Chief Diversity Officer

Chief Diversity Officer

 

Position Summary:

Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) invites applications for position of Chief Diversity Officer.

 

Reporting to the President, the Chief Diversity Officer provides leadership and strategic direction in creating and nurturing a college climate that is welcoming, inclusive, respectful and free from discrimination, intolerance and harassment. In concert with the College’s strategic plan, Engagement Matters: Pathways to Completion, the Chief Diversity Officer advances and promotes the College’s commitment to inclusive excellence as critical to meeting core mission.

 

This position fosters change and embraces the value of equity, diversity and inclusion. This includes informing, educating and working collaboratively with the college’s executive team on matters affecting recruitment and selection of college employees as well as education of the college community for the purpose of creating an inclusive climate. Likewise, the Chief Diversity Officer recommends policies and procedures to ensure inclusivity and equity across all constituencies of the college.

 

The Chief Diversity Officer will use data to identify where the institution can support students both inside and outside of the classroom, to ensure equity in student success. The Chief Diversity Officer works in partnership with the faculty, staff and students and community to create and deliver programs that engage, support and educate the college community on issues related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. In addition, the Chief Diversity Officer facilitates the use of pedagogical strategies that support and affirm different student backgrounds and learning styles while developing strong critical thinking skills. This also includes supporting a curriculum that focuses on diversity and addresses the social construction of differences as well as the causes and effects of structured inequality.

 

With learning as its central mission, Anne Arundel Community College has responded to the needs of a diverse community for more than 50 years by offering high quality, affordable and accessible learning opportunities. Established in 1961, AACC is a fully-accredited, public two-year institution that offers national and regional studies that can lead to a degree or certificate, industry credential, transfer to a four-year institution, or career enhancement, personal enrichment and lifelong learning.

 

The college’s nationally recognized and award-winning programs have helped more than 49,000 students annually achieve their academic, professional and personal goals. The college is a member on the League for Innovation and holds a seat on the 20 member board of directors. A member of this elite organization since 2004, AACC was unanimously selected for its innovative programs and services, commitment to learning-centered education and dedication to serving students and the community. In 2016, AACC launched “Engagement Matters -Pathway to Completion” a college-wide call to action and strategic plan focused on attainment and completion of stated student educational goals. In addition, AACC commitment to inclusivity was recognized by INSIGHT Into Diversity for the last two consecutive years through attainment of the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award.

 

Located in Anne Arundel County Maryland near historic Annapolis - home to the U.S. Naval Academy – AACC is conveniently located just minutes from Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport and downtown Baltimore and is not far from Washington, D.C. Also bordering the beautiful Chesapeake Bay, the county has 437 miles of waterfront.

 

Job Duties and Responsibilities:

The Chief Diversity Officer provides leadership and strategic direction by creating and nurturing a college climate that is welcoming, inclusive, respectful and free from discrimination, intolerance and harassment. The Chief Diversity Officer is responsible for coordinating and guiding plans, programs and initiatives that promote an inclusive environment for all students, staff, and faculty. This includes providing direction on matters affecting recruitment, selection and education of the college community for the purpose of creating an inclusive climate.

 

Duties:

Executive Level Leadership:

• Executive lead for planning, directing, implementing, evaluating and updating college diversity and inclusion efforts for the purpose of creating and nurturing a diverse and inclusive college culture.
• Collaborate with all divisions to address equity gaps in student success.
• Serve as a member of the executive team.
• Serve as the College spokesperson for issues related to diversity, equity, inclusion and social justice.
• Identify, propose and implement best practices that achieve meaningful access, equity, diversity and compliance outcomes and results. This includes identifying and addressing barriers to the development of strategies, implementation, outcomes and results.
• Create and propose college wide policies and procedures that promote equity and inclusivity.
• Advise the President of potential problem areas related to diversity, equity, inclusion and social justice that includes best practices, hiring trends, promotional opportunities, training, salary, attrition/retention, employee attitudes, campus climate, counseling and community relations. Provide strategies that can be implemented to address concerns related to this area of responsibility.
• Create a comprehensive and cross divisional approach for AACC’s diversity programs, initiatives and activities.
• Maintain and foster our reputation as a national leader in equity and inclusion.

 

Planning:

• Plan, provide and coordinate communication outreach efforts to campus and external communities.
• Lead, manage, supervise and facilitate completion of diversity initiatives consistent with our strategic and diversity plans.
• Create an annual CDO office plan consistent and in alignment with institutional goals. This should be a proactive plan that addresses processes, programs and personnel required to respond to internal and external variables that impact our students and employees.
• Work collaboratively with the Human Resources Department to develop strategies to attract diverse pools, review and sign off on all job descriptions, provide equity training for all hiring committees, and ensure a fair and transparent hiring process.
• Leverage staff and resources to develop an institutional research framework to assess equity and inclusion. This includes the development of an implementation plan to support the work of the Engagement Matters Pathways to Completion team. Provide leadership for the implementation of measurable interventions with the ultimate goal of improving the colleges’ climate for employees, students and the communities we educate.
• Develop proposals and recommendations for institutional policy and procedures.
• Evaluate and refine the equity oriented programs and initiatives, and provide leadership, counsel, information and advocacy for all divisions to achieve defined goals and then measure success in increasing inclusive excellence to ensure educational and employment equity.
• Prepare an annual report and annual plan addressing current and future diversity and inclusion initiatives for the president and Board of Trustees. Complete other required annual external College reports.

 

Campus Involvement/ Campus Climate:

• Co-chair the Diversity Committee and ensure the goals align with the College’s strategic plan.
• Working with the Federal Compliance Officer, analyze and share trends as related to EEO, affirmative action and diversity.
• Serve as an ombudsman for staff and students by serving as a resource, and repository, for campus interactions that may impede/ interfere with our commitment to inclusivity.
• Coordinate the development, implementation and regular revision of a campus climate survey. Develop a plan, administer, analyze and share research results. Recommend action steps and strategies.
• Conduct research to ensure alignment and effective advocacy for all underrepresented groups including but not limited to, students of color, disabled students, LGBTQ, immigrant and faith based student groups to ensure alignment with our strategic plan “Engagement Matters- Pathways to Completion”.
• Work with the Division of Learning, and the Curriculum Committee, and provide pedagogical strategies infusing equity and diversity throughout our curriculum.
• Collaborate with the Division of Learner Support Services and student organizations to ensure comprehensive diversity and inclusion programming.
• Develop a proactive crisis response plan that can be immediately implemented in response to threatening internal and external variables.
• Enhance the visibility, and increase services offered, by partnering with four year and graduate programs to create an internship program. In addition, by working with the student government leadership team, provide guidance and support for the creation of non-paid positions.
• Oversee the development and execution of inclusive excellence training programs to assist managers in understanding the differences among people and provide direction that maximize the contributions of all employees.
• Collaborate with Human Resources Department, Federal Compliance Manager and Office of Institutional Professional Development to develop and coordinate a robust professional development program for the college community.

 

Required Qualifications:

The Chief Diversity Officer must possess a Master’s degree in a related field and a minimum of five years of progressive experience in an organizational leadership position with responsibility for diversity and inclusion initiatives and programs. Given the work that is already being done at AACC around diversity and inclusion, the successful candidate will need to assess and evaluate how this role and office can assist existing initiatives and partners, add additional value to their work, and leverage energy for great impact.

 

The successful candidate will demonstrate experience managing a comprehensive diversity program, including curriculum development, organizational development and institutional change. Demonstrated ability to mediate conflict resolution between faculty and staff as well as foster an environment of change management is essential. Demonstrated knowledge of the use of best practices in higher education such as familiarity with the application and implementation of the NADOHE Standards of Professional Practice for Chief Diversity Officers is required. Knowledge of human resources practices, procedures, and state and federal laws and regulations related to equal employment opportunity and higher education is also required.

 

Candidate screening will begin immediately. For best consideration, applications should be completed by April 25, 2017 and must be submitted electronically to https://aacc.hiretouch.com/. Candidates should submit a letter describing relevant experiences and interest in the position, a resume and five references.

 

For more information about AACC please visit: http://www.aacc.edu

 

AACC is an equal opportunity employer who values the power of diversity and the strength it brings to the workplace.