Career Center

Department: Dean of Students
Salary/Grade: EXS/6

Student Assistance and Support Services Mission: Through consultation, intervention and advocacy, Student Assistance and Support Services (SASS) strives to support, educate and assist students challenged with complex issues, crises and other barriers that impede academic success. By empowering students to navigate university systems and resources as well as make informed decisions about their individual needs, SASS fosters the development of skills that promote agency and resilience. Learn more about the SASS team here: https://www.northwestern.edu/studentaffairs/sass/

About Student Affairs: By pursuing justice, equity, and belonging, Student Affairs cultivates student programs, services, and skills; disrupts barriers; and partners across Northwestern and neighboring communities to create an inclusive culture in which all students can thrive. Learn more about the Division of Student Affairs here: https://www.northwestern.edu/studentaffairs/about/strategic-plan/strategic-themes.html

Job Summary:

This Assistant Director will act as triage for the Dean of Students office by monitoring all incoming Incident Reports (IRs) and police reports, routing and assigning cases and ensuring proper follow-up, maintaining the Maxient database as a Level 5 user, and pulling and analyzing data for ongoing assessment.

The Assistant Director provides direct support to students in the Dean of Students office and as a member of the Student Assistance and Support Services team, they will provide support to the Medical Leave of Absence (MLOA) program. They will support the program in the following ways:

• Build strong collaborative partnerships with the Assistant Director of Residential Life and Community Standards and the Assistant Director for Wellness in Residential Life. 
• Serve as primary contact for student concerns, triage and assign cases, and manage some of the first steps related to student triage and care.
• Track and analyze data for ongoing assessment including demographic data to support Dean of Students office mission of better understanding and serving BIPOC students.
• Track medical leaves and reinstatements, serve as first point of contact for questions related to the MLOA.
• Run support programming for students who return from medical leave of absence, answer questions for students and families
• Manage gift funds and provide data and reports to ARD about use of gift funds to support student needs, particularly pertaining to retention and persistence to degree

Note: This position may be assigned to work evenings and/or weekends.

Principal Accountabilities:

Student Support 45%

• Provide immediate and ongoing support to students in crisis including, but not limited to, interacting with students and their families, student affairs offices, academic units, and relevant departments to coordinate University responses to students’ needs.
• Run health and safety checks
• Coordinate and cofacilitate groups for students returning from MLOA (both undergraduate and graduate)
• Process some MLOAs
• Serve as first point of contact for students and families when student is considering MLOA
• Coordinate reinstatement dinners
• Send out reminders to students on MLOA about upcoming reinstatement deadlines

Administration 25%

• Ensure that program/project mission, values, guidelines, policies & procedures are implemented and maintained. 
• Manage design and development of program databases; compile and analyze data; prepare reports including tracking of all Incident Reports (IRs) and Maxient analytics.
• Identify service improvement opportunities that will better enable program/project to achieve its goals and objectives. 
  • Track all requests for MLOA and reinstatement
  • Work with Registrar to set deadlines for processing all MLOA’s
  • Ensure all proper documentation submitted
  • Phone triage (calls would first be received/ managed by front desk and then if additional consultation is required then transferred to case manager)
  • Manage and maintain Maxient Level 5 user access, including:
    • Routing rules
    • Updates on titles, positions, names, etc.
    • Update any protocolized letters for SASS
    • Route Dean on Call (DoC) initial and follow up reports
    • Create wellness cases from DoC and CC reports that do not require follow up
    • Route community concerns reports and provide initial response
    • Generate quarterly Maxient analytics report
  • Route all Dean on Call reports, Community Concerns reports and MLOA and Reinstatement requests to appropriate staff for follow up
  • Recordkeeper for Care and Coordination team

Communication, Outreach & Recruitment 10%

• Strengthen partnerships with community partners by consulting about student concerns, responding promptly to questions and defining next steps.
• Send out reminders to campus partners and specifically our academic partners regarding Reinstatement and MLOA deadlines
• Update the website of deadline dates; ensure the timeliness of putting up and taking down the links
• Coordinate deadline dates for MLOA and reinstatement based on academic calendar
• Answer questions about MLOA and reinstatement process

Budgets & Financial 5%

• Coordinate financial support for students with high needs going on leave and other approved crisis
• Assist Program Coordinator in managing gift accounts (Margo Brown, Hartle, and Health Hardship)
  • Track expenses in shadow account
  • Assist Dean of Students with annual reports on how gift funds were used (for the donors to know how their monies were spent)
  • Amount used and for what

Evaluation 5%

• Analyze evaluation data from students, to assist in program/project development and updates.

Strategic Planning 5%

• Administer and maintain existing strategic plans.
• Participate with area/unit senior staff in the conceptualization, development and presentation of materials used in functional operations.

Miscellaneous 5%

• Other duties as assigned

Minimum Qualifications:

• Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's or higher degree; OR appropriate combination of education and experience.
• Demonstrated ability to work with young adults in crisis

Minimum Competencies:

• Highly developed communication skills to foster collaborative relationships
• Ability to multitask and manage several projects simultaneously
• Excellent customer service skills
• Ability to de-escalate crisis situations and make appropriate referrals

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master’s degree in social work or other mental health degree
• Excellent interpersonal communication, organization, and administrative skills.
• Experience working with diverse populations in a college setting
• Effective written and oral communication skills
• Proficiency with databases, history of tracking and analyzing data

Preferred Competencies:

• Demonstrated experiences with diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice leadership.
• Knowledge of higher education trends, federal and state laws and regulations, and the ability to interpret those to a broad range of audiences.
• Ability to maintain a working environment characterized by effective teamwork and collaboration with peers.
• Ability to excel in a team environment.

Benefits: At Northwestern, we are proud to provide meaningful, competitive, high-quality health care plans, retirement benefits, tuition discounts and more! Visit us at https://www.northwestern.edu/hr/benefits/index.html to learn more.

Work-Life and Wellness: Northwestern offers comprehensive programs and services to help you and your family navigate life’s challenges and opportunities, and adopt and maintain healthy lifestyles. We support flexible work arrangements where possible and programs to help you locate and pay for quality, affordable childcare and senior/adult care. Visit us at https://www.northwestern.edu/hr/benefits/work-life/index.html to learn more.

Professional Growth and Development: Northwestern supports employee career development in all circumstances whether your workspace is on campus or at home. If you’re interested in developing your professional potential or continuing your formal education, we offer a variety of tools and resources. Visit us at https://www.northwestern.edu/hr/learning/index.html to learn more.

Northwestern requires all staff and faculty to be vaccinated against COVID-19, subject to limited exceptions. For more information, please visit our COVID-19 and Campus Updates website.

The Northwestern campus sits on the traditional homelands of the people of the Council of Three Fires, the Ojibwe, Potawatomi, and Odawa as well as the Menominee, Miami and Ho-Chunk nations. We acknowledge and honor the original people of the land upon which Northwestern University stands, and the Native people who remain on this land today.

Northwestern University is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action Employer of all protected classes, including veterans and individuals with disabilities. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, individuals with disabilities, and veterans are encouraged to apply. Click for information on EEO is the Law.