City : Hamilton

Category : Other

Industry : Education

Employer : McMaster University

Housing and Conference Services (HCS) directly supports the University’s goal of advancing human and societal wellbeing and McMaster’s overriding vision of ‘educating for capability.’ We provide a distinctive living and learning experience for 3600 students focused on key educational priorities including community development, personal growth and wellness, academic excellence, and inclusion.

HCS concurrently drives a positive McMaster experience for guests, alumni, staff, faculty, and student by providing accommodation and event coordination, which meet the highest standards of service excellence. HCS is a proud and significant ancillary contributor to the financial health of the University and the core academic and research mission of McMaster.

HCS is currently in a time of significant expansion as capacity is expanding by 66% over the next several years. Moving from 3600 to 6000 bed spaces across 15 buildings. This expansion will diversify the housing operation dramatically, from a traditional focus on the housing needs of first year undergraduate students, to the introduction of upper year, graduate, and family housing, in addition to a constantly diversifying internal and external client base.

The annual budget for HCS is currently (pre-expansion) approximately $31 million and we employ 100+ full-time and 250 part-time staff. HCS reports directly to both the divisions of Student Affairs and Administration. HCS reports directly to both the divisions of Student Affairs, as well as Operations & Finance.

Job Summary: 

Responsible for supporting the creation of the residential curriculum, Living Learning Communities, and residence-wide academic initiatives that support students living in residence at the University. Develop, implement, coordinate and assess a variety of educational initiatives grounded in student development theory and a curricular approach. Establish and nurture new and existing partnerships with colleagues across the University. 

Purpose & Key Functions: 

•  Administer the day-to-day operations of all living learning communities within residence.
•  Develop, lead and assess the residence life unit’s curricula for students.
• Provide support and guidance to student staff as it pertains to living learning communities and the McMaster residence curriculum and educational priorities.
•  Participate with colleagues on the residence life management team to strive for continuous improvement by regularly supporting projects that improve overall residence product and experience.
•  Write, develop and modify educational curricula plans based on assessment data collected and best practices associated with student learning.
• Develop, maintain, and coordinate a programming resource inventory related to educational topics and themes.
• Identify, develop, and maintain strong working relationships between the residence life office and various campus and community partners which assist in the education and development of residence students, including the student union.
• Facilitate meetings and workshops with members of the Residence life management team, student staff members and other student leaders pertaining to living learning communities and the residence curriculum.
• Research trends, issues and best practices in student development; continuously conduct regular reviews of learning programs and make improvements in relevant areas.
• Plan and coordinate a variety of workshops, programs and activities.
• Develop and deliver presentations, workshops and training module with campus and community partners.
• Work with the marketing team to develop materials to promote living learning communities and residence curriculum to current and perspective students.
• Answer or redirect general inquiries in person, by telephone and via email and respond independently to inquiries that are specific in nature and require a thorough knowledge of established policies and procedures.
• Monitor budgets and reconcile accounts.
• Write a variety of documents such as correspondence, procedure manuals, reports, and minutes.
• Conduct database, literature, and web searches to find references and articles used for a variety of documents, reports, and publications.
• Provide policy and procedure information to others.
• Collect, verify, and input data into a variety of spreadsheets and databases.
• Apply standard mathematical skills such as calculations, formulas, and equations to perform a variety of calculations.
• Set up and maintain confidential records and filing systems, both electronic and hard copy.
• Handle sensitive material in accordance with established policies.
• Assemble, copy, collate, and disseminate a variety of documents and materials.

Supervison: 

• Ongoing responsibility for supervising 10 or more student staff at any one time.
• Ensures adherence to quality standards for short term staff and volunteers.

Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field of study.
• Requires 3 years of relevant experience, including one year of supervisory experience in residence or a related environment.