Community Director

Community Director

The Community Director (CD) is a 12-month, live-in professional staff member responsible for the educational, social, and cultural growth of the individual student and the overall residential community. The primary responsibilities include initiating, implementing, maintaining, and evaluating efforts in the assigned residential area(s) that result in a student-centered community that supports the academic mission of George Mason University. The Community Director is responsible for the overall administration and management of their assigned residential area(s).

Responsibilities include:

• Supervising and leading a team of student employees, including Resident Assistants, Graduate Community Directors, and/or Office Assistants;
• Providing on-going training to student employees to develop leadership skills and enhance competencies essential to their positions;
• Educating and holding staff accountable to all University policies, Housing and Residence Life policies, and HRL student staff expectations;
• Planning and implementing staff development to aid student employees in creating positive team dynamics that foster collaboration and problem-solving skills;
• Supervising and supporting student employees in their administrative assignments, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and completion;
• Providing opportunities for staff to receive feedback on the quality and effectiveness of their work, to support development;
• Formally evaluating the performance of student employees during the fall and spring semesters, to assess effectiveness;
• Leading weekly staff meetings with student employees in assigned area for team development and information sharing/gathering;
• Conducting bi-weekly one-on-one meetings with student employees for resident and student staff updates and addressing concerns/questions to ensure resident and staff success;
• Developing and maintaining staff awareness of campus/community issues through training, programming, individual contacts, and role modeling;
• Recruiting, interviewing, evaluating, selecting, and on-boarding student staff candidates for all HRL hiring processes; and
• Supporting any Residential Learning Communities (RLCs) in assigned residential area and engage in ongoing collaboration with respective academic and University Life partners.

Student support and development includes:

• Addressing incidents of inappropriate behavior in or around the residence halls using an educational and developmental approach;
• Serving as a hearing officer to effectively resolve cases of student misconduct and violations of the Code of Conduct and/or Resident Student Handbook;
• Assisting students with academic, vocational and personal concerns to support students in overcoming challenges and achieving success;
• Connecting students with on-campus resources when appropriate to help them succeed academically, personally, and/or socially;
• Managing situations involving various psychological, emotional, medical or other safety related incidents in the residential community;
• Collaborating with appropriate campus resources to properly support students and provide adequate resources;
• Participating in the evening, weekend, and holiday duty rotation to ensure adequate coverage and support for on campus students in crisis;
• Directly responding to on-campus emergencies and student crises as needed, to ensure student safety and support;
• Actively participating in cultivating an environment that supports the well-being of residential students through various university initiatives, committees, and events;
• Developing and maintaining positive relationships with both residents and HRL staff that encourages on-going communication, mutual support, and respect; and
• Supporting university-wide initiatives focused on student retention and early intervention efforts.

Community development and programming includes:

• Implementing the student engagement model within assigned area to address the developmental needs of specific student populations;
• Designing proactive approaches to involve students in creating community values and engaging in ethical standards such as respect, courtesy, appreciation of differences, and civility;
• Coordinating and participating in department-wide and university-wide events such as Welcome back Events, Block Parties, Family Weekend, Orientation, Admissions events, and other programs as assigned;
• Engaging instructional faculty, RLC stakeholders, and other university partners in community events and overall residential curriculum plan for assigned…