Director, Programs and Design for Academic Innovation

Bentley University•Waltham, MA

About The Position

The Director of Programs and Design for Academic Innovation is a leader within the Badavas Center for Innovation in Teaching and Learning and a strategic thought partner to the Executive Director and Associate Provost for Academic Innovation. Reporting directly to the Executive Director, the Director helps build, facilitate, and advance the Center’s portfolio of academic innovation initiatives. The role combines innovation design, program leadership, facilitation, team management, partnership development, and operational execution to turn ideas into impactful, scalable programs that advance Bentley’s academic priorities and Technology, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (TIE) vision. The Director co-creates initiatives with faculty, staff, students, and partners; facilitates collaborative design processes; connects stakeholders across the institution; oversees implementation; and ensures programs are designed, assessed, and continuously improved. The role includes leadership of learning design support across undergraduate, graduate, online, and emerging educational offerings, as well as pedagogical and strategic leadership on artificial intelligence in teaching and learning. The Director also leads and develops the Center’s program portfolio, partnerships, faculty development opportunities, communities of practice, and assessment practices.

Requirements

Master’s degree in education, higher education, learning sciences, instructional design, organizational leadership, or a related field.
Seven or more years of progressive leadership experience in higher education, faculty development, learning design, academic innovation, educational program development, or related fields.
Demonstrated experience designing, implementing, and managing complex educational programs or initiatives.
Experience supervising professional staff and leading cross-functional teams.
Expertise in pedagogy, learning science, faculty development, and evidence-based teaching and learning practices.
Demonstrated success facilitating collaborative design processes, strategic conversations, faculty learning experiences, working groups, and stakeholder engagement.
Strong facilitation, project management, organizational, communication, and relationship-building skills.
Ability to build trust, foster collaboration and community, and engage diverse stakeholders in co-creative processes.
Ability to manage multiple priorities and initiatives simultaneously.
Knowledge of emerging trends in higher education, including artificial intelligence, digital learning, experiential learning, and academic innovation.

Nice To Haves

Doctoral degree or doctoral coursework.
Experience working in a center for teaching and learning, academic innovation unit, faculty development office, or similar environment.
Experience leading organizational change and innovation initiatives.
Experience designing and facilitating faculty development programs, communities of practice, or learning communities.
Experience with assessment, evaluation, and impact measurement.
Record of professional presentations, publications, or thought leadership activities.
Experience building partnerships across academic and administrative units.
Experience supporting online and technology-enhanced learning environments.

Responsibilities

Partner with the Executive Director to design, build, pilot, implement, and scale programs and initiatives that advance Bentley’s academic priorities and TIE vision.
Co-create initiatives that strengthen teaching, learning, faculty development, interdisciplinary collaboration, experiential education, and student success.
Build structures, experiences, and communities that support faculty innovation, professional growth, and educational transformation.
Facilitate collaborative design processes involving faculty, staff, students, and partners.
Design and support faculty development opportunities, communities of practice, and collaborative learning experiences.
Monitor emerging higher education trends and recommend ways to evolve Center initiatives.
Lead and support initiatives exploring AI in teaching and learning, including the design, piloting, assessment, and scaling of pedagogically meaningful approaches.
Lead implementation, coordination, and continuous improvement of the Center’s programs and initiatives.
Build systems, processes, and workflows that support successful execution and sustainable growth.
Ensure programs are managed, resourced, and aligned with institutional priorities; support scaling successful pilots across the university.
Oversee learning design support across undergraduate, graduate, online, and emerging educational offerings.
Provide pedagogical and strategic leadership on AI in course and program design, including learning experiences, assignments, assessment, authentic application, and human capabilities.
Support the evolution of learning design practices toward innovation, experience design, faculty development, and academic transformation.
Design and facilitate workshops, retreats, working groups, innovation sessions, faculty learning communities, and collaborative planning processes.
Build and sustain relationships and partnerships with faculty, academic leaders, and institutional partners.
Develop systems to assess the effectiveness and impact of Center initiatives, establish measures of success, and use data to inform decisions and improvements.
Evaluate faculty development programs, innovation initiatives, and community-building efforts to identify opportunities for enhancement and scale.
Supervise professional staff and oversee a learning design team.