Job Description

Title: Assistant Director of the Center for Leadership

Position Type: Staff Full-Time

Days Per Week: Monday - Friday

Hours Per Week: 40

VP Area: Student Life

Department: Center for Leadership

Location: Elon Main Campus

As a member of the Division of Student Life and the Center for Leadership (CFL), the Assistant Director supports leadership education and development across the university. The Center for Leadership provides co-curricular leadership development opportunities to Elon University students through multiple programs. The Assistant Director designs and implements a comprehensive leadership workshop series, The Phoenix Leaders Program, the Elevate Leadership Program, co-plans the Intersect Event, a Living Learning Community, and supports leadership development for student leaders in Elon’s 250+ student organizations, clubs, and campus programs. Additionally, the Assistant Director periodically supports departmental needs with the Leadership Experiential Learning Requirement (ELR) and the Isabella Cannon Leadership Fellows program. While this position serves primarily during business hours, some evening and weekend hours may be required to attend a student organization meeting, campus event, or community gatherings. This position works collaboratively with a variety of campus and community partners.

The mission of the Center for Leadership aims to help students graduate with greater leadership self-efficacy, the desire and ability to work collaboratively within diverse communities of people, and the confidence and competence to put innovative ideas into action for positive change. The Center for Leadership staff includes three full-time professional staff, a graduate apprentice, student Leadership Ambassadors, and several student directors. We work closely with a Leadership Education Faculty Fellow and the Coordinator for the Leadership Studies Minor to connect the Center for Leadership’s co-curricular programs to academic initiatives and curriculum. We enjoy strong collaborative relationships with Student Involvement, the Center for Race, Ethnicity, and Diversity Education (CREDE), Residence Life, Kernodle Center for Civic Life, and Athletics.

Benefits of Working at Elon

As an Elon University employee, you’ll join an internationally acclaimed university with a commitment to fostering a thriving community. Ranked among the most innovative, creative and best-run universities in the nation, Elon’s personal approach to education extends to employees, whose growth, professional development and success is a hallmark of our training and advancement opportunities.

Elon University’s home is the charming town of Elon, North Carolina, a small, friendly community located a short distance from the beach and the mountains, and among the vibrant cities of Greensboro, Raleigh and Durham. In addition to the beautiful canopy of historic oak trees iconic to our campus, you’ll find boundless opportunities for family-friendly recreation, cultural events and outdoor activities. Hiking, water sports, fine dining and entertainment are just a few of the many happenings in the Elon area, making the region one of the nation’s premier travel destinations.

Employees at Elon enjoy a generous and comprehensive benefits package that includes:

28 annual days off, including holidays and vacation.

Immediate tuition remission for undergraduate courses

Tuition remission for approved graduate-level courses after 12 months of employment.

Retirement plan with an 8 percent contribution from the university.

Immediate eligibility for health, dental and vision insurance, along with free acute care and lab services at our onsite Health & Wellness Clinic.

Free use of campus fitness facilities.

Free admission to musical and theater performances, guest speakers, religious and ethnic observances, recitals, art exhibitions, entertainment and our Division I Phoenix athletics.

Eligibility for tuition remission at Elon for spouses, qualifying domestic partners and dependents begins at two years of service. After two years of employment, eligibility begins for participation in the Tuition Exchange, a national scholarship exchange program that enables dependents to enroll in nationally recognized partner colleges and universities.

Elon values and celebrates the diverse backgrounds, cultures, experiences and perspectives of our community members. As an equal opportunity employer, Elon’s principles of diversity extend to race and gender identity, age, disability status, veteran status, sexual orientation, religion, and other aspects of one’s identity. At Elon, our employees respect human differences, passion for lifelong learning, emphasis on personal integrity and an ethic of service.
Elon is proud to have been named to the list of Most Promising Places to Work in Student Affairs each of the past six years. For additional information about working with the Division of Student Life, visit: https://www.elon.edu/u/administration/student-life/about/work-with-us/

Minimum Required Education and Experience

Bachelor's degree in any relevant field of study with the following experience: Completed bachelor's degree and at least 2 years of post-bachelor's experience required.

Preferred Education and Experience

Completed master's degree in higher education, student personnel, or related field and 1-2 years of experience (including graduate assistantships/apprenticeships) in leadership education/development or a related functional area in higher education strongly preferred.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Ability to utilize student development theory to design, implement, and evaluate effective programs, services, and interventions
• Knowledge of current leadership theories (including but not limited to Relational Leadership, the Social Change Model, and/or Adaptive Leadership), student development and learning theories, identity development theories, leadership competencies, and group dynamics
• Experience developing complex co-curricular programs focused on deep and integrated learning, critical reflection, and related and assessable learning outcomes
• Experience in coaching/mentoring, and professional/leadership development
• Strong oral and written communication skills
• Experience working with diverse populations and commitment to equity and inclusion
• Demonstrated experience building partnerships and relating effectively with a diverse range of constituents and stakeholders
• Strong organizational and project management skills
• Commitment to divisional and university priorities for mentoring, leadership and skill development, inclusive excellence, wellness and well-being, vibrant residential campus experience, civic engagement, and continuous improvement and operational excellence

Required Other Training, Certifications, or Licensing

Job Duties

• Programming and Development
  • Develop, coordinate, and facilitate co-curricular leadership development opportunities for emerging leaders to explore their personal values, strengths, and responsibilities as a leader, endowing their choices with purpose and meaning.
  • Serve as the coordinator of the Leadership Workshop Series (and facilitator for some), the Phoenix Leaders Program for emerging student leaders, and the Elevate Leadership Program for advanced student leaders. Center leadership as the process of working with others to create positive change within all experiences.
  • Coordinate leadership workshop outreach opportunities for the campus.
  • Ensure intentional student reflection and learning outcomes assessment is incorporated into leadership development opportunities.
• Supervision
  • Manage the student employee program, including hiring, training, supervision, and evaluation. Supervise, mentor, and evaluate the performance of assigned student staff.
  • Lead weekly staff meetings and work collaboratively with other supervisors to assign tasks, programs, and outreach experiences.
  • Use the ElonGROW+ program within supervisor efforts: Supervisors of student employees implement the ElonGROW+ (Guided Reflection on Work) model in their supervisory practices by facilitating regular guided reflection conversations that connect workplace learning with students’ broader educational and career goals, ensuring a consistent, developmental approach to student employment across the university.
  • Co-supervise the Summer Alamance Youth Leadership Academy student staff.
• Strategic and Collaborative Leadership
  • Collaborate with the Center for Race, Ethnicity, and Diversity Education (CREDE) to coordinate Intersect, a diversity and leadership experience for students, faculty and staff.
  • Collaborate with Student Involvement on organization leader training and development needs and/or workshops.
  • Develop a leadership themed living learning community, create co-curricular leadership learning experiences for participants, and co-advise LLC with a faculty partner.
  • Collaborate with Campus Recreation to strategically incorporate Elon Challenge offerings into co-curricular leadership development opportunities.
• Department Responsibilities
  • Serve as an active member of the Center for Leadership staff, contributing to a relationship-rich environment that fosters student growth and success within the department and with other campus partners.
  • Coordinate departmental outreach for co-curricular leadership learning strategies (workshops, trainings, etc.) across campus, and lead communication efforts. This includes working with campus partners to support leadership development across campus.
  • Utilize learning outcome and other assessment data in the strategic planning process. Conduct on-going assessment for major leadership programs.
  • Lead or assist with departmental programming and tabling functions as needed including Admissions events, Fellows Weekend, various retreats, and trainings.
• Inclusive Community Building
  • Community is foundational to Elon and a shared responsibility within our residential campus. All who work at Elon should demonstrate an understanding of and engagement with Elon’s foundational commitment to relationships, mentoring and collaboration in a close-knit residential community. We embrace the shared responsibility to foster inclusive excellence within a strong residential community. Accordingly, employees are expected to join together and build connections in activities that foster an active and engaged campus environment and engage in professional development to support the shared responsibility of enriching diversity, equity, and inclusion through meaningful relationships and mentoring at Elon. Employees are encouraged to, for example, attend or participate in campus activities such as College Coffee, Numen Lumen, campus cultural events, athletic events, continuing education, professional development opportunities and trainings, employee resource groups and other university-sponsored activities to demonstrate an active commitment to the Elon community.
• Additional Responsibilities
  • Support departmental strategic planning, goal setting, priority completion, evaluation and assessment, and data-driven decision making.
  • Support university events, including, but not limited to: Convocations, Commencement, Family Weekend, and events related to Admissions and/or New Student Orientation.
  • Serve as a member of a Student Life Care and Response Team, which includes either serving in a rotational on-call emergency response role or providing initial outreach and follow-up support for student concerns.
  • Serve on university, divisional, or departmental committees, task forces, and search committees.
  • Other related duties as assigned by the Director.

Special Instructions to Applicants: Serve as a member of a Student Life Care and Response Team, which includes either serving in a rotational on-call emergency response role or providing initial outreach and follow-up support for student concerns.