Associate Director for Residential Education

The College of New Jersey • Ewing Township, NJ

9d • $80,000 - $90,000 • Onsite

About The Position

The FYE Associate Director of Residential Education serves as a key leader within the Department of Residential Education and Housing, providing comprehensive oversight for the educational, safety, and community development efforts within a residential population of over 3,500-4,000 students. Reporting to the Executive Director of Residential Education, Housing, & Dining, this position oversees the operational and developmental functions of a dynamic residential program, including after-hours duty and crisis response, student conduct, residential care outreach, and initiatives that promote student health, wellness, and safety in alignment with campus-wide policies, fire safety standards, and federal guidance.

This role provides direct supervision to 3-4 masters-level Residence Directors, offering mentorship and leadership in the day-to-day management of residential communities, staff development, and program implementation. The First-Year Area Associate Director plays a central role in implementing the residential curriculum and providing a comprehensive training program that addresses all departmental policies, procedures, and applicable local and national regulations for student staff.

As a live-off position, the Associate Director is expected to serve in the senior-level duty rotation with three other professionals, providing critical leadership during after-hours and crisis situations. Crisis management responsibilities include supporting students in distress; engaging with families, senior leadership, and campus police when appropriate; responding to significant building safety or facilities issues; and demonstrating sound judgment and effective problem-solving under pressure.

During periods of vacancy at the Residence Director level, the Associate Director provides hands-on leadership and direct oversight of a residential area and its student staff team, ensuring continuity of support and supervision.
This position actively collaborates with campus partners to create environments that foster learning, belonging, and student success through intentional educational programming, effective crisis planning, alignment with the Colleges strategic plan, and evidence-based practices.

Requirements

• Master’s Degree in Student Personnel, Higher Education, Counseling or a related academic discipline appropriate to the promotion of student development.
• Demonstrated experience of 2-3 years supervising professional and/or graduate-level staff, providing mentorship, performance evaluation, and professional development support.
• Demonstrated experience managing multiple priorities and complex, data-informed projects in a dynamic and fast-paced environment.
• Demonstrated experience serving in an after-hours duty rotation and effectively responding to student crises, facility emergencies, and other critical incidents with sound judgment and professionalism.
• Has had experience with high level crisis such as mental health incidents.
• Previous experience with setting and evaluating learning outcomes or designing and implementing a residential curriculum or development of living-learning communities with campus partners.
• Has 2-5 years of professional experience in residential education, residence life, or housing at a college or university.
• Must be Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale, as well as Mental Health First Aid, certified within the first 6 months of beginning the position.
• Residential Education & Housing Experience: 3-5 years residence life experience and/or skills related to staff supervision and training at the graduate and professional level.
• The Associate Director serves as a key point of contact for students in distress, providing empathetic listening, initial support, and guidance prior to connecting them with professional counseling or other campus services.
• This position requires strong interpersonal and crisis response skills to ensure timely and compassionate student support.
• Strong demonstrated understanding of student development theory and its practical application to designing, implementing, and assessing residential curriculum and co-curricular programs that foster student growth, engagement, and success.
• Previous experience in setting and evaluating learning outcomes, designing and implementing a residential curriculum, and developing living-learning communities, with the ability to align program goals and objectives with the College’s Strategic Plan and actively engage faculty and campus partners to enhance student learning and community development.
• Awareness of and commitment to excellence in human relations, staff training and development, program design and implementation, data-driven report writing, and budget planning and management to support departmental and institutional goals.
• Demonstrated professional experience in crisis response and management, including navigating complex after-hours emergencies with sound judgment, effective communication, and collaboration with campus partners such as counseling, campus police, facilities, and senior leadership.
• Persons with disabilities may request reasonable accommodations in order to perform the essential functions of the position. If the requested accommodation(s) cannot be made because it would cause the employer undue hardship, the applicant may not be eligible for the position.

Responsibilities

• Supervision & Staff Development: The Associate Director hires, trains, supervises, and evaluates 4 masters-level professionals Residence Directors, while providing indirect oversight for 200+ student staff, including Community Advisors (CAs), Student Managers/Resident Officers (SMROs), Desk Assistants, Mailroom staff, and other residential support personnel. This role ensures that all hiring, training, and evaluation processes align with Affirmative Action procedures and institutional standards.
• The Associate Director partners with other Associate Directors to plan and implement comprehensive in-service training programs for both professional and student staff. These programs emphasize the full spectrum of student development, residential curriculum, community building, and equity and inclusion principles. Staff are trained on all relevant College policies, federal and state regulations, and procedures—examples include cannabis response protocols, domestic violence response, Title IX reporting, and student conduct policies—as well as resources available to support students’ academic, social, and personal needs.
• This role fosters a culture of continuous learning and professional growth, ensuring that staff are equipped to respond effectively to the evolving challenges of residential life, contribute to a safe and inclusive community, and support student success and development both inside and outside the residence halls. Additionally, assumes all responsibilities of an RD during times of staff turn-over.
• Health & Wellness for Students: The Associate Director plays a key role in promoting the safety, well-being, and mental health of 3,500–4,000 residential students and campus guests. As a live-off position, the Associate Director serves in the after-hours senior-level duty rotation, responding to high-level mental health concerns, significant safety issues, and building emergencies that may require the relocation of dozens to hundreds of students. This role also responds to urgent requests from Campus Police, the Presidential Office, and occasionally, parents or families. Provides oversight and support for Care Referrals, coordinating staff follow-up, outreach, and case management to ensure students receive timely and appropriate support. Monitors Care trends, guides programmatic and curricular interventions, and ensures staff are trained on referral processes, crisis response, and updated campus protocols. Associate Director can be first-point of contact when a student is experiencing a mental health crisis.
• Critical Incidents and Duty: The Associate Director contributes to the development and refinement of critical incident protocols and assists the Associate Vice President for Student Affairs and Executive Director with the design and implementation of related training programs for professional and student staff. This includes coordination and maintenance of the professional and student staff duty system. The Associate Director ensures that the Executive Director is informed on a daily basis of critical incidents, trends, and emerging concerns within the residence halls, facilitating timely and strategic responses. Update crisis manual, other relevant manuals, publications, and coordinate the update of job books.
• Educational Initiatives: The Associate Director administers and supports the implementation of department-wide co-curricular residential education experiences for approximately 4,000 students across first-year and upperclass areas. This includes guiding live-in staff in applying the departments programming philosophy to ensure that residential experiences are intentional, engaging, and aligned with defined learning goals and outcomes. The Associate Director coordinates residence hall programs and services, reviews programming data, produces reports with analysis, and provides recommendations to enhance the quality and impact of the educational program.
• This role provides oversight for Special Interest Housing, often partnering with other offices or academic programs, and serves as a liaison with faculty and academic offices to coordinate Living-Learning Environments. The Associate Director provides leadership, mentorship, and support to area staff to achieve curriculum goals and objectives. During the summer, the position collaborates with Housing to manage student housing placements and ensure a seamless transition for incoming residents.
• Student Personnel Administration: Provide centralized leadership and support for Residential Education’s student staff training and onboarding of nearly 300 undergraduate staff across five positions, including SMROs, Community Advisors, Key/Desk Assistants, Mailroom staff, and Night Desk Assistants. Develop and implement comprehensive training programs that equip all student staff to support residential students effectively, including policy and procedure compliance, crisis response, community development, and student resources. Ensure adherence to the College’s affirmative action, EEO, and Residential Education policies, including investigating any claims of departmental ethics violations and maintaining a consistent, equitable approach to staff oversight.
• Residential Student Behavior (leads): Provide leadership and oversight for the application of the Student Code of Conduct within the residential program, ensuring a consistent, educational, and developmental approach. Responsibilities include: Oversight: Review incident reports, determine allegations, assign cases to conduct officers, and ensure sanction consistency. Implements interim housing removals if warranted in high level conduct incidents that pose a threat to the community or facilities. Education & Training: Develop and implement outreach and training programs for students and staff on behavioral expectations, conduct processes, crisis response, incident reporting, and sanction compliance. Hearing Officer & Assessment: Serve as a departmental hearing officer when appropriate and collaborate with the Director of Student Conduct to assess judicial processes, analyze behavioral data, and recommend improvements. Research & Collaboration: Stay current on best practices, liaise with campus partners including conduct officers and Campus Police, and contribute to the development of policies and behavioral intervention strategies.
• Critical Incidents & Duty: Support the development of critical incident protocols, assist with training staff, coordinate duty systems, and keep the Executive Director informed on incidents and trends in residence halls.
• Assessment (supports): Coordinate, plan and implement all department-wide assessment efforts, including learning outcome assessment, Skyfactor satisfaction surveys, Roompact data, and other relevant measures of learning, effectiveness and efficiency. Research best practices in all areas impacting the residential experience: hiring, on-boarding, training, conduct, care, federal regulations, etc. and work with peers across campus to implement best practices.
• Monitor budgets and expenditures for programs, staff and services within the area. Submit proposed operating budget and fiscal year projects to the Director on an annual basis.
• Oversee staff responsible for opening and closing of residence halls. Ensure operational needs of your area are effectively managed. Partner with the other associate directors to plan major operational processes and effectively train staff in the completion of their responsibilities.
• Maintain communication with Building Services & Facilities in the ongoing administration of the residential area.
• Update manuals, publications, coordinate the update of Job Books, complete data-driven End of Year reports.

Benefits

• Comprehensive benefit plans covering medical, dental and prescription plans
• Generous leave entitlements program and Energy Savings Program
• Employee and dependent Tuition Waiver and Reimbursement Program
• Pension, retirement, and deferred compensation plans, group life insurance
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Employee affinity groups
• New Jersey State Employee Discount Program (Pet insurance, cell phone plan discounts, discounted amusement park tickets, etc.)
• Access to extensive learning opportunities

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level