What are the responsibilities and job description for the Executive Director, Learning Commons position at Northampton Community College?
The staff and faculty of Northampton Community College share a single goal: to help students transform their lives through education. It's a goal that reaps rewards thousands of times over the course of a career. Employees at Northampton receive competitive compensation and an array of benefits while working on campuses located in a region with a very high quality of life.
We invite you to consider to applying for one of our currently available positions. For more information on the College, please visit www.northampton.edu. For more information on life in the Lehigh Valley, please visit https://www.northampton.edu/about/working-at-ncc/life-in-the-area.html.
NCC is strongly committed to increasing the diversity of the college community and the curriculum. Candidates who can contribute to that goal are encouraged to identify their strengths or experiences in this area.
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Executive Director, Learning Commons~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Please note that this position will remain open until filled.
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Primary Function: The Executive Director of the Learning Commons provides visionary, strategic, and operational leadership for an integrated, innovative hub on multiple campuses that unites traditional library services, academic support resources, and related student services in a flexible, technology-rich environment. This position is responsible for leading the operation and growth of a holistic, student-centered, and future-facing academic support ecosystem that enhances student success, faculty engagement, staff development, and community connection.
The Learning Commons serves as a dynamic information and service hub-an environment where members of the community gather to collaborate, research, study, receive support, and engage with the College's evolving academic and co-curricular offerings. The Executive Director will ensure consistency across all campus locations through a hub-and-spoke operational model, delivering equitable access to services and a consistent, high-quality experience for all.
Key Competencies:
* Strategic Thinking & Innovation
* Collaborative Leadership & Team Building
* Student-Centered Service Orientation
* Technological Fluency & Digital Literacy
* Change Management & Process Improvement
* Communication & Relationship Building
The Executive Director plays a critical role in:
* Advancing student persistence, completion, and post-graduation success.
* Ensuring students' academic success.
* Increasing patron satisfaction through accessible and responsive services.
* Supporting the College's mission to serve as a vital community resource.
* Partnering with peer departments to modernize the College's academic practices.
Responsibilities:
(1) Strategic Leadership & Vision:
a. Develop and lead the long-term vision for a modern, integrated Learning Commons that advances the College's goals of student success, institutional innovation, and community engagement.
b. Create a forward-looking matrix of services and spaces that evolves with pedagogical, technological, and workforce trends.
c. Champion and promote the Learning Commons as a collaborative intersection of disciplines and a central node of academic and co-curricular life.
(2) Academic & Student Support Integration:
a. Promote information literacy, research skills, and lifelong learning through accessible and engaging programming.
b. Partner with academic support, advising, career counseling, and technology service departments, and the Center for Teaching and Learning Technology.
c. Oversee the integration of library services, tutoring, and access to OER & AI resources into a seamless support system.
(3) Operational Oversight & Resource Management:
a. Lead a team of faculty librarians & administrative staff across multiple campuses.
b. Focus on scalable, flexible delivery of services.
c. Manage Learning Commons budgets, resources, space planning, and operational assessment metrics to drive quality and efficiency.
(4) Technology & Innovation:
a. Champion the use of emerging technologies (AI, digital research tools, learning analytics, etc.) to support personalized learning and student engagement.
b. Design and support technology-rich environments including quiet study zones, innovation labs, digital resource centers, and informal collaborative spaces.
c. Partner with Information Technology Services (ITS) and instructional design teams to ensure access to robust digital tools and platforms.
(5) Collaboration & Community Building:
a. Foster partnerships with faculty, staff, and departments across the institution to align Learning Commons services with academic goals and curriculum design.
b. Develop community-facing programs and partnerships that enhance the College's value to the community and provide equitable access to resources.
c. Encourage the use of the Learning Commons as a venue for academic events, workshops, student organizations, and professional development activities.
(6) Equity & Access:
a. Prioritize inclusion, accessibility, and universal design in all services and spaces to ensure equitable support for all students.
b. Expand digital and physical access to services for remote and hybrid learners.
(7) Help convene and, with the Chief Information Officer and in partnership with the entire team, co-lead the Students First initiative.
(8) Performs other duties as may be assigned.
Campus Locations:
* Bethlehem Campus, Bethlehem, PA
* Pocono Campus, Tannersville, PA
* Virtual Campus
Regular travel between Bethlehem and Pocono campuses is required. Occasional presence at Fowler Family Southside Center (Bethlehem, PA) may be required.
Organizational Relationships: Position reports to the Chief Information Officer. The position has strong connections to the leadership of Academic & Student Affairs, the Executive Director of Innovation & Strategy, the Director of Online Learning, and others. The position will supervise the Learning Center, administrative staff, non-teaching faculty, and work study students.
Performance Standards: Performance in this position is considered satisfactory when: (1) Responsibilities have been accomplished within a specified period; (2) Responsibilities of the position have been carried out at a level consistent with performance objectives; (3) Effective cooperative relationships exist with staff, faculty, students, and other members of the College community.
Qualifications:
(1) Education & Experience:
Required: (a) Master's degree in Library and Information Science, Higher Education Leadership, Educational Administration, a related field, or substantially equivalent experience. (b) Minimum of 10 years of progressively responsible educational leadership experience.
(2) Skills, Knowledge, Abilities:
Required: (a) Experience developing or managing multi-campus operations using hub-and-spoke or distributed models. (b) Demonstrated success in leading cross-functional teams, innovating and integrating services in a higher education environment. (c) Experience managing complex budgets, facilities, and organizational change or equivalent, relevant work experience or demonstrated skills.
Preferred: (a) Community college experience. (b) Familiarity with Open Educational Resources (OER) or similar low cost/no cost resource development, AI tools in education, and educational technology platforms. (c) Ability to effectively communicate complex concepts both orally and in writing.
