Director of Advising and First-Year Support

Hood College seeks a dynamic, organized, and relationship-oriented Director of Advising and First-Year Support as part of the College’s U.S. Department of Education Strengthening Institutions Program (SIP) grant, Student Success in the AI Era: Advancing Retention, Completion, and Workforce Readiness at Hood College.

Under the general direction of the Dean of Student Success, the Director of Advising and First-Year Support provides leadership for Hood College's undergraduate academic advising program and coordinates, executes, and assesses support for students during the critical transition into and through their first year. This is a temporary grant funded position.

Reporting to the Dean of Student Success, the Director implements, and assesses a holistic and proactive advising model designed to ensure students receive consistent academic guidance, develop meaningful educational plans, connect with appropriate resources, and make successful progress toward degree completion. The Director provides coordination and leadership for first-year student supports, collaborating across campus to identify barriers to student success, coordinate early interventions, strengthen students' connection to the College, and improve persistence and retention into the second year. The Director works closely with faculty and campus partners, including the Director of the First-Year Experience classes, to create an integrated approach to advising and first-year support that addresses students' academic, personal, social, and professional development.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Academic Advising Leadership – 40%

• Provide leadership and direction for Hood College's undergraduate academic advising program.

• Implement a consistent, holistic, student-centered advising model.

• Establish expectations, best practices, resources, and advising processes for staff and faculty advisors.

• Coordinate advising for incoming first-year students, including summer advising and registration.

• Develop and facilitate advisor training, professional development, advising manuals, tools, and resources.

• Develop advising strategies that support students from initial enrollment through their transition into their academic major and subsequent advising relationships.

• Provide leadership for advising students who are undeclared, changing majors, experiencing academic challenges, or requiring additional support.

• Advise a cohort of first-year students.

• Collaborate with academic departments and faculty advisors to promote consistency and quality in advising.

• Support advisors and works closely with the registrar's office in interpreting academic policies, degree requirements, registration processes, and student-success procedures.

• Promote advising practices that integrate academic planning with students' personal, professional, and career goals.

• Encourage consistent documentation of advising interactions and appropriate use of institutional student-success technology.

• Identify advising barriers and recommend improvements to policies, practices, and processes that affect the student's experience and retention.

First-Year Student Support – 30%

• Provide leadership for a comprehensive first-year student support strategy designed to promote successful transition, engagement, persistence, and academic progress.

• Works closely with the Dean of Student Success and staff to monitor academic progress and other indicators of student success to identify first-year students who may benefit from additional support.

• Coordinate proactive outreach in various modalities at critical points throughout the first-year experience.

• Develop strategies to support students experiencing difficulty transitioning academically or personally to college.

• Develop targeted outreach for students who have not registered for an upcoming semester or who may be considering withdrawing.

• Connect students to appropriate academic, financial, wellness, accessibility, career, and campus-life resources.

• Work collaboratively with faculty, Student Success staff, Athletics, Student Life, Financial Aid, the Registrar, and other campus partners to address barriers affecting first-year students.

• Support programs and initiatives that strengthen students' sense of connection, belonging, confidence, and ability to navigate the College.

• Create intentional transition strategies that prepare first-year students for their second year.

• Works collaboratively with the faculty, student success staff and campus partners to address barriers affecting first-year students.

Assessment, Data and Retention – 15%

• Collaborate with the Dean of Student Success to establish annual advising, first-year support, and persistence goals.

• Monitor student-success measures including advising engagement, academic alerts, academic standing, midterm performance, registration patterns, and persistence.

• Identify trends and student populations that may require additional intervention or support.

• Assess advising and first-year support programs and recommend improvements based on outcomes and student needs.

• Develop regular reports regarding advising participation, first-year student trends, interventions, and outcomes.

• Gather feedback from students, faculty, and staff to improve advising and first-year support.

• Contribute to broader College-wide retention initiatives and student-success planning.

Collaboration and Campus Engagement – 10%

• Develop strong working relationships with faculty, academic departments, Admissions, Registrar, Financial Aid, Athletics, Student Life, Accessibility Services, Career Services, and other campus partners.

• Participate in orientation, registration, recruitment, and other programs supporting new and continuing students.

• Serve on College committees related to advising, the first-year experience, student success, and retention as assigned.

• Represent Student Success at campus events and programs.