accountability 

• Design and implement a standardized, enterprise-wide nursing model that clearly defines roles, scopes of practice, caseload expectations, supervision structures, and delegation practices. 
• Establish clear performance expectations and accountability for both internal nursing staff and contracted nursing providers. 
• Ensure nurses are consistently practicing at the top of their license by aligning work appropriately and removing unnecessary administrative burden.  

Contracted Nursing & Vendor Oversight 

• Provide internal clinical oversight of contracted nursing vendors, including setting quality and documentation standards and monitoring performance and responsiveness. 
• Partner with executive and operational leadership to evaluate internal, contracted, and hybrid nursing models based on quality, risk reduction, and cost effectiveness.  

Medication Management, Technology & Systems 

• Lead Aspire’s medication management infrastructure, including selection, implementation, and oversight of an electronic Medication Administration Record (eMAR) system across all states. 
• Guide adoption of medication administration technologies that reduce errors and improve compliance, ensuring systems support centralized oversight, remote auditing, trend analysis, and timely retraining.  

Documentation, Auditing & Quality Integration 

• Standardize nursing documentation practices across states and service lines to ensure accuracy, consistency, and regulatory alignment.