Director of Residence Life

Director of Residence Life

 

Mission
We are a community committed to preparing students to be educated and enlightened citizens who lead productive and meaningful lives.

Vision
To be the national model for the engaged university: engaged with ideas and the world.

Who We Are
Located in the heart of Virginia’s beautiful Shenandoah Valley, the city of Harrisonburg is approximately 120 miles from Washington, D.C. and Richmond, VA. With a population of just over 53,000, Harrisonburg is one of the most diverse communities in the Commonwealth of Virginia. JMU is a selective, public institution with a growing national reputation for offering experiences that lead to an outstanding education and inclusive environment for students, faculty and staff. The student body includes approximately 20,000 undergraduate and 1,900 graduate students, with over 1,000 full-time instructional faculty.

JMU offers thriving programs in the liberal arts, science and technology, and professional disciplines at the undergraduate, master’s and doctoral levels. The university is committed to expanding diversity, fostering equity and inclusion, and supporting superlative teaching and scholarship. JMU has achieved national recognition for the high quality of its academic programs, focus on maintaining strong student/faculty interaction, and innovative faculty research.

 

The Office of Residence Life (ORL) at James Madison University is committed to designing and maintaining a caring environment that encourages academic success, respect, personal growth and responsibility to one’s community. We value the following:

  • Supportive transition to the JMU community
  • Academic achievement
  • Providing positive learning experiences
  • Providing excellent service and accommodations

 

#1: Leadership, Management, and Supervision – Directly supervise the four Associate Directors in ORL. Certify that performance evaluations of all ORL employees align with divisional and department mission, vision, and values. Ensure all ORL staff are prepared to execute division and department priorities. Ensure department mission, vision, and value align with divisional mission, vision, values, and priorities. Advocate on behalf of ORL for resources, support, and recognition. Being inclusive in the recruitment, selection, orientation, and development of staff. Facilitate personal/professional development of ORL staff.
#2: Student Staff and Resident Engagement – Engage with on-campus residents and establish a regular presence in our residence halls, and student staff employees to gather information about their experiences. Encourage and reinforce the presence of all staff members with their RAs and within their residential communities. Use information gathered in short-term and long-term planning, programming, and support for ORL.
#3: Resource Management – Manage the financial success of the department by ensuring the optimal use and distribution of dollars across the department. Provides direction for the maintenance of facilities, new construction, and collaborative efforts to maximize resources in Student Affairs.
#4: Assessment– Cooperate with the Student Affairs Assessment Council to develop and implement ongoing assessment efforts with the expressed purpose of measuring attainment of objectives and program improvement. Assessment should address the learning and development of residential students and student staff. Assessment results should inform resource allocation, program improvement, and marketing processes.
#5: Crisis Management – Collaborate with the Dean of Students Office and the Office of Student Accountability and Restorative Practices in evaluating and assessing crisis protocols including: on-call procedures, notifications, and reporting. Use evidence-based approaches in partnering with university departments to reduce student crises. Serve as the ORL representative on the Behavioral Assessment Team (BAT).
#6 Equity and Inclusion – Contribute to the Student Affairs equity and inclusion value by confronting systems of oppression by designing intentional and inclusive practices, policies, and programs in pursuit of a socially just world.
#7 Collaboration – Proactively develop and maintain relationships with departments across Student Affairs as well as other stakeholders where such relationships would promote efficiency/effectiveness in fulfilling the divisional mission and vision. Work across departmental and divisional lines to create the best experience for our students in the halls.
#8 Committee Work – Serve on departments and university committees. Actively participate in accomplishing established goals and objectives.
#9 Professional Development – Accumulate a minimum of 20 hours of professional development during each performance evaluation period. Obtain hours by attending university, divisional, and department training. Attend conferences, get a certification, or other job-related training. Use professional development opportunities to stay relevant to trends and best practices.

 

Required:

  • Previous experience supervising full-time staff
  • Demonstrate a commitment to inclusiveness
  • Commitment to holistic education
  • Commitment to student development
  • Experience managing a budget with multiple spending accounts
  • Ability to revise or develop crisis management policies and procedures
  • Knowledge of housing operations and facilities management
  • Demonstrate use of evidence-based practices in achieving outcomes
  • A record of collaboration across a university
  • Commitment to development of student-learning environment
  • Experience managing multiple projects simultaneously
  • Ability to communicate with a variety of stakeholders
  • Be current on research and trends in Higher Education
  • Master’s degree in Educational Administration, Student Personnel Administration or a related field from a regionally accredited college or university

 

To apply go to  https://joblink.jmu.edu/postings/11746  visit JobLink.jmu.edu and reference posting number F1850. Maximum Starting: $110,000.

 

James Madison University is an equal opportunity employer committed to creating and supporting a diverse and inclusive work and educational community that is free of all forms of discrimination. This institution does not tolerate discrimination or harassment on the basis of age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, genetic information, national origin, parental status, political affiliation, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation or veteran status.