Dean of Students at Erikson Institute

The Dean of Students has a pivotal role at Erikson Institute, encompassing designing, implementing, and cultivating systems and strategies for supporting student well-being. At the crux of this position is a deep respect for diversities, knowledge of stressors and support systems, design and implementation of initiatives and programs to support student well-being across domains, and the ability to foster a politics of inclusion and belonging at Erikson. The Dean of Students is committed to strengthening community, harnessing supports, and cultivating belonging at Erikson. In particular, the Dean of Students takes proactive roles in anticipating student needs, supporting first generation students, students of Color as well as those with historically and contemporarily dispossessed identities.

The Dean of Students is responsible for coordinating resources across the Institute, serving as a liaison between students and other aspects of their student experience, including administration, faculty, IT, enrollment management, registration and student records, multicultural student affairs, financial aid, distance learning, the library, field education, student committee, disability services, advising, career services, and the Academic Success Center.

As part of Erikson’s commitment to becoming an anti-racist organization, the Dean of Students will be expected to work on welcoming, supporting, and retaining an ever-more diverse population of students from a strengths-based perspective. We seek someone who can focus on the ingenuity of historically-dispossessed students rather than focusing on risk factors. The aim and work expected is to reorganize systems of support in an effective way, instead of seeking to remediate students.

Under the supervision of the Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs, the Dean cultivates and sustains systems of support for students in order to ensure that the needed conditions for them to succeed academically, socially, and emotionally at Erikson are in place. In addition to cultivating and sustaining support systems and communities and working to upend obstacles to student success, the Dean of Students provides support to those who are struggling in classes or who are experiencing emotional, social, and family challenges affecting their academic life and well-being. The Dean also provides advice regarding degree requirements and serves as a liaison with program directors. Additionally, the Dean handles discipline-related processes and procedures and serves as a member of the Title IX and Compliance committees.

The Dean of Students oversees and supervises the Offices of Disability Services, Academic Advising, and the Academic Success Center.  The Dean of Students works closely with faculty, staff, students, alumni, and community partners to support and facilitate activities that foster student engagement, wellbeing, and professional advancement goals at the Institute. Particularly, the Dean of Students ensures that students become familiar with programs and services designed to support and enhance their student experience at Erikson. Additional to academic support, the Dean of Students designs, develops, and supports out-of-class opportunities to engage with peers and community members, cultivating sites whereby students can become familiar with diverse perspectives and cultural experiences, and develop a sense of community and belonging. These include, but are not limited to, affinity-based groups. We are looking for a skilled, knowledgeable, prepared, dynamic, authentic, and focused Dean of Students with a strong desire and pertinent experience pertaining to the advancement of Erikson’s mission and values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB). This commitment is the responsibility of every Erikson employee and is essential for success in this role.  

Knowledge of research on effective practices and systems to support minoritized students desired, including the ability to understand and implement support systems, programs and practices that address social-emotional and academic development through a race-equity and/or restorative justice lens. Namely, instead of engaging in practices that focus solely or primarily on changing student behavior to foster academic success, we are interested in hiring someone with the wherewithal to design, implement, and assess student support practices that build on relationships and create learning environments that support positive academic, social, and emotional growth.

MAJOR ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Ongoing Student Support

• Manage all student services functions, such as academic progression, advisement, and retention for enrolled graduate students of all degree and certificate programs;
• Work to integrate degree and non-degree students, fostering inclusion and belonging in the Erikson community;
• Create an environment of student-centered focus and support— including developing systems and initiatives to improve student life, development, and wellbeing;
• Provide ongoing student support, such as mental health, life circumstances and transitions, work/life balance, orientation of new students, and other student-related issues and responsibilities as assigned;
• Work with Institute-wide colleagues to coordinate services to students across relevant departments, including Library, Academic Success Center, Distance Learning, and IT to ensure the quality of students’ experience at Erikson;
• Oversee and support disability services, academic advising, and academic supports;
• Work with Career Counseling to ensure that the services provided meet the needs of students and are subject to continuous quality improvement; and
• Develop multiple ways—in person, remote, individual, group-based—for students to engage in and access the needed resources to support their wellness.

• Provide leadership, analysis, and advice in relation to policies and procedures regarding students and services for graduate students, including risk management;
• Serve as the Title IX officer for students and report to the CFO, Title IX Coordinator to help ensure that staff adheres to all relevant internal, federal, and state regulatory, policies, and procedures, such as FERPA and integrity and ethical standards;
• Ensure quality standards based on the Erikson Institute Student Handbook, working with relevant parties to handle student complaints, grievances, and appeals, as well as conduct issues and academic integrity issues, such as plagiarism, academic dishonesty/cheating;
• Serve on the satisfactory academic progress review team at the end of each semester to assess student progress and provide input on warning, probation, dismissal, and appeals process;
• Develop an audit process that documents student supports from enrollment to graduation;
• Handle the appeals process related to graduation requirements and serve on a culminating requirements committee to resolve issues related to academic requirements for graduation;
• Establish procedures to mitigate attrition and engage in the development of systems that interrupt attrition, especially for first-generation, students of Color, and other minoritized students, engaging in continuous quality improvement to increase retention and ensure higher rates of on-time graduation;
• Collaborate with the Director of Enrollment Management to develop strategies for success of incoming students, identify potential obstacles for new students, and work to support student success as they onboard into their programs; and
• Assist with developing and implementing standard operating procedures as well as communication strategies for the student-body at large.

• Work with the Dean of Faculty, academic Program Directors, faculty, and staff to ensure that applicable graduate student services and programs are planned, developed, and regularly reviewed and updated, safeguarding quality standards for program review;
• Work with the Institutional Research and Enrollment Services Teams to collect data to assess the prior year’s retention and forecast for future terms, as well as identify and develop retention strategies and create plans to implement strategies while assessing their efficacy;
• Update and advise faculty on policies that support students and impact student wellbeing and progress;
• Work with faculty in program reviews to identify universally-designed ways of engaging students and remove obstacles that may prevent students from enrolling and graduating;
• Support faculty in working with students who are experiencing learning, emotional, social, financial, and or family stressors and/or challenges that impact their academic success and wellbeing; and
• Assist in accreditation processes.

EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE, AND SKILLS

Required

• Master’s degree in counseling, education, higher education administration, or related field;
• 5+ years of administrative experience in a post-secondary educational institution;
• Demonstrated experience understanding, documenting, and responding to mental health concerns and crises;
• Excellent interpersonal, oral and written communication skills;
• Ability to establish priorities, organize, schedule and solve problems and tasks;
• Ability to engage in critical thinking and analyze quantitative and qualitative data into informational reports for strategic planning and problem-solving;
• Ability to synthesize detailed, complex information related to student affairs into clear and compelling recommendations and briefings;
• Respect for and appreciation of diverse identities and ways of knowing;
• Experience participating and facilitating teams of professionals across organizational sectors;
• Experience in leadership and management, including budget management, hiring and evaluation of personnel, and coordination of services;
• Demonstrated ability to model appropriate professional, ethical and collaborative behaviors that engender collaboration, trust, and respect consistent with the responsibilities of this position.

Preferred

• Doctoral degree in counseling, education, higher education administration, or related field;
• Demonstrated successful experience in and knowledge of quality improvement systems;
• Evidence of robust understandings of support systems for first-generation students, students of Color, and those who are members of other minoritized communities;
• Experience designing, implementing and monitoring solutions to complex higher education issues, employing the field’s most up-to-date recommendations and practices;
• Experience leading multiple units and staff through change; and
• Demonstrated record of unifying communities and coordinating actions across units to meet institutional goals.

Application Procedure and Timeline

Application materials should include a) cover letter which explains professional education, experience, and qualifications for the position; b) full curriculum vitae or resume; and c) names, addresses (including titles and institutions), email addresses, and telephone numbers of three references who may be contacted. Applications are being accepted immediately and will continue until the position is filled; applications submitted by November 30, 2021 will be given full consideration. All applications must be submitted as 1 PDF file to Dr. Pamela Epley, Interim Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty at rgillis@erikson.edu.

About Erikson Institute

Erikson Institute (www.erikson.edu) is a graduate school that uniquely prepares child development, education, and social work leaders to improve the lives of young children and their families.  Our impact and influence are further amplified through our innovative academic programs, applied research, direct services in the community, and advocacy, policy and leadership.

Erikson Institute is an equal opportunity employer. We consider all applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national or ethnic origin, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, age, disability, veteran status, or any other classes protected by federal, state, or local laws. In addition, Erikson Institute provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and applicable state and local laws (including during the application and/or hiring process).