The Director of the Student Success is responsible for academic and retention initiatives that support student persistence, including implementation of first-year support programming and support for high risk students. 

WORKS CLOSELY WITH: All Academic Affairs staff, Faculty, Vice President for Admissions, Vice President for Student Development, Dean of Students

RESPONSIBILITIES:
First-Year Student Programming
• Provide support for first-year students through leadership of summer onboarding programs, in collaboration with Admissions, and through post-matriculation programs, in collaboration with Student Development, Academic Affairs, and faculty;
• Develop programming for Academic/Student Success (which could include seminars, optional study skills program, etc.); oversee the development of programming for specialized support
• Ensure marketing and college calendaring of departmental activities (e.g. provide content for weekly student services e-mail);
• Present during NSO and connect with students and parents as needed;
• Partner with Career Development in oversight and facilitation of King’s to Career; meet with first-year students during the spring semester of their first year.

First-Year Student Support
• Coach at-risk first-year students in areas such as time management, engagement on campus, how to talk with professors, strategies for resource management, sense of belonging, etc.;
• Serve on the Enrollment Management Committee to create incoming student admission standards for conditionally admitted students; conduct and/or coordinate follow-up conversations with conditionally admitted students after required summer onboarding session 
to support high-risk students’ expectations for learning at King’s;
• Maintain regular contact with high-risk first-year students and provide one-on-one assistance throughout their first year; ensure that high-risk students are connected to the right 
faculty/staff touchpoints on campus;
• Lead the coordination of King’s Crossover support via monthly (or more frequent) newsletters, individual connections, etc.; track Crossover student grades and persistence;
• Track retention, engagement, and GPA figures for first-year students;

• Create and maintain a webpage for the First-Year Experience at King’s;
• Oversee King’s 101 and cultivate opportunities for students to connect with meaningful support.

Retention and Persistence
• Develop plans and policies in coordination with appropriate King’s staff that support student learning and persistence to a degree; student groups of focus include, but are not limited to student athletes, international students, and transfer students (Personal outreach, meetings, special NSO meetings or special education to faculty about at-risk students are examples of possible outreach);
• Oversee academic support, and individual- and cohort-level student interventions and track student progress; report regularly on at-risk students and status of interventions;
• Serve as chair of the cross-departmental Registration Action Committee, focused on increasing student persistence by proactively pursuing students after the close of registration for the next semester; schedule and lead weekly meetings after registration each semester; report on registration numbers to the Associate Provost;
• Oversee use of Pharos/CAMS with regard to retention (training, statistics, data analysis);
• Conduct required meetings with students on academic probation and email after three-week and midterm grades to update them on their academic standing; meet regularly with probation students as needed;
• Receive referrals from faculty and others on campus and follow up with students;
• Work with select touchpoints to identify and serve as a resource for select groups who may have high-risk students.

Collaborate with the Office of Academic Affairs
• Maintain a “months list” that provides a detailed list of responsibilities/initiatives of the Director of Student Success (for institutional memory);
• Support the Associate Provost in management of the budget for the department of Student Success; complete monthly expense reports and contribute to budget tracking and planning.

Faculty Interaction
• Provide annual/ongoing training to faculty on services available and/or their role in the retention process (e.g. encourage early grades so we can monitor academic progress early in the semester, encourage feedback if a student is missing/struggling);
• Serve on the First-Year Student Experience Committee, an institutional committee, in 
consultation with the Associate Provost;
• Attend faculty meetings;
• Inform faculty when students experience personal emergencies and cannot attend class.

Collaboration with the Student Development Division
• Inform and prompt follow-up from House Advisors regarding specific student concerns;
• Be available for key institutional events (i.e. NSO, Family Weekend, Convocation, Homecoming, Interregnum, House competitions.);
• Intentionally develop student relationships by attending key campus events.

Reporting

• Create annual report (and other reports as needed) in consultation with Academic Affairs staff 
showing quantitative statistics (e.g. Number of incoming high-risk students. High-risk GPA vs. Overall GPA, high-risk retention vs. overall retention, number of student meetings, number of programs offered, number of students on D/F/W list, etc.); provide qualitative examples of student support initiatives and success to show evidence of improvement.

External Communication
• Using FERPA guidelines, communicate with parents (as needed) concerning student issues, challenges, successes and academic progress.

Professional Development
• Create and maintain relationships with at least two other directors at peer and aspiration 
schools in the area of academic/student success;
• Follow a listserve on academic/student support; understand best practices of different ways to help students with a variety of learning styles.

ESSENTIAL SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:
• Master’s Degree in higher education, college student personnel, or counseling (preferred);
• Understanding of and commitment to the College’s mission;
• 2+ years experience in higher education or education, working to promote student success (preferred);
• Excellent writing and speaking skills;
• Interest in one-on-one student meetings, especially students who are academically at-risk;
• Ability to work cooperatively with colleagues and staff at all levels;
• Attention to detail, excellent memory, and diligence;
• Strong planning and organizational skills;
• Ability and interest in creating a new program; willing to research, implement and execute best 
practices for academic/student success.

REPORTING TO THIS POSITION:
• Student worker

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORK ENVIRONMENT:
General office environment; normal mental concentration.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORUNITY:
It is the policy of The King’s College to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and employees who share its faith and mission. The King’s College does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of age, race, creed, color, national origin, military status, sex, disability, predisposing genetic characteristics, and/or marital status.