Senior Director of Nursing

Aspire Living & Learning; Hartford (CT); Hybrid; USD 100,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive Health, Dental, & Vision Insurance

Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)

Lifestyle Spending Accounts

403(b) Retirement Plan with Employer Match

Generous Paid Time Off

Professional Growth Opportunities

Employer-Paid Life & Disability Insurance

Job summary

A healthcare organization is seeking a Senior Director of Nursing to oversee nursing services across multi-state operations. This role involves establishing quality standards, ensuring regulatory compliance, and enhancing nursing strategies to support neurodiverse individuals. Candidates should have an active RN license and substantial leadership experience in IDD settings. Competitive benefits and professional development opportunities are offered. The organization values diversity and encourages applications from underrepresented communities.

Qualifications

• Active RN license with multi-state licensure or ability to obtain.
• 7–10 years of nursing leadership experience in IDD field.
• Strong knowledge of regulatory requirements in IDD settings.

Responsibilities

• Serve as senior nursing authority across all states.
• Establish nursing models and accountability frameworks.
• Lead medication management infrastructure and eMAR systems.

Skills

Progressive nursing leadership experience

Knowledge of medication administration systems

Experience in IDD and behavioral health settings

Strong leadership and communication skills

Education

Active Registered Nurse (RN) license

Master’s degree in Nursing or related field

Tools

eMAR implementation

HRST risk stratification tools

Job description

At Aspire Living & Learning, we don't just talk about making an impact, we live it. For more than 40 years, we've supported neurodiverse children and adults across New England and Maryland as they discover their passions, unlock their potential, and live more independently in their communities. Our person-centered services evolve with people's needs, from education and behavioral health to residential and community-based supports. We empower people to live lives shaped by their own interests, choices, and strengths. Join our collaborative, mission-driven team and bring your skills to work that makes a real difference every day.

Aspire Living & Learning is currently seeking a Senior Director of Nursing to serve as Aspire’s senior nursing leader, responsible for the overall quality, consistency, and strategic direction of nursing services across Aspire’s multi-state footprint. This role strengthens Aspire’s nursing infrastructure in response to increasing medical complexity, aging populations, and organizational growth. The Senior Director of Nursing establishes enterprise standards for nursing practice and medication management, reduces clinical and regulatory risk, and ensures nursing investments translate into measurable improvements in quality, compliance, and outcomes for the people we serve. The role works in close partnership with Operations, Quality, Finance, and Workforce Development to ensure nursing services are aligned, sustainable, and responsive to evolving needs. This leader must reside within and be willing to travel regularly throughout Aspire’s service footprint (MA, CT, NH, MD, VT).

Key Responsibilities

Enterprise Clinical Leadership & Risk Reduction

• Serve as Aspire’s senior nursing authority, accountable for nursing practice quality, patient safety, and regulatory compliance across all states and service lines.
• Reduce clinical and regulatory risk by strengthening medication oversight, standardizing documentation practices, and proactively addressing trends in incidents through root cause analysis, hospitalizations, and audit findings.
• Ensure consistent, timely nurse involvement in medication changes, hospital discharges, program transitions, and high-risk incident review, positioning nursing as a proactive clinical partner.
• Establish nurse-led oversight of medication administration practices to reduce risk exposure for DSPs and programs.
• Oversee our multi-state footprint, ensuring alignment with regulatory expectations and best practices.

Nursing Structure, Scope of Practice & Accountability

• Design and implement a standardized, enterprise-wide nursing model that clearly defines roles, scopes of practice, caseload expectations, supervision structures, and delegation practices.
• Establish clear performance expectations and accountability for both internal nursing staff and contracted nursing providers.
• Ensure nurses are consistently practicing at the top of their license by aligning work appropriately and removing unnecessary administrative burden.

Contracted Nursing & Vendor Oversight

• Provide internal clinical oversight of contracted nursing vendors, including setting quality and documentation standards and monitoring performance and responsiveness.
• Partner with executive and operational leadership to evaluate internal, contracted, and hybrid nursing models based on quality, risk reduction, and cost effectiveness.

Medication Management, Technology & Systems

• Lead Aspire’s medication management infrastructure, including selection, implementation, and oversight of an electronic Medication Administration Record (eMAR) system across all states.
• Guide adoption of medication administration technologies that reduce errors and improve compliance, ensuring systems support centralized oversight, remote auditing, trend analysis, and timely retraining.

Documentation, Auditing & Quality Integration

• Standardize nursing documentation practices across states and service lines to ensure accuracy, consistency, and regulatory alignment.
• Partner with Quality & Compliance to conduct joint audits, strengthen medical record integrity, and integrate nursing quality assurance into Aspire’s broader quality systems.
• Ensure consistent tracking of health conditions, diagnoses, appointment follow-through, and staff training and competency requirements.

Training, Competency & Workforce Development

• Establish standardized training and competency frameworks for nurses, DSPs, and home providers, aligned with state regulations and best practices.
• Develop clear retraining pathways following medication errors or clinical incidents and ensure training reflects the needs of aging populations, individuals with IDD, and those with complex medication regimens.
• Collaborate on psychiatric consultation and clinical support models, as appropriate.

Data-Driven Clinical Strategy

• Lead the implementation and use of HRST or comparable health risk assessment tools to inform clinical oversight, staffing models, and training priorities.
• Analyze hospitalization and emergency room utilization data to identify trends, anticipate risk, and drive preventive clinical interventions.

Cross-Functional Leadership & Communication

• Establish standardized workflows to ensure nursing is promptly notified of hospitalizations, medication changes, and critical incidents.
• Lead regular nursing–operations reviews focused on risk trends, system improvements, and continuous learning.
• Serve as a clinical health advisor during investigations, audits, and regulatory reviews.
• Consult and work collaboratively with other health care and clinical professionals to ensure integrated, high-quality care.

Financial Stewardship

• Align nursing staffing models and expenditures with quality outcomes and risk reduction goals.
• Partner with Finance and Executive Leadership to evaluate return on investment, inform budgeting, and ensure nursing investments produce measurable improvements in care quality and compliance.

Qualifications

• Active Registered Nurse (RN) license, with multi-state licensure or ability to obtain required state licenses.
• 7–10 years of progressive nursing leadership experience in the IDD field, including oversight of nursing services in multi-site and/or multi-state environments.
• Strong knowledge of medication administration systems, delegation practices, and regulatory requirements in IDD and/or behavioral health settings.
• Experience supporting individuals with IDD, aging adults with complex medical needs, and individuals receiving behavioral health or psychotropic medications.
• Prefer Master’s degree in Nursing, Healthcare Administration, or a related field.
• Experience with eMAR implementation preferred, HRST or similar risk stratification tools, and oversight of both internal and contracted nursing models.

Benefits

• Comprehensive Health, Dental, & Vision Insurance – Choose from multiple medical plans, with vision coverage included at no extra cost.
• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) and Health Saving Account (HSA) options – Use pre-tax dollars for medical and dependent care expenses.
• Lifestyle Spending Accounts with JOON – Monthly funds for wellness, fitness, commuting, childcare, pet care, and more.
• 403(b) Retirement Plan with Employer Match – A 100% match on contributions up to 2% of your salary.
• Generous Paid Time Off – Paid sick, personal, and vacation days, plus holidays.
• Professional Growth Opportunities – Access to training, leadership and management courses, mentorship, and career advancement.
• Employer-Paid Life & Disability Insurance, Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Telehealth Services and more!

If you want to join us in making a difference and positively impact the lives of others while charting your own path of development, then we at the Aspire team would love to hear from you.

Aspire Living & Learning believes it must play an active role in creating a community of employees that is diverse, inclusive and equitable. Our work benefits greatly from the contributions of people of color, people from working class backgrounds, women, LGBTQ people, and individuals with disabilities. Hence, we strongly encourage applications from people with these identities or who are members of other marginalized communities. #CA26