Director of Rural Student Success

HIGHLAND COMMUNITY COLLEGE•Highland, KS

21d•$60,000 - $0•Onsite

About The Position

The Director of Rural Student Success provides leadership and day-to-day oversight for Highland Community College’s Rural Student Success Center. The Director coordinates comprehensive strategies to improve student persistence, retention, credential completion, and re-engagement, serving as a central point of coordination for students facing academic, financial, transportation, technology, or other barriers to completing their educational goals. Working collaboratively with Academic Affairs, Student Affairs, Financial Aid, faculty, advisors, and other College departments, the Director develops and implements proactive, student-centered strategies, with particular attention to rural, first-generation, adult, returning, and other students who may benefit from additional support. The position plays a key role in the College’s Title III Strengthening Institutions Program and its broader commitment to educational access and student success throughout its rural service area. This is a full-time, 12-month, grant-funded position supported in whole or in part by the U.S. Department of Education Title III Strengthening Institutions Program. Continued employment may depend on the availability of grant or institutional funding. The Director carries out applicable activities in accordance with the approved Title III project, federal regulations, College policies, and performance measures, and maintains time-and-effort documentation as required. The Director is expected to support the mission, values, and strategic priorities of Highland Community College, including One Highland: One Mission, Endless Impact. The role requires collaboration across departments to create a coordinated approach to serving learners throughout the College’s rural service area. Employees are expected to demonstrate professionalism, integrity, respect, accountability, teamwork, confidentiality, and compliance with College policies and applicable laws and regulations.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university.
Demonstrated experience working with students from diverse educational, socioeconomic, and personal backgrounds.
Demonstrated ability to use data and technology to support decision-making and student-success interventions.
Excellent written, oral, organizational, interpersonal, and collaborative skills.
Strong commitment to student success and understanding of the challenges and opportunities associated with serving students in rural communities.
Ability to build effective relationships with students, faculty, staff, and community partners; manage multiple initiatives; exercise sound professional judgment; maintain confidentiality; and communicate effectively with a wide range of constituencies.
Ability to analyze student-success information, identify patterns and barriers, develop appropriate interventions, and evaluate program and service effectiveness.
Initiative, creativity, integrity, adaptability, and a collaborative approach to problem-solving.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in higher education, student affairs, counseling, education, social work, or a related field.
Three years of progressively responsible experience in higher education, student affairs, advising, student success, enrollment management, or a related area.
Experience developing or coordinating student retention, persistence, completion, advising, or support initiatives.
Experience working in a rural educational environment or with rural, first-generation, adult, or underserved student populations.

Responsibilities

Provide leadership and day-to-day oversight of the Rural Student Success Center and its programs, services, and initiatives.
Develop and coordinate proactive strategies to improve student persistence, retention, credential completion, and overall student success.
Coordinate individualized student-success planning and connect students with appropriate academic, financial, personal, and institutional resources.
Identify and engage students at risk of stopping out and students who previously stopped out before completing a credential.
Coordinate outreach and support for students eligible to participate in the Scottie Gold initiative and other completion-focused programs.
Collaborate with faculty, advisors, and student services personnel to strengthen early-alert, referral, case-management, and intervention processes.
Develop strategies addressing barriers experienced by rural students, including transportation, food insecurity, broadband and technology access, financial literacy, and access to mental-health and other support services.
Coordinate workshops, outreach activities, and educational programming related to student success, financial literacy, digital literacy, college navigation, and available support resources.
Work with Academic Affairs and Student Affairs to strengthen advising, degree planning, and pathways to credential completion.
Use institutional data and student-success technology to identify trends, prioritize interventions, monitor student progress, and evaluate program effectiveness.
Maintain accurate records and prepare reports documenting student participation, services provided, outcomes, and progress toward Title III performance objectives.
Assist with implementation, evaluation, and continuous improvement of Title III activities related to rural student success, and perform other duties consistent with grant and College goals.
Maintain time-and-effort documentation in accordance with federal grant requirements and College policies and procedures.
Perform other duties as assigned.