Assistant Director, Mental Health Education and Flourishing Initiatives

University of Dayton•Dayton, OH

About The Position

The Assistant Director, Mental Health Education and Flourishing Initiatives is a member of the University of Dayton’s Brook Center integrative team, which provides wellbeing and health promotion, mental health, LGBTQ+, sexual violence prevention, and alcohol and other drug education. The assistant director develops, implements, and assesses campus-wide mental health education and flourishing initiatives intended to increase mental health literacy, reduce stigma, strengthen resilience, and support student flourishing. The position co-advises the Co-Pilots mental health and wellbeing peer educators, mentors student leaders, oversees the university’s suicide prevention program, and creates opportunities for students to support their mental health throughout college. The assistant director oversees day-to-day operations of the WELL (Wellness Experience Learning Lab), a space where members of the UD community can practice self-care and incorporate intentional rest into their routines using wellbeing technology. The role provides strategic leadership for the WELL, develops its programming and operating procedures, supervises student staff, manages its facility and budget, and maintains relationships with external partners. The position also teaches and advises peer educators and mental-health-related student organizations, contributes to Brook Center initiatives and committees, manages programming budgets, assesses programs, and develops relationships across the university. Occasional evening and weekend work may be needed.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in a related field and two years of experience designing, implementing, or assessing mental health or wellbeing education programs through internships, practicum, assistantships, or professional experience; alternatively, a master’s degree in a related field.
Ability to plan, organize, and run educational programming independently and collaboratively across departments.
High attention to detail.
Effective written and verbal communication skills.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in College Student Personnel, Counseling, Psychology, Social Work, Public Health, or a related field.
Two or more years of post-master’s professional experience designing, implementing, and assessing mental health education, health education, or prevention programs in higher education.
Thorough understanding of student development, health promotion, behavior change, and population-based theories and models.
Ability to thrive in a team-based educational environment that values high expectations, integrity, and leadership, with a positive attitude and enthusiasm.
Demonstrated ability to respond to students in crisis and refer them to appropriate resources.
Exceptional presentation and verbal communication skills.
Demonstrated ability to work successfully with a diverse community and provide non-judgmental education that recognizes differences in approaches and barriers to mental health resources.
Experience using health promotion models to serve underrepresented and underserved student populations and advance equitable mental health and wellbeing outcomes.
Experience collaborating with diverse stakeholders, including faculty, staff, students, and local organizations.
Familiarity with the Jed Foundation Framework and its recommendations on equity in mental health, public health models, or mental health education topics.
Certification in motivational interviewing.
Experience hosting the WELL on a university campus or experience with wellness in a destination hospitality setting.
Experience managing a budget and/or developing revenue-driven programs.
Experience managing a facility and/or using Fusion, Connect2, or a comparable reservation system.
Demonstrated ability to inspire others to share a vision, such as a campus community that values everyone’s mental health and wellbeing.
At least one year of experience working with a traditional college-age population.
Experience with a peer education program.
Experience with learning outcome writing and learning design.
Supervision and/or advising experience.
Ability to handle confidential information, work independently, and work as part of a team.
CHES, MCHES, CPH, or OCPSA/OCPS/OCPC certification, or eligibility to become certified.
Experience working with sexual violence prevention education, wellbeing education, alcohol and other drug education, and/or LGBTQ+ education.
Respect for and appreciation of Catholic and Marianist values.

Responsibilities

Create, implement, and assess comprehensive, trauma-informed, evidence-based mental health education programming for traditional-aged college students, delivered through presentations, student organization partnerships, and campus-wide programming.
Develop programming for all students and tailored programs for specialty populations, addressing topics such as mindfulness, resilience, coping, flourishing, empathy, grief and loss, peer support, anxiety, depression, suicide prevention, stress management, and self-care.
Manage and facilitate the REACH suicide prevention training program, including scheduling, advertising, complementary programming, assessment, and coordination with REACH’s national coordinators at Ohio State.
Oversee initiatives including Fresh Check Day, World Mental Health Day, and Suicide Prevention Week.
Use climate and wellbeing survey findings to improve programming and target relevant student needs; remain current on national trends, best practices, and research.
Promote a campus culture that values mental health, wellbeing, and belonging, and collaborate with student organizations, faculty, the Counseling Center, Student Health Center, Student Care and Advocacy, and other campus partners.
Provide strategic leadership for the WELL, including developing and coordinating its orientation, marketing, programming, Pathways™ experiences, and other activities.
Hire, train, and supervise WELL student staff; establish operating procedures; manage facility operations, reservations, cleaning, maintenance, risk management, and customer service.
Manage the WELL budget, including revenue generation and programming costs, and maintain relationships with CORE, Inc. and strategic vendors.
Co-advise the Co-Pilots peer educators and co-instruct UDI 402, supporting team community, peer health coaching, educational experiences, mentoring, and learning.
Advise mental-health-related student organizations, including Active Minds and Sprouts.
Serve on relevant committees and contribute to Brook Center initiatives and shared team responsibilities.
Manage programming budgets, assess programming, and support continuous improvement.
Develop relationships with academic and other university departments and programs to increase co-curricular opportunities.
Perform other duties as assigned by the executive director, student engagement and wellbeing.
Work occasional nights and weekends as needed.