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University of Maryland - College Park

Public university in College Park, MD

Associate Director for Student Culture and Engagement

School Leadership & AdministrationPosted on Nov 11
Full-timeCollege Park, MD, USA$145k - $165kIn-person

About the Job

Requirements

  • A bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university is required.
  • Eight years of residence hall, student engagement, or student affairs management experience are required.
  • Three years of experience supervising or managing professional staff are required.
  • Knowledge of student affairs, resident life, program development and administration, and event planning is required.
  • Knowledge of undergraduate students’ needs and aspirations is required.
  • Oral and written communication skills are required.
  • Skill in Microsoft Office and Google Workspace products is required.
  • Ability to interpret and apply policies, procedures, regulations, and laws is required.
  • Ability to multitask while demonstrating a commitment to customer service is required.
  • A master's degree in higher education, student affairs, counseling, education, public administration, organizational leadership, social sciences, or a related field is preferred.
  • Ten or more years of progressively responsible leadership and administrative experience in higher education or student affairs are preferred.
  • Five or more years of direct professional staff supervision, including managers, supervisors, and multi-tiered teams, are preferred.
  • Experience leading a department, center, or portfolio spanning multiple functional program areas, professional disciplines, and diverse student populations is preferred.
  • Ability to establish a unified portfolio strategy while respecting the distinct identities, missions, histories, and expertise of individual units is preferred.
  • Experience leading organizational change, program realignment, and cross-functional initiatives bridging academic and student affairs is preferred.
  • Ability to interpret and translate institutional, legal, and regulatory requirements into clear practice and policy is preferred.
  • Knowledge of student development, engagement, transition, belonging, community development, and co-curricular learning is preferred.
  • Expertise in multicultural engagement, cultural centers, population-based student services, and community advocacy, using culturally responsive practices without treating groups as monolithic, is preferred.
  • Success advancing access, engagement, and success for graduate, transfer, off-campus/commuter, and veteran/military-connected students, as well as populations facing institutional barriers, is preferred.
  • Experience opening, operating, developing, leading, or assessing a student center, cultural center, or community-focused campus space is preferred.
  • Experience supervising or collaborating with faculty, scholars, and senior educators to align teaching, research, publication, grants, advising, and co-curricular programs is preferred.
  • Ability to maintain appropriate administrative, supervisory, and organizational boundaries when overseeing specialized professional services and high-expertise staff is preferred.
  • Ability to lead relational responses during expressive activities, demonstrations, and sensitive campus events through proactive communication, relationship-building, de-escalation, and cross-departmental coordination is preferred.
  • Ability to distinguish relational and educational responsibilities from operational compliance and enforcement functions, coordinating effectively with institutional authorities, is preferred.
  • Ability to manage competing priorities and emerging concerns and exercise discretion and sound judgment with sensitive student, personnel, legal, or institutional matters is preferred.
  • Expertise in program development, learning outcomes, continuous improvement, and using qualitative and quantitative data, research, and student feedback to guide decisions is preferred.
  • Experience managing complex budgets, student-fee funding allocations, and multi-stream operational funds is preferred.
  • Skill in securing and managing grants, sponsorships, fundraising initiatives, and external strategic partnerships is preferred.
  • Ability to build productive relationships across academic, administrative, and divisional boundaries and facilitate complex conversations involving differing perspectives and institutional responsibilities is preferred.
  • Oral, written, interpersonal, and public communication skills across students, faculty, staff, senior administrators, families, alumni, and community partners are preferred.
  • Proficiency with Microsoft Office or comparable productivity, data, and collaboration platforms is preferred.

Responsibilities

  • Directly supervise the Assistant Director for Student Engagement, Manager of the Unity Center, two MICA Program Coordinators, and Scholar in Residence.
  • Provide indirect leadership to program coordinators, administrative staff, Graduate Legal Aid staff, graduate assistants, interns, and student employees.
  • Oversee recruitment, onboarding, coaching, performance evaluation, leave approvals, workload sustainability, succession planning, and professional development across the portfolio’s direct reports.
  • Provide strategic supervision to the Scholar in Residence, establish annual priorities and measures of success, align teaching, scholarship, research, advising, and grant-supported work with portfolio goals, and translate academic partnerships into co-curricular opportunities while respecting scholarly autonomy.
  • Cultivate a culture of trust, accountability, shared learning, and collaboration and enable staff to share resources and expertise while maintaining population-specific program and service integrity.
  • Lead programs, services, and space utilization across MICA, the Unity Center, and Student Engagement areas serving graduate, transfer, off-campus/commuter, veteran/military-connected students, and Graduate Legal Aid.
  • Design and evaluate initiatives that promote belonging, leadership, and smooth academic and social transitions across diverse student populations.
  • Partner with unit leaders to identify and remove systemic barriers to participation and develop outreach strategies for historically underrepresented or non-traditionally engaged student groups.
  • Integrate scholarly work, faculty and staff learning communities, and interdisciplinary partnerships into Unity Center and MICA programming.
  • Support the Assistant Director for Student Engagement in administering Graduate Legal Aid, including staffing, fee-funding stewardship, utilization tracking, service continuity, and administrative boundaries.
  • Ensure Graduate Student Life provides collaborative support for the Graduate Student Government while maintaining a broader focus on graduate student engagement.
  • Serve as a primary relational responder and co-facilitator in STAMP’s expressive-activity management process; communicate with organizers and student leaders, share policy and resource information, co-facilitate event planning, coordinate STAMP support staff, and lead relational de-escalation.
  • Represent STAMP on divisional and university committees focused on student success, culture, access, and campus climate.
  • Convene academic departments, administrative units, the Graduate School, alumni, and community partners to streamline resources, consult on cultural responsiveness, and coordinate support for emerging student needs.
  • Establish portfolio goals aligned with STAMP, divisional, and university priorities.
  • Partner with STAMP Assessment and Research to evaluate program reach, student belonging, resource accessibility, and partnership impact and drive data-informed improvements.
  • Provide fiscal oversight for operating, programmatic, student-fee, grant, and donor funds.
  • Identify and pursue external funding opportunities, including grants, sponsorships, and advancement partnerships.
  • Participate in STAMP-wide strategic planning, leadership team decision-making, policy formulation, critical-incident response, and inter-departmental collaboration across operations, facilities, communications, and student leadership.
  • Perform other assigned duties as needed.

About the Company

University of Maryland - College Park

Public university in College Park, MD

University of Maryland - College Park is the flagship institution of the University System of Maryland in College Park, Maryland. It provides undergraduate and graduate education and conducts research through its colleges and schools.

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