Community Director

WHITMAN COLLEGE

Located in the historic community of Walla Walla, Whitman's vibrant and beautiful tree-lined campus is home to an intellectually diverse, dynamic, welcoming and supportive community of some 500 staff and faculty serving approximately 1,500 students from the local region and across the globe. With exceptional students, accomplished faculty and staff, and a fiercely loyal and growing number of engaged alumni, Whitman College continues to build on its national reputation for academic excellence as one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country.

Whitman College is cultivating a community built on inclusion and belonging. We recognize the value of those who can offer historically underrepresented perspectives and encourage applications from those whose background, knowledge, and insights from lived experience can add to the college's working and learning environment. Whitman College is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer (EEO).

POSITION PURPOSE

The Community Director (CD) shares with other members of the Student Life staff the general responsibility of supporting the educational aims of the College. The CD serves as an educator and role model while assisting students in their efforts to make full use of the opportunities and resources available to them. This role oversees the supervision, administration, and community development for a number of residential facilities and may lead broader initiatives within Residence Life and Housing.

PRINCIPAL

ACCOUNTABILITIES

Supervision (25%)

• Supervise a team of paraprofessional Resident Assistants.
• Present and facilitate training and leadership development opportunities.
• Provide ongoing team building and develop a sense of group support and learning for your staff.
• Provide mentoring and assistance to junior professional staff (Resident Directors).
• Participate in paraprofessional staff recruitment and hiring processes.
• Coordinate and guide group efforts on strategic special projects.

Community Development and Programming (20%)

• Develop strategic goals for learning and development within residential spaces.
• Arrange and facilitate social and academic events and programs.
• Advise student group programming including student hall government.
• Act as a resource for residents requesting program information.
• Encourage alcohol and drug education programs.
• Encourage residents to respect others' rights and maintain a safe and secure community atmosphere.
• Lead substantial projects and programming initiatives for all on campus students.

Counseling and Referral (15%)

• Be generally available to residents and communicate effectively with students, staff, and faculty.
• Be supportive of diversity, equity, and inclusion best practices to best support community members.
• Counsel students concerning personal college concerns and refer to other resources when appropriate.
• Respond to student wellbeing concerns, including those referred through the College's Care Team, and keep clear records in the College's care network platform.
• Participate in an on-call rotation to assist other junior professional staff in the event of a crisis or unexpected significant concern.

Administration (15%)

• Inform residents of College functions, resources, and beneficial off-campus agencies.
• Attend Community Director/Resident Director meetings and facilitate student staff meetings.
• Open and close the hall at each vacation period. Collect and report information on hall maintenance problems.
• Maintain accurate and current hall records, including weekly logs, floor plans, key check-out and inventory, space scheduling, expenditure accounts, incident reports, damage reports, and room condition reports.
• Keep the Residence Life and Housing Office informed as to all room changes and change requests.
• Interpret and enforce College policy in residential spaces.
• Meet with students about student conduct violations when instructed to do so.
• Be responsive to communications including emails in a timely manner.
• Serve on campus committees as requested.
• Represent the College to parents and guests.

Co-lateral Assignment (Up to 25%)

• Community Directors may have an additional "co-lateral" assignment, which may change from year to year as assigned. These assignments are typically larger programs or responsibilities either internal to Residence Life and Housing or paired with another partner office.
• For , one Community Director will have the co-lateral assignment of co-leading the Peer Academic Leaders (PALs) program. This program is jointly led by the Residence Life and Housing Office and the Dean of Students Office. It oversees 9 student Peer Academic Leaders residing in first-year spaces for the Fall 2026 semester.
• Other previous or current co-lateral assignments include working on the College's student conduct team, advising sorority and/or fraternity life, and supporting Housing Operations technology. New projects may be introduced annually.

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & ABILITIES

Must be able to explain and/or demonstrate possession of the knowledge, skills,…