Academic Program Director, Bachelor of Social Work

Capella University; United States; On-site; USD 95,000 - 143,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Tuition assistance

Well-being incentives

401(k)

Paid time off

Job summary

Strategic Education, Inc. is seeking an Academic Program Director to lead curriculum development, ensure accreditation readiness, and drive learner success across programs. You will work with deans, faculty directors, and HR to align offerings with industry standards and strategic goals.

The role requires 2+ years as an Academic Program Director in CSWE-accredited settings, teaching experience, and strong data-based decision making. Frequent travel and collaboration across campuses are expected.

Qualifications

• Masters in Social Work from an accredited program required.
• Doctorate in Social Work or closely related field required.
• Must be able to travel 10% of the time.
• Strong leadership and supervisory experience with faculty.

Responsibilities

• Spearhead development and revision of academic offerings.
• Use analytics to drive continuous quality improvement in learner outcomes and curricula.
• Oversee accreditation processes and ensure alignment with standards.
• Collaborate with deans, faculty directors and departments to manage curriculum delivery.
• Lead course development oversight and SME leadership.
• Teach or mentor quarterly.
• Maintain program compliance with regulatory standards.

Skills

Curriculum development

Andragogy

Assessment

Online teaching

Regulatory compliance

Data analysis

Program development

Learning effectiveness

Leadership

Travel willingness

MS Office

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Master's in Social Work

Doctorate in Social Work or related field

Tools

MS Office Suite

Job description

The Academic Program Director (PD) is a key leadership position within the university; he/she/they promote and support a quality academic experience for learners by ensuring an engaging courseroom environment that facilitates achievement of program outcomes. The Program Director has oversight of curricula quality and rigor, and works to ensure curricula are professionally relevant, current, efficient, effective, and cohesive. This management position contributes to a range of activities related to excellence in curriculum design/delivery and assessment effectiveness, learner success, satisfaction and engagement. work closely with deans, assistant/associate deans, and faculty directors, as well as relevant university departments, to manage systems and processes related to curriculum creation and delivery. He/she/they coordinate with the relevant faculty directors to remain aware of issues related to discipline content. The Program Director acts as a liaison to other departments including Portfolio Strategy, Doctoral Affairs, Course Development, Center for Faculty Excellence, Faculty Hiring, HR, Accreditation and Institutional Effectiveness, Learner Affairs, and others as required.

• Spearhead and oversee the development and revision of academic offerings.
• Utilize analytics and evidence-based practices to develop and execute actions that drive continuous quality improvement application in learner success, teaching, engagement, academic quality, and curricula development.
• Preside over efforts to ensure appropriate academic programmatic accreditation and/or licensure is obtained and maintained.
• Ensure assigned academic offerings align with professional trends and standards, while seeking professional validation wherever possible (in the way of credentials, licensure, alignment with existing or emerging standards/programmatic requirements, etc.)
• Oversight of curriculum development according to external standards and in alignment with university design principles; supervision of SME course development and leadership.
• Lead specialized accreditation process, self-study, etc.; ensure alignment to HLC best practices in university faculty oversight of curriculum.
• Build and nurture internal and external partnerships and relationships that drive success of the school and academic offerings.
• Orchestrate and optimize course offering/scheduling.
• Supervise Core faculty; conduct Core faculty performance reviews.
• Host faculty meetings focused on program and curricula.
• Collaborate with Faculty Director on the hiring of new faculty.
• Address learner programmatic issues (academic, professional disposition, behaviors).
• Teach or mentor once a quarter.
• All other duties as assigned.

• — Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum development, andragogy, and assessment.
  • Knowledge of online teaching, competency-based education, and direct assessment.
  • Discipline knowledge.
  • Ability to objectively analyze program/course quality data and implement recommendations relevant to improving learner outcomes.
  • Ability to maintain program compliance with all regulatory rules, and national program accreditation standards.
  • Familiarity with program development and evaluation.
  • Ability to advise and assess learning effectiveness and quality of the education experience.
  • Ability to provide significant impact on learner retention plus direct impact on cost, revenue and quality assurance within a program area.
• Navigation – Integration of program, academic and regulatory considerations with business strategies and plans.
  • Manage multiple academic and administrative projects.
  • Resolve multi-faceted types of problems encountered involving courses, faculty, regulatory or administrative issues.
• Adaptability/Flexibility — Open to change.
  • Drive results despite ambiguity.
• Innovation — Creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.
• Stress Tolerance —Ability to accept constructive criticism and deal with high stress situations.
• Leadership - Ability to operate independently (leading, collaborating and executing) in a highly ambiguous, matrixed environment with high interdependencies.
  • Be a doer, focused not just on thought partnership but on getting things done and executing both independently and with others.
  • Lead by listening, be highly collaborative, and productively contribute opinions to critical decision‑making processes.
  • Act independently to achieve results in support of business goals and strategies with a program area.

Work Experience

• 2 years of full time professional social work practice experience post CSWE MSW degree conferral required.
• A minimum of 1 year required, two years preferred experience as an Academic Program Director in a CSWE Accredited Program.
• A minimum of 3 years teaching in an accredited program or related field; online higher education teaching experience preferred.
• Demonstrated contribution to the discipline including publishing, committee involvement, or professional association involvement.
• Demonstrated leadership in academia or in a practitioner setting.
• Significant experience in supervisory/leadership responsibilities for faculty including recruitment, retention, performance results and development.
• Significant experience managing and working with remote teams and a matrix environment preferred.
• Be proficient in Microsoft Office Suite programs.
• Ability to travel as required/needed.

Education

All degrees must be conferred and from a regionally accredited institution. Copies of required certificates and licenses and unofficial transcripts for all graduate degrees with the institution and conferred degree and date must be attached.

• Masters degree in Social Work from an accredited Council on Social Work Education and regionally or nationally accredited program required.
• Doctorate degree in Social Work or closely related area to include Human Services, Psychology, Counseling, Sociology, Education or a closely related area required.

Certificates, Licenses, And Registrations

• Social Work Licensure required and willingness to obtain Minnesota Social Work Licensure upon hire and prior to starting the position is required.

Other

• Must be able to travel 10% of time.
• Must be able to lift 25 lbs.
• Typical office setting.
• Mobility within the office including movement from floor to floor.
• Travel via plane, car, and metro may be required to perform this job.
• Must be able to work more than 40 hours per week when business needs warrant
• Access information using a computer.
• Effectively communicate, both up and down the management chain.
• Effectively cope with stressful situations
• Strong mental acuity
• Regular, dependable attendance and punctuality are essential functions of this job. Other essential functions and marginal job functions are subject to modification.

Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States. Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

$95,100-$105,00 is the expected starting pay for this position. This offer is based on current budgetary guidelines and the additional factors outlined below.

SEI offers a comprehensive package of benefits to employees scheduled 30 hours or more per week. In addition to medical, dental, vision, life and disability plans, SEI employees may take advantage of well-being incentives, parental leave, paid time off, certain paid holidays, tax saving accounts (FSA, HSA), 401(k) retirement benefit, Employee Stock Purchase Plan, tuition assistance as well as entertainment and retail discounts. Non-exempt employees are eligible for overtime pay, if applicable.
Careers - Our Benefits, Strategic Education, Inc
SEI is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering an inclusive and collaborative culture where individuals can grow their careers and contribute fully. We strive to attract talent with broad experiences, skills and perspectives. We welcome applications from all. While it is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top end of the pay range at SEI, we offer a competitive salary. The actual base pay offered to the successful candidate may vary depending on multiple factors including, but not limited to, job-related knowledge/skills, experience, business needs, geographical location, and internal pay equity. Our Talent Acquisition Team is ready to discuss your interest in joining SEI. The expected salary range for this position is below.
$95,100.00 - $142,600.00 - Salary
If you require reasonable accommodations to complete our application process, please contact our Human Resources Department at [e-mail].