What are the responsibilities and job description for the Residential Community Director position at Delaware Valley University?
Job Summary:
The Residential Community Director (RCD) is a live-in professional responsible for coordination of multiple residence halls housing approximately 500 students. The RCD supervises and leads 15-20 Resident Assistants (RA) in promoting and managing residential environments that support student success. The RCD understands the value that a sense of inclusive community has in student success, will have the skills to foster such a community, and will be committed to proactive and supportive relationship building with the students in an assigned area. The RCD position requires intentional efforts to interact with students and student staff to promote community growth and development. The start date for this position will be in July 2026.
Supervisory Responsibilities:
- Recruits, interviews, hires, trains, and evaluates the Residence Assistant staff
- Oversees the daily workflow of direct reports
- Supervise, support and develop RA staff to be effective leaders, mentors and student advocates within their residence halls
- Sets yearly goals and initiatives for direct reports
- Manages time off requests for staff
Essential Duties and Responsibilities:
- Oversee the day to day operations of residence halls on the designated side of campus while ensuring a high-quality residential experience
- Mentor and counsel residents on issues related to academic, social and personal success and make referrals as appropriate
- Oversee and coordinate peer-to-peer mediation efforts facilitated by RA staff
- Manage incidents of concern or disruption in assigned residential area; promote student safety and welfare in assigned buildings through attention to policy and protocols
- Supervise the planning, organization, and implementation of all programming conducted by the Resident Assistants
- Provide intervention and support to students and issues as indicated by the Director and Dean
- Promote expectations for student conduct through informal and developmental interventions with students having difficulty adhering to policies or living productively in community
- Support major housing/residence life processes related to room selection, health and safety inspections, staff selection, staff trainings and others
- Serve as a summer connection and outreach to incoming students and upon matriculation
- Proactively engage students through early intervention and relationship building
- Be an advocate for students, and visible and engaged in campus events
- Serve in the Dean of Students “on-call” rotation to manage incidents and concerns campus-wide
- Participate as needed and requested in departmental and divisional working groups
- Other duties as assigned
Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:
- Ability to maintain a proper living environment for residence hall students
- Demonstrated commitment to diversity and inclusivity with the ability to work positively with diverse student groups
- Ability to coordinate proper building maintenance with Facilities employees
- Ability to foster a cooperative work environment
- Strong interpersonal and communication skills and the ability to work effectively with students, faculty, staff and parents, as well as a wide range of constituencies in a diverse community
- Strong organizing and coordinating skills
- Ability to effectively resolve student conflicts
- Ability to develop and present educational programs and/or workshops
- Ability to evaluate and make recommendations for change
- Effective communication skills
Education and Experience:
- Master’s degree in Student Personnel, Higher Education, Counseling or a relevant degree
- One to two years’ experience in residence life and housing in a college or university environment
- Prior experience supervising para-professional staff
Physical Requirements and Working Conditions:
- Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer
- Occasionally lifting 25 lbs or less
- Typically standing or walking
- May work evening and weekends
- May be required to be on-call
About the University
Delaware Valley University (DelVal) is a private, comprehensive, nonprofit university educating students with a curriculum that emphasizes and requires experiential learning. Located in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, about 30 miles north of Philadelphia, the University offers 28 undergraduate majors in business, arts and sciences, and agricultural and environmental sciences; 12 master's degrees; and a doctorate in education. Founded in 1896, DelVal has been cited by the National Society for Experiential Education as having the country's top experiential learning program, by Princeton Review as one of the best colleges in the Northeast, and by College Factual as having one of the top 20 animal science programs in the country.
Delaware Valley University is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to a diverse workforce.