Externship Director

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Department:

Washington College of Law

Time Type:

Full time

Work Modality:

Hybrid 01 (On Campus 3-4 Days/Week)

Union:

Excluded

Job Description:

Summary:

The employee will have full responsibility for the administration of a major experimental learning program which places up to 250 students enrolled each academic year in workplace settings and provides systematic classroom-based instruction in approximately 12 seminars as well as individualized academic supervision of those placements. The seminars focus on reflective practice, lawyering skills, professionalism and ethics relevant to student externship assignments and legal practice. The employee will function as the principal representative of AUWCL in contacts with the practicing bar, government agencies, non-governmental organizations, courts, corporate offices and law firms for the purpose of developing externship opportunities and will organize and maintain an interactive computerized database of information about such opportunities.

Working with the Associate Dean for Experiential Education, the Externship Program Director will have overarching responsibility to develop and implement externship policies and procedures, assure that the externship placements are in compliance with the American Bar Association (“ABA”) Accreditation Standards; recruit new placements; oversee website and other information about externships; counsel students on whether, when and where to pursue externships; assist in coordinating international externships; teach the Supervised Externship Seminar or the Advanced Externship Seminar; and lead strategic planning for the externship program. JD degree required. The Director will be responsible for establishing and maintaining relationships with externship programs in other law schools, locally and nationally.

In addition, the Administrator will work closely with the WCL Office of Career & Professional Development (OCPD) to assure that the Supervised Externship Program functions as effectively as possible in supporting students through the transition from school to work. In conjunction with OCPD, he or she will help to counsel students on how best to use externship experiences as an entry point for part-time or post-graduation job opportunities.

Organizational Characteristics:

• This position reports directly to the Associate Dean of Experiential Learning and Director of Clinic in charge of the supervised Externship Program. In conjunction with the Office of Academic Affairs, this position is responsible for hiring and supervising all externship faculty. In a given year, at least 12 externship faculty teach in the program, while others are available to teach in subsequent years.
  
  
• He or she is responsible for hiring and supervising a full-time Program Coordinator and Part-Time Dean’s Fellow.
  
  
• This position will work closely with the Assistant Dean for Career and Professional Development and her staff that the Externship Program functions as effectively as possible in supporting students through the transition from school to work.
  
  

Essential Functions:

• Registration/Approval/Compliance with ABA Standards: Maintain familiarity with ABA Standards for Learning Outcomes, Externships, Experiential Education and Credits Hours (Sections 302, 303, 304, 310) Provide students with effective and timely registration and approval system for field placements and seminars. Administer approval process for students seeking to receive academic credit for externships to ensure compliance with ABA Standards and AUWCL Externship policies. Reach out to new employers as necessary and communicate with students and supervisors in a timely fashion regarding any compliance issues that arise. Ensure that that Registrar is forwarded approved field placements.
  
  
• Student assistance : Assist students in finding field placements that will meet their academic and career goals, provide them with information about the Externship Program and help them understand and engage in the externship application process for both domestic and international externships. Counsel students and review resumes. The Externship Director will be responsible for preparing literature describing program offerings and organizing student informational meetings for all first-year students. The Externship Director will organize the annual Externship Fair (serving over 120 employers and 400 students) which serves as an important recruitment tool for externship employers. The Externship Director is also responsible for maintaining and updating the externship website which provides information for students on registration, program requirements, finding an externship, etc.
  
  
• Supervision and hiring of Externship Seminar Faculty and Teaching: Recommend the hiring of adjunct faculty (in consultation with the Assistant Dean of Adjunct Faculty Affairs) to teach externship seminars, and onboard, train, mentor and supervise adjunct faculty. Ensure that externship seminars are consistently high quality and meet Program's pedagogical goals. Train new faculty members on externship pedagogy. Draft and distribute seminar requirements to faculty and convey standards for assessment, while providing faculty with pedagogical flexibility. Provide faculty with written guidance prior to the start of each semester and at the end of each semester concerning policies and administrative procedures. Provide teaching resources to faculty including seminar guidelines and requirements, externship textbook and teacher’s manual, and sample lesson plans, exercises, readings and syllabi.Oversee updates of individual Canvas seminar templates and faculty Canvas page. . Review seminar teaching evaluations. Hold “Roundtable” meetings of externship faculty to discuss issues arising in externship seminars, new externships requirements, etc. Track availability of externship seminar faculty each semester and select faculty one year in advance. Teach one section of an externship or advanced externship seminar each academic year.
  
  
• Relationships with Field Placement Supervisors : The Externship Director will have primary quality control functions with respect to individual student externship placements and will review student evaluations of field placements. The Director will work with externship faculty to ensure that students are able to address issues that arise in their placements and will provide support as needed. The Program Director will ensure that employers understand program requirements prior to hiring externs and will receive and sign field placement agreement, (and remote agreement if necessary). The Director also will also oversee the maintenance of the employer pages of the Externship Website.
  
  
• Externship Pedagogy : Review literature on law school externship programming and summarize results for use by faculty teaching in the program, identify materials for classroom component of program; ; monitor compliance of the externship program with ABA accreditation standards, review program design. Participate in discussions of externship pedagogy nationally and attend conferences. Establish and maintain relationships with externship programs at other law schools, locally and nationally.
  
  
• Program Administration :Train and supervise the Program Coordinator in registration approval, event planning, assistance for faculty, and website updates and social media feeds.Ensure Coordinator Manual and related documents are updated. Maintain and manage the Externship Program’s document management system (both electronic and paper) and an interactive computerized database of information about externship opportunities. Gain expertise in platforms, including Symplicity, Canvas, Access and Qualtrics.Train and supervise Deans’ Fellow. Develop annual budgets, review monthly financial reports for accounts, be responsible for the program credit card and reconciling the credit card statements, and ensure that the program stays within its budget.
  
  

Supervisory Responsibility:

• The Externship Director will have full responsibility for the administration of a major experiential learning program which places up to 250 students enrolled each academic year in workplace settings, supervised by a similar number of workplace supervisors.
  
  
• The program provides systematic classroom-based instruction through seminars taught by approximately 12 adjunct faculty.
  
  
• The Director interacts on a regular basis with a number of other programs and offices, including the clinical program, the international and comparative legal studies program, the Office of Career and Professional Development, the Office of the Registrar, the Office of Student Affairs and the Office of Academic Affairs, among others.
  
  

Position Type/Expected Hours of Work:

• Full-Time.
  
  

Salary Range from:

• $115,000 to $126,000 annually.
  
  

Required Education and Experience:

• A J.D. degree.
  
  
• Minimum of 5 years of law practice and/or experience working in a law school on curricular or programmatic issues (or the equivalent) are required.
  
  

Preferred Education and Experience:

• Preferred qualifications are 10 or more years of the experience noted above.
  
  

Benefits

AU offers a competitive benefits package including a 200% matching retirement plan, tuition benefits for full-time staff and their families, several leadership development certificates, and has been recognized by the American Heart Association as a fit-friendly worksite. Click here to learn about American University's unique benefit options .

Other Details

• Hiring offers for this position are contingent on successful completion of a background check.
  
  
• Employees in staff positions at American University must deliver their services to the university from either the District of Columbia, Maryland, or Virginia, or perform work on-site at the university.
  
  
• Please note this job announcement is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.
  
  
• American University is an E-Verify employer.
  
  

Current American University Employees

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Contact Us

For more information or assistance with the American University careers site, email theworkline@american.edu .

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