Director of Academic Operations - Physician Assistant

South University•Savannah, GA

About The Position

The Director of Academic Operations is an embedded academic systems and workflow specialist within the Physician Assistant Department. The role designs, integrates, documents, trains, and sustains systems that support curriculum delivery, assessment, program evaluation, and accreditation alignment across PA program locations. The Director partners with faculty, staff, and leadership to identify workflow needs and improve operational efficiency, and owns the evolution of academic operations systems. The position supports system troubleshooting and data issues, assists faculty and staff during high-stakes assessment windows, and escalates infrastructure or enterprise issues when appropriate. It works independently and coordinates project activities, including technology testing, while iterating solutions based on stakeholder feedback and program needs. The Director leads workflow automation and technology integration; develops structured data models for curriculum mapping, assessment, and accreditation evidence; and maintains data quality, governance, and audit-ready documentation. The role creates technical and user-facing documentation, training materials, and walkthroughs, and trains and supports faculty and staff in adopting academic systems. It advises leadership on tooling strategy, scalability, vendor fit, and responsible AI enablement, and coordinates with central IT and vendors on institutional standards. Additional duties include maintaining an inventory of academic technology assets and dependencies, supporting departmental events and communications, administering the department website, implementing university policies and procedures, and serving as an administrative liaison with university offices. The incumbent is expected to support the University’s philosophy of quality service, employee development and recognition, sound economic principles, and an environment conducive to innovation and growth. South University is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to a diverse environment where different ideas, cultures, and perspectives can thrive.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Educational Technology, Data Analytics or Engineering, Project Management, Instructional Design, Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related field is preferred, or equivalent experience; a master’s degree is preferred.
At least 2 years of progressively responsible experience in at least two of the following areas: academic technology solution design and support, workflow automation or orchestration, data modeling and structured data management, application programming concepts and integration troubleshooting, or training and documentation development.
Strong leadership and strategic planning skills.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills and ability to build successful relationships with students, faculty, and business partners.
Excellent time management and attention to detail.
Strong critical thinking, conflict resolution, and decision-making skills.
Computer-based skills, including software, analytical, and report-writing skills, and experience with computerized learning management systems.
Ability to exercise sound judgment in high-stakes academic contexts, including assessment periods and compliance timelines.
Ability to translate operational needs into technical requirements and sustainable systems.
Ability to manage multiple tasks and meet deadlines.
Ability to design, debug, and maintain advanced formulas and workflow logic.
Ability to apply principles and troubleshoot integrations using structured data.
Ability to build and maintain automation workflows and projects without continued direct supervision.
Ability to create high-quality documentation and training media that improve adoption and continuity.
Ability to maintain reliability and data integrity over time, including change-management discipline.
Ability to balance innovation with usability in a faculty- and staff-facing environment.
Ability to develop professional rapport and work effectively, cooperatively, and flexibly in a diverse team environment.
Ability to present information effectively to employees, students, faculty, academic and campus leaders, and corporate leaders.
Ability to embrace and lead change.

Nice To Haves

Former academic role in PA, medical education, or operations.
Direct experience supporting graduate-level health professions education and related program operations, including curriculum, assessment, and accreditation.
Experience with ExamSoft or comparable assessment platforms, including outcomes tagging and item-analysis reporting workflows.
Experience with curriculum mapping or standards alignment, such as the PANCE blueprint or ARC-PA accreditation standards.
Programming fundamentals such as JavaScript or Python sufficient for scripting, transformations, and automation support.
Experience implementing responsible workflows in an academic or regulated environment.
Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field and master’s degree are preferred.

Responsibilities

Design and maintain workflow automations for academic processes, including curriculum mapping, assessment reporting, accreditation evidence capture, and meeting documentation.
Coordinate communications and committee meetings, prepare agendas, arrange travel or virtual settings, transcribe minutes, and prepare newsletters.
Maintain the department’s SharePoint intranet website.
Lead systems integration and interoperability across academic technology platforms, including ExamSoft, LMS data flows, and program data repositories.
Build and maintain structured data models for blueprint mapping, accreditation evidence tracking, and consistency across campuses and cohorts.
Ensure data quality, governance, and audit-ready documentation, including source-of-truth definitions, field standards, naming conventions, versioning practices, and change logs.
Produce and maintain technical documentation and enablement materials, including schemas, workflow maps, data dictionaries, architecture summaries, guides, demonstrations, and training videos.
Train and support faculty and staff in adoption of academic systems.
Advise Department, Program, and College leadership on tooling strategy, scalability, vendor fit, and responsible AI enablement for academic operations.
Coordinate with central IT and vendors to align systems with institutional security, access-control, and data-retention standards while retaining ownership of operational workflows and requirements.
Maintain an inventory of academic technology assets, integrations, and dependencies, and recommend enhancements and risk mitigations.
Translate program needs into functional requirements, user stories, data models, workflow and integration designs, and curriculum or accreditation artifacts.
Maintain and refresh requirements, documentation, and standard operating procedures.
Facilitate and provide oversight for PA Department events, website, marketing, and social media content.
Interpret, implement, and ensure compliance with university academic and administrative policies and procedures; recommend new internal policies, guidelines, and procedures.
Serve as the primary administrative contact and liaison with university offices, individuals, and departments to collaborate on standard operating procedures.
Perform other duties aligned with academic systems architecture, department management, and operational enablement to support the PA programs.