Associate Director, Office of Student Accountability and Restorative Practices

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Job Description:

Summary:

The Office of Student Accountability and Restorative Practices (OSARP) administers the student disciplinary system, which resolves alleged violations of the Student Conduct Code by an student or student organization.

The Associate Director works with the Associate Dean of Students and Director of Student Accountability and Restorative Practices to administer and implement the university’s non-academic student disciplinary system by ensuring due process and fairness to all parties. The Associate Director assumes responsibilities of the office in the Director’s absence and serves as the primary coordinator/intake officer for student conduct services utilizing restorative practices. The Associate Director manages complex hearings and disciplinary conferences as a hearing administrator and conference officer including for student organizations. The Associate Director is responsible for the recruitment, selection and training of the university’s Conduct Council. The Associate Director is also responsible for conducting presentations and trainings on the conduct system with campus partners. This position also has a significant role in providing leadership addressing student situations surrounding equity and inclusion issues and positively affecting the climate on campus. The Associate Director supervises the Senior Coordinator of the Office of Student Accountability and Restorative Practices. The Associate Director will be tasked with additional responsibilities that support divisional priorities and objectives.

Essential Functions:

1.) Hearing Officer/Hearing Administrator

• The Associate Director administers the disciplinary process for the university’s non-academic alleged violations. Approximately 600+ cases are resolved yearly.  The Associate Director serves as a disciplinary conference officer for the most complex conference cases. Serves as the hearing and appeal administrator for disciplinary hearings, including communicating with students, parents, attorneys, and other third parties by educating them about procedures and processes as well as policies. Maintains relationships with various university departments regarding disciplinary matters. Ensures due process and fairness of sanctions and upholds all university policies and laws regarding confidentiality and student privacy. Assumes the responsibilities of the office in the absence of the director. 

2.) Restorative Practices

• The Associate Director is responsible for the design, development, implementation, and evaluation of restorative practices as an alternative to the student conduct process. The Associate Director provides education about restorative practices to the campus community. The Associate Director develops materials to train staff or faculty in restorative facilitation, in addition to leading ongoing professional development. The Associate Director is responsible for the continued development and growth of restorative practices within the student conduct process. This position works directly with campus colleagues to positively affect campus climate, build student resiliency, and ultimately be a more inclusive campus.

3.) Training and Development

• The Associate Director acts as the primary coordinator for training and presentations with campus partners. The Associate Director is directly responsible for the recruitment, selection, and training of the university’s Conduct Council, a group of students, staff and faculty, who serve on hearing panels. The Associate Director develops positive working relations among students, faculty, and staff to help promote the services of the office. The Associate Director works closely with Housing & Residence Life staff to provide education, training and professional development to professional and paraprofessional staff about student conduct.

4.) Student Case Management/Crisis Management

• The Associate Director serves in consultative role when appropriate for community incidents which cause harm and are possible restorative circles. The Associate Director serves in an on-call rotation system to address student crisis outside of business hours.

5.) Supervision and Administration

• The Associate Director is responsible for the training, supervision and continued professional development for the Senior Coordinator, OSARP, a full-time professional staff member position, including but not limited to the administration of performance reviews, development and oversight of individual goals, and regular supervisory meetings. The Associate Director may supervise graduate students and student staff as necessary. 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. Serves as a member of the Division of Student Affairs Response Team assisting with campus activism management.

Supervisory Responsibility:

• Supervises the Senior Coordinator, Office of Student Accountability and Restorative Practices, a full-time staff position. May supervise graduate students and student staff as necessary.

Position Type/Expected Hours of Work:

• Full-time.
• 35 hours per week.

Salary Range:

• $77,750 - $80,000 annually.

Required Education and Experience:

• Master's degree.
• 4 - 6 years of relevant experience.
• Must have knowledge of student development theory and its application, the law and higher education.
• Must have knowledge of restorative practices and its implementation into campus adjudication processes.

Preferred Education and Experience:

• 5 - 8 years of relevant experience.

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.
• Interpersonal Skills:Ability to related well to and develop and maintain effective relationships with people from varied backgrounds and situations; demonstrate understanding, concern and empathy for others; effectively relate to people who are displaying hostility or distress; and respond appropriately to the needs and feelings of different people in different situations.
• Organizational Skills: Ability to organize, carefully prepare, and review one’s own work to ensure completeness and accuracy; clarify and juggle competing priorities, expectations and timelines; manage time effectively; set up procedures to ensure high quality of work and adherence to deadlines; follow up with others to ensure that agreements and commitments have been fulfilled; and to adapt organizational methods to the pace and demands of work to maintain consistent quality and effectiveness.
• 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.   
• 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.

Benefits

AU offers a competitive benefits package. Click here to learn about American University's unique benefit options.

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.

• American University is anE-Verify employer.

Current American University Employees

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Contact Us

For more information or assistance with the American University careers site, email theworkline@american.edu.

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.