| Department Summary & Job Purpose: The Division of Student Life cultivates a dynamic, engaged, and inclusive community that enriches the student experience promotes wellness and belonging and supports the purposeful development of every student.
The Student Life team does this by complementing the academic program and enhancing the Mount Holyoke College student experience through co-curricular opportunities, community building, and cultivation of student leadership as well as by providing resources and support that enable student well-being. We work closely with the academic centers and our campus partners on specific initiatives such as Be Well at Mount Holyoke. We also coordinate many College-wide initiatives including New Student Orientation, Family & Friends Weekend, our Living Learning Communities, the MoZone Peer Education Program, Interfaith Education and Literacy, and the Leadership & Service Awards.
The Assistant Director for Community and Belonging is a 12-month full-time position that reports directly to the Executive Director, Associate Dean of Students. The Assistant Director’s duties include a wide range of administrative and programmatic initiatives to further the work of Community and Belonging and play an integral role in the College’s diversity and inclusion efforts. The Assistant Director serves as a campus leader in coordinating training, leadership opportunities, and co-curricular programs aimed at building interfaith and cultural competency, humility, and skills needed to engage across differences and thrive in a diverse community. The Assistant Director works closely with the Community and Belonging staff to foster all students’ holistic sense of belonging through advising, counseling, providing spiritual support, crisis support, and advocacy. The Assistant Director works closely with other campus-wide departments (i.e., student life departments, Office of DEI, academic departments, etc) and must have the ability to see their work in the context of and in partnership with the work of others. A desire to engage with students and participate in the life of the College is key to this position.
Office of Community and Belonging
The Office of Community and Belonging is committed to the holistic development and wellness of Mount Holyoke students using intersectional frameworks with a focus on identity, social justice, religion and spirituality, and liberatory consciousness. We create opportunities for those who gather and engage with The Office of Community and Belonging to feel empowered to ask and explore: “who I am, who do I want to be, and who do others think I am, and want me to be? Core Job Duties and Responsibilities: - Enumerated responsibilities of the Assistant Director for Community and Belonging
- Serve as a Multi-faith resource for students
- Develop and implement programmatic initiatives and services for Community and Belonging using an intersectional framework, interfaith cooperation, social justice, liberatory consciousness, and theological and ethical challenges of our times (i.e., speakers, intergroup and intragroup dialogues, Interfaith Lunch, Theology, and Talk, etc.)
- Support student access to worship and religious services for all students, including but not limited to spiritual companionship (pastoral/crisis support), and sacred spaces for contemplative and reflective practices
- Provide student employee training (i.e. Interfaith Assistants, MoZone Peer Educators, Cultural Center Employees, etc.)
- Facilitate and provide student leaders and student organization intersectional training, including but not limited to Antiracism, Interfaith Literacy, Gender Inclusion, etc.
- Assist in the coordination and implementation of college traditions such as Blessing and Sending, Stoling Ceremony, Lavender Ceremony, First Gen Cording Ceremony, Hortense Parker, and the Trailblazers of Color Leadership Conference
- Assist in the management, support, and advisement of the following SGA Committees: Students of Color, Lavender, and International Student Organizing Committee
- Assist with the oversight, scheduling, and planning of cultural, heritage, and awareness celebrations
- Support leadership development, interfaith cooperation, coalition building, and allyship among faith-based, cultural, and identity organizations and groups (annual retreat, training, meetings, etc.)
- Assist with Religious Accommodations
- Ensure the timely preparation for students to request religious accommodation in compliance with Massachusetts State Law by providing an updated multi-faith calendar and a reminder early each semester to request their intended need for accommodation via the religious accommodation form on Colleague.
- Collaborates closely with campus partners, especially Dining and Events Planning, in providing religious observance information ahead of high holidays and fasting observances, i.e. Passover, Ramadan, etc. to ensure the provision of religious dietary needs are met as well as offering celebratory items as part of our commitment to creating a sense of belonging for all of our students.
- Supervise the Kitchen Manager/ Chef and Manager of the Wa-shin-an Japanese Teahouse and Garden
- Assist in the operational support of the Safety Net which supports First-Generation and/ or Low-Income students
- Opportunities to serve as a campus representative for various five-college committees, including but not limited to diversity, equity, and inclusion committees and initiatives
- Opportunities to cultivate open and affirming worship and community spaces through an intersectional lens
- Additional Division of Student Life roles as deemed appropriate and necessary for the care and support of students
|
| Qualifications:
• Bachelor’s degree in a related field
• 3-5 years of progressive experience in higher education administration or related organizational experiences
• A commitment to enhancing diversity, equity, and inclusion on campus
• Cultural competence, cultural humility, and experience working with students from various identities and lived experiences
• Experience directly supporting International, BIPOC, First-Generation and Low- Income, LGBTQIA+ students, students with disabilities, etc
• Broad knowledge of issues and trends impacting undergraduate students in higher education
• Proven ability to build and maintain strong working relationships including connections with local religious and faith leaders, college faculty, trustees, alums, and families
• Strong leadership, problem-solving, and organizational skills
• Strong written and oral communication skills, as well as attention to detail
• Proven affinity for students, and a desire to participate in the life of the College
• Flexibility and the ability to handle multiple priorities
• The willingness to work flexible hours, including some evenings and weekends
Preferred Qualifications: • Master's degree in Higher Administration Education, or related field; or Masters of Divinity degree or equivalent position within their tradition or practice
• Expertise in providing interfaith and religious literacy, social justice, diversity and inclusion consultation, training, curricular and resources
• Experience, knowledge, or understanding of what it means to work at a gender-diverse women’s college
• Extensive knowledge of faith traditions and religious literacy
• Extensive knowledge of diverse liberation theologies (ie, womanist theology, feminist theology, black liberation theology, queer-affirming theology, etc).
• Intergroup Dialogue facilitation experience or experience facilitating conversations across difference
• Experience or familiarity with the Interfaith of America and the IA curriculum
• Proven experience advising, mentoring, coaching, or supervising students
License/Certifications: Compliance Requirements: |
| Physical Demands: • Sedentary work: Exerting up to 10 pounds of force occasionally and/or negligible amount of force frequently or constantly to lift, carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects. Sedentary work involves sitting most of the time. Jobs are sedentary if walking and standing are required only occasionally and all other sedentary criteria are met.
Talking: Expressing or exchanging ideas by means of the spoken word. Those activities in which they must convey detailed or important spoken instructions to other workers accurately, loudly, or quickly.
• Sufficient clarity of speech required includes those which permit the employee to discern verbal instructions and communicate effectively in person and by telephone.
• Employee talks in front of large groups of people on a daily basis.
• Employee speaks with students and other faculty daily by telephone, e-mail, or in person on a daily basis.
• Hearing: Perceiving the nature of sounds at normal speaking levels with or without correction. Ability to receive detailed information through oral communication, and to make the discriminations in sound.
Employee is reading and correcting assignments, evaluating student writing, presentations, projects, research assignments, etc.
• Employee operates office equipment and computers to perform essential duties and responsibilities. Working Conditions: - The employee is not substantially exposed to adverse environmental conditions (such as in typical office or administrative work).
|
| Background Checks: Mount Holyoke College is committed to providing a safe and secure environment, supported by qualified employees that will allow all of its students, faculty, staff and those associated with them to successfully carry out the mission of the college. As a condition of employment, the College will conduct appropriate background checks for all new hires. Mount Holyoke has designated the Office of Human Resources as the office responsible for ensuring that background checks (CORI, SORI, Credit History, & Driver Credential) are completed and utilized in the hiring process and Five College Office of Compliance and Risk Management as the office responsible for facilitating background checks as articulated in this policy. Special Instructions for Applicants: Apply online; application materials must include: - A cover letter summarizing interests and qualifications
- A complete resume or curriculum vitae
- Contact information for 3 professional references
|
| Mount Holyoke College is a women’s college that is gender diverse. The College is committed to providing equal access and opportunity in employment and education to all employees and students. In compliance with state and federal law, Mount Holyoke College does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, genetic information, sex, national or ethnic origin, religion, age, physical or mental disability, marital status, sexual orientation, pregnancy, gender identity or expression, ancestry, veteran or military status, or any other legally protected status under federal, state or local law. The College does not discriminate on the basis of gender in the recruitment and admission of students to its graduate program. Mount Holyoke College is an Equal Opportunity Employer. |
