Senior Associate Director for Training and Development

American University; Washington (District of Columbia); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 91,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Benefits package

Hybrid work arrangement

Job summary

American University in Washington, DC invites you to join as Senior Associate Director for the Center for Student Involvement. You will lead 200+ recognized student organizations, oversee budgets, training, and policy development, and collaborate with campus partners to enhance student engagement.

The role supervises professional staff, shapes training, ensures compliance, and manages events from Welcome Weeks to signature programs.

Qualifications

• Master's degree or equivalent; 5–8 years of relevant experience.
• Experience supervising professional staff and budgeting.
• Strong leadership and collaboration skills.
• Ability to advance student engagement and campus programming.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the senior leader for the Center for Student Involvement.
• Direct recruitment, hiring, training, and evaluations of staff.
• Develop and manage budgets, policies, and training curricula for student orgs.
• Collaborate with campus partners to support engagement initiatives and events.

Skills

Leadership

Budget management

Policy development

Staff supervision

Student engagement

Event planning

Education

Master's degree or equivalent

5-8 years of relevant experience

Tools

Microsoft Outlook

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

Microsoft PowerPoint

Job description

American University is a student-centered research institution located in Washington, DC, with highly-ranked schools and colleges, internationally-renowned faculty, and a reputation for creating meaningful change in the world.

Learn more about American University Department: Center for Student Involvement Time Type: Full time Job Type: Regular FLSA Status: Exempt Work Modality: Hybrid 01 (On Campus 3-4 Days/Week) Union:

Job Description: Summary:

Reporting to the Executive Director, Student Engagement & Student Center, the Senior Associate Director serves as the senior leader for the Center for Student Involvement, including oversight of student organizations, student organization finance, and campus events and traditions. The Senior Associate Director oversees day-to-day CSI office management, departmental assessment efforts, goal-setting, budget management, policy development, student employment, office operations, program and service delivery, and other office-wide initiatives as directed by the Executive Director. The Senior Associate Director is responsible for advancing student engagement through advising, policy development, and leadership training and directing the overall strategy and approach for 200+ recognized student organizations and various signature events and campus traditions. The Senior Associate Director will oversee all aspects of the RSO recognition processes and required training curriculum for student organization leadership, including policy development, revision of the RSO Manual, and compliance with University guidelines. The Senior Associate Director supervises full-time professional staff members and manages a range of programs and events. This position serves on university-wide committees and works collaboratively with campus partners to support student engagement initiatives. The role requires strong student development and organizational leadership skills, as well as the ability to independently manage complex situations involving policy interpretation, event risk assessment, and institutional collaboration. Evening and weekend work throughout the academic year is required.

Essential Functions:

• 1.) Supervision and Program Support Serve as the senior leader for the Center for Student Involvement. Reporting directly to the Senior Associate Director are: the Associate Director, Student Programs & Signature Events, Assistant Director, Finance & Operations, and Assistant Director, Recognized Student Organizations. Directs the recruitment, selection, hiring, training, professional development, and evaluation of professional and student staff. Develops performance standards, reviews, and makes performance evaluations, provides guidance to staff, and approves personnel actions in accordance with university policies. Directly supervises full-time professional staff members and indirectly supervises professional staff and graduate students. This position also supports CSI programs and events as needed, including but not limited to the Fall and Spring Welcome Weeks and Involvement Fairs and Annual CSI Student Leader Summit.
• 2.) Student Advising Establish an overall vision and approach for supporting student engagement and involvement across AU’s student organization ecosystem, including work with undergraduate and graduate student groups, programming boards, student media organizations, and other cohorts. Meet regularly with student leadership cohorts within the assigned functional area to provide proactive feedback, individualized support, and strategic guidance that promotes personal development, leadership growth, and organizational success. Develop and maintain cohort-specific policies, procedures, and resources to ensure consistency, transparency, and alignment with institutional priorities. Advises and supports a diverse portfolio of recognized student organizations. This includes, but is not limited to, mentoring organizational leadership, attending organizational meetings as needed, supporting complex events, facilitating dialogue between student organizations that fosters inclusion and sense of belonging, and collaborating with campus partners to support development needs for recognized student organizations. Provides leadership oversight of all student organization complex events, including programs involving contracted services, external vendors, travel, outdoor spaces, elevated safety considerations, large attendance, or significant institutional coordination.
• 3.) Training and Development Plan and coordinate comprehensive training and development modules for student organization leaders, student governance groups, and advisors to student organizations. Design, implement, and evaluate comprehensive student development trainings tailored to student leaders, focusing on key areas such as inclusive event planning, advocacy, risk management, budget administration, marketing and promotion, and university policy compliance. Work collaboratively with others on student organization leadership trainings covering university policies, risk and organization management, financial processes, inclusive excellence and member development. Support and create learning resources for student organization advisors, and implement annual faculty/staff advisor initiatives, programming, communication, updates, and development opportunities. Utilize student organization management platform to support student organization development and support. Integrate student retention, leadership, and belonging goals into the training, development, and community-building efforts work of CSI.
• 4.) Administration and Budget Management Manage CSI and Student Activity Fee budgets, approve reconciliations and requisitions, and oversee funding process for student leadership cohorts and programming within functional areas. Ensure fiscal responsibility, effective planning, effective use of resources, and compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and University policies and procedures for CSI and SAF budgets. Review and update polices and procedures in the RSO Manual and publish updates yearly. Develop learning outcomes and assessment practices for student organizations. Create end-of-year reports for assigned functional areas. Manage student organization concerns in conjunction with Student Accountability and Restorative Practices through the RSO accountability process. Serve as a department administrator for the student organization management platform.
• 5.) Partnerships and Collaboration Coordinate with other Student Affairs and University departments. to conceive, develop, and execute initiatives and programs for student organizations. Work collaboratively with Dean of Students, Risk Management, Office of Inclusive Excellence, AU Police Department, and Student Accountability and Restorative Practices to support education on university polices with student organizations. Establish and maintain collaborative working relationships with offices on campus to promote student engagement, success, and retention. This position serves a key partner on the Student Activism Support Team, providing consultation, guidance, and resource navigation to students and student organizations before, during, and following events, helping students understand university policies, access campus resources, and successfully navigate institutional processes. Convenes and facilitates pre-event planning meetings with student organizers and relevant campus partners to discuss event goals, logistical considerations, university policies, safety planning, resource needs, communication strategies, and potential areas of concern. Works collaboratively with students and university stakeholders to identify opportunities for successful engagement, anticipate challenges, clarify expectations, and promote constructive dialogue. Following events, coordinates debrief conversations with organizers and campus partners to identify lessons learned, assess outcomes, recommend improvements, and connect participants with additional resources, support, and educational opportunities as appropriate. This position may serve on selected Student Affairs and university-wide committees and workgroups at the direction of the Executive Director, Student Engagement & Student Center. Support major division and university-wide programs, including but not limited to, Commencement, Family Weekend, Summer Send-Offs, Move-In, New Student Orientation, Family and Supporters Orientation, Student Achievement Awards, and Eagles at Night. As a member of the Division of Student Affairs, this position may advise recognized student organizations as needed.

Supervisory Responsibility: Supervise professional and paraprofessional staff.

Position Type/Expected Hours of Work:

Full-time 35 hours week. Flexibility to work evenings and weekends throughout the academic year.

Salary Range: $89,803.00 - $90,000.00 annually.

Required Education and Experience:

Master's degree or equivalent.

5 - 8 years of relevant experience.

Preferred Education and Experience:

2 - 4 years of experience supervising professional staff.

Additional Eligibility Qualifications:

Inclusive Excellence: An ability to welcome, value, and affirm individuals of all identities and experiences, and a commitment to ensure they are understood, appreciated, and fully included in the university community.

Discretion, Tact and Diplomacy: Ability to exercise discretion, tact and diplomacy while interacting with students, faculty, university staff, management, internship employers and other stakeholders on confidential and/or sensitive matters.

Advanced Communication: Ability to express oneself clearly and concisely, using language with precision; constructing logical arguments; accurate note taking, editing and summarizing; and writing reports or correspondence free of spelling and grammatical errors. Ability to engage in active and empathetic listening and communicate with a service minded orientation.

Thoroughness in Reviewing Work: Ability to review one’s own and others work and information to ensure completeness and accuracy; carefully prepare for meetings and presentations; organize information or materials for others; follow up with others to ensure that agreements and commitments have been fulfilled; and set up procedures to ensure high quality of work.

Student Services Skills: Ability to serve as bridge to services, intervene and/or advocate on students’ behalf with offices across campus to support needs, drive engagement and empower students to achieve their goals.

Diagnostic Information Gathering: Ability to seek out relevant people to obtain information; probe skillfully to get at the facts when others are reluctant to disclose the full details; ask clarifying questions; and gain a complete and accurate picture by checking multiple sources.

Standard Office Software: Skill using email, word processing, spreadsheet/ data analysis and presentation development software applications such as Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint while preparing briefings, reports, and presentations.

Other Duties:

Please note this job description 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. 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.

Benefits:

AU offers a competitive benefits package.

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.

Contact Us For more information or assistance with the American University careers site, email [e-mail].

American University is an equal opportunity, affirmative action institution that operates in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The university does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex (including pregnancy), age, sexual orientation, disability, marital status, personal appearance, gender identity and expression, family responsibilities, political affiliation, source of income, veteran status, an individual’s genetic information or any other bases under federal or local laws (collectively "Protected Bases") in its programs and activities.

American University is a student centered research institution located in Washington, DC, with highly-ranked schools and colleges, internationally-renowned faculty, and a reputation for creating meaningful change in the world.