Vice President for Learning & Student Success

The Vice President for Learning & Student Success serves as the college’s primary academic and student services officer and reports directly to the College President.  This executive level position is responsible for the college’s instructional programs, education-support resources and all academic programs.  They are an active participant in the college's strategic planning and decision-making activities and lead with an equity mindset. The VP is a campus leader with a focus on mission fulfillment by developing and integrating transformative and collaborative initiatives and strategies to promote student success, academic progress and retention, the delivery of student services in support of student learning outside the classroom, cultural enrichment, and student-centered approaches for enrollment management that meet the needs of a diverse student population. As well as overseeing the academic offering of the College and ensuring academic integrity and accreditation goals are met within the Instructional Division. 

The person holding this position provides leadership and direction to all deans and directors in Instructional Support. In addition, the vice president serves as a member of the college’s collective bargaining team with faculty, working to develop and administer a fair agreement that serves the needs of the employees and goals of the college. They lead, administer, maintain and assess quality instruction at Grays Harbor College at all locations (Aberdeen, Ilwaco, Raymond, Stafford Creek). 
 
The responsibilities for the VP position includes leadership over a team that supports a wide variety of services that support student success, including enrollment planning and management, admissions and outreach, records and registration, financial aid, advising and counseling, student services center, workforce funding, TRiO programs (SSS, EOC, Upward Bound), student life, the Bishop Center, high school dual credit, student conduct and athletics.  

Working closely with other college administrators, the VP leads an on-going comprehensive effort to manage enrollments to meet the college strategic goals.

Grays Harbor College has an excellent benefits package to include medical, dental, vision, basic life insurance, primary and supplemental retirement programs and long-term disability insurance. Full-time employees will also receive 15.34 hours of vacation leave per month, 8 hours of sick leave per month and 4 personal leave days a year. Washington state also observes 11 paid holidays per year.

Grays Harbor College serves the communities of Grays Harbor and Pacific counties on the Pacific coast of Washington. Located in Aberdeen, Washington at the base of the beautiful Olympic Peninsula, the College is less than an hour away from scenic Pacific Ocean beaches and close to both the Olympic and Mount Rainier National Parks. Grays Harbor provides the perfect landscape to enjoy the abundance of excellent outdoor activities such as camping, hiking, biking, fishing, clam digging, surfing, boating, and various kayak/canoe paddling opportunities.   For more information about working for the college and living in Grays Harbor visit https://www.ghc.edu/hr

Grays Harbor is committed to providing excellent educational opportunities. We prioritize student learning, promote student and faculty success, foster an inclusive environment, manage our resources, and connect with the community. We strive to create a culturally relevant environment on campus and in the community by learning and practicing equity-mindedness and promoting faculty, staff, and student diversity.

• Provide executive-level leadership to the college community and collaborates with internal and external units to plan, organize, implement, and evaluate success strategies designed to improve enrollment, student success, retention, and graduation rates.
• Engages as a collaborative team member on the Grays Harbor Executive Team (Cabinet) and participates in Grays Harbor College Board of Trustees meetings.
• Provide strategic planning, oversight, coordination, and management of the student services and instructional divisions, including budget.
• Demonstrates knowledge of sound and emerging learning and student services promising practices to advance racial equity and social justice in higher education, comply effectively with federal and state regulations, and support SBCTC policies and practices.
• Shares leadership responsibilities for Shared Governance Councils and committees, particularly those related to curriculum and policies impacting student access, opportunity, and success.
• Leads learning curricula, programs, and pedagogy to advance equitable achievement of learning and educational outcomes.
• Directly supervises the Instructional and Student Services Deans and Directors, as well as, other support staff.
• Lead staff in the development, implementation, evaluation, and refinement of programs aimed at promoting student learning, student success, and fostering students' sense of belonging.
• Direct the development of quarterly and annual schedules of classes and the educational program sections of the college catalog. 
• Serve as chairperson of Instructional Council and Division Chairs
• Ensure alignment of student services and student service activities with institutional strategic objectives and mission fulfillment by collaborating with the AVP of Institutional Effectiveness and College Relations and other executive staff.
• Develop and review institutional policies and procedures that provide fair and equitable treatment of all applicants and students.  Adjudicate student appeals and grievances and enforce the student Code of Conduct in student discipline issues.
• Collaborate with Campus Safety and Security to ensure the safety of all students and support chair of the Cares Team.  
• Assist grant writer in pursuit of appropriate grants which augment instruction. 
• Champion student-centered decision-making throughout the campus that takes into account the variety of learning styles, cultures, and prior experiences of students.
• Facilitate a work environment that encourages knowledge of, respect for, and development of skills to embrace equity, diversity, and inclusion.
• In partnership with Human Resources, provide staff development opportunities for employees of the Student Services and Instructional divisions.
• In coordination with the academic deans, make faculty assignments in accordance with college policies and contractual agreements.
• Ensure that the college complies with appropriate federal and state regulations.
• Represent the college in the community and on state commissions and committees as appropriate.
• Maintain professional growth and development through seminars, workshops and professional affiliations to keep abreast of the latest trends of higher education.
• Other duties as assigned by the president.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES 
Supervise and evaluate instruction and student services employees.

• Expect excellent, student-focused customer service.
• Communication from Cabinet to team, and vice versa, especially as it pertains to college policies and initiatives.  
• Regularly provide constructive and positive feedback; and complete annual professional development plans for every employee as part of the annual evaluation process. 
• Establish performance targets and goals for all areas of instruction and student services.
• Assisting in resolving emergencies. 
• Identify and resolve workplace problems.
• Support and champion the employees in respective areas of supervision. 
• Model a commitment to diversity, social equity, inclusion, and cultural competence in both values and actions.

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and abilities required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS and/or EXPERIENCE

• Master's Degree from a regionally accredited college or university.
• At least five years of academic/leadership experience in higher education.
• Student services leadership experience in higher education.
• At least three years of supervision experience managing multiple entities. 
• Experience in budget oversight and financial management.
• Demonstrated experience in serving students, in collaboration with others, from diverse, low income, or academically marginalized backgrounds.
• Demonstrated commitment to equity & inclusive excellence.
• Experience with technology commonly used in higher education (i.e. CTC Link, Canvas, 3^rd party software platforms).
• Work successfully and collaboratively in a complex and fluid environment demanding collaboration, flexibility, resilience, outstanding judgment, prioritization, and people skills. 

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS and/or EXPERIENCE

• Five years or more of senior management experience in student services or instructional leadership in higher education.
• Doctorate from regionally accredited college or university in a related field.
• Leadership experience within a community college environment.
• Successful visionary leader with proven ability to motivate and empower others and build effective teams. A strategic thinker with the vision, capacity, and experience to understand and balance a complex array of constituent needs and to align those needs with effective solutions.
• Experience with accreditation processes—programmatic or institutional. 
• Proven record of successful grant writing and attainment. 
• Experience with collective bargaining and union contract administration.
• Facilitation and conflict resolution expertise.
• Knowledge of applicable federal and state laws as it pertains to higher education.
• Bilingual in English/Spanish

In addition to the GHC online Application you will need to submit the following materials. Incomplete applications will not be accepted or considered.     

• Letter of application addressing your qualifications for the position. 
• Resume 
• Contact information for 3 professional references.
• Transcripts of all college work completed. Unofficial copies are acceptable, official copies will be required at time of hire. 

Background checks - Prior to a new hire, a background check including criminal record history will be conducted.  Information from the background check will not necessarily preclude employment but will be considered in determining the applicant’s suitability and competence to perform in the position.  Applicants considered for this position will be required to disclose if they are the subject of any substantiated findings or current investigations related to sexual misconduct at their current employment and past employment. Disclosure is required under Washington State Law.

Grays Harbor College does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, perceived or actual physical or mental disability, pregnancy, genetic information, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, creed, religion, honorably discharged veteran or military status, or use of a trained guide dog or service animal, as required by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972, Sections 504 and 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act and ADA Amendment Act, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act and Washington State’s Law Against Discrimination, Chapter 49.60 RCW and their implementing regulations.  The following persons have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies:

• Title II/Section 504 – Erin Tofte, Associate Vice President of Human Resources 

• Title IX Coordinator – Ashley Bowie-Gallegos, Dean of Student Services and Enrollment Management

For further information on notice of non-discrimination, visit https://ocrcas.ed.gov/contact-ocrfor the address and phone number of the office that serves your area, or call 1-800-421-3481.

Salary : $155,000 - $162,208