VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT

Posted September 10, 2024

The Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education (OCHE) invites applications for the position of Associate Director of Student Well-being.

This position is a full-time, term-contract position renewable annually in accordance with Board of Regents (BOR) personnel policies. The position is eligible for employee benefits (health insurance, sick leave and vacation leave, state holidays, retirement program, staff & dependent tuition waivers in accordance with state law and BOR policy).

Description of Work Unit

The Montana University System (MUS) is the state-supported system of higher education in Montana governed by the BOR and administered by OCHE. OCHE serves as BOR staff in the board’s constitutional responsibility to coordinate, supervise and manage the MUS. The MUS delivers an array of teaching, learning, research, and support services to more than 45,000 enrolled college and university students across 16 campuses in Montana. The University of Montana and Montana State University, and their affiliate institutions, employ approximately 9,100 full-time-equivalent employees in faculty, staff, professional and administrative positions.

Student mental health and well-being continues to be a top priority for the Montana University System and a key part of MUS and OCHE strategies to advance student success. The MUS has adopted a public health approach to student mental health and wellbeing and understands that student well-being deeply impacts students’ educational outcomes. The Montana University System’s approach to student well-being understands that students need supports along a continuum from thriving to crisis and that every role in our campus communities can play a part in enhancing the well-being of students. Well-being focus areas include but are not limited to enhancing access to quality clinical mental health services, health promotion and student wellness, basic needs insecurities, and education in mental health literacy, financial wellness, substance use, and sexual assault prevention education.

This position develops, drives, and continuously improves a strategic system approach to student well-being across the Montana University System. The position will work with the MUS Suicide Prevention & Mental Health Task Force and OCHE’s Director of Student Affairs & Student Engagement to develop a system-level strategic plan and implement strategies that enhance student well-being. This position is responsible for working closely with the diverse campuses in the MUS campuses to develop institutional plans to support well-being for the diverse student body across the system.

This position may be located at any Montana University System campus.  Below is a list of the locations:

Duties and Responsibilities

The Associate Director of Student Well-being is responsible for the work areas outlined below and other duties as assigned. Responsibilities will be reviewed and revised on an annual basis and will reflect emerging priorities identified by this role, the Director of Student Affairs & Student Engagement, the MUS Suicide Prevention & Mental Health Task Force, Board of Regents priorities, and emerging student well-being needs.

Strategic Mental Health & Suicide Prevention Initiatives

• Collaborate with MUS Suicide Prevention & Mental Health Task Force co-chairs and Director of Student Affairs & Student Engagement to identify and implement system strategic approaches to enhancing student mental health and well-being including identifying student populations in need of support, focus areas for enhanced mental health and well-being, evidence-based strategies, and metrics for success.
• Collaborate within OCHE to identify and secure funding to support ongoing strategic mental health and wellbeing efforts.
• Act as liaison and provide staffing to the MUS Suicide Prevention & Mental Health Task Force, regularly convene task force, and support co-chairs in driving system action through effective coordination of the task force.
• Collaborate with MUS institutions to develop institutional plans for student mental health and well-being that align with system priorities and MUS Task Force priorities.
• Coordinate with campus staff on implementation of plans and identify areas for system supports, resources, and reporting.
• Drive system-level recommendations from Task Force and support state-level activities.
• Collaborate with state and national partners from other state and federal entities and with community organizations to align and enhance strategic efforts to enhance student mental health.
• Complete regular reviews of campus and system implementation of MUS Suicide Prevention & Mental Health Task Force recommendations, identify barriers to implementation, and support institutions and system in meeting recommendations.
• Collaborate with other related OCHE and campus staff to align and mutually enhance student wellbeing and employee wellbeing efforts and strategies.

Student Training & Education

• Manage implementation and continued administration of system-wide student training on sexual assault prevention, substance use, suicide prevention, and mental health literacy.
• Monitor and regularly update trainings to ensure modules meet federal and state compliance regulations (VAWA, Clery, Title IX, Drug Free Schools Act) and provide relevant, impactful education for a diverse audience of students including traditional, non-traditional, Veteran, American Indian, LGBTQ+, and rural students.
• Work with instructional designers, expert content creators, and compliance officers to ensure accuracy of training, meet compliance obligations, and demonstrate efficacy of training on student learning in these areas.
• On an on-going basis, develop a plan for review of new federal regulations on student trainings related to well-being and campus safety, coordinate with compliance and campus staff to update trainings.
• Collaborate with institution leaders to develop data and assessment processes to track student learning and conduct analysis of educational needs related to student well-being.
• Collaborate with institutions to identify and organize additional training and education opportunities related to student well-being. Examples may include resiliency training, QPR, mental health first aid, and trainings for BIT and CARE teams.
• Support campuses in providing student programming including providing education in evidence-based best practices, facilitating and contributing to communities of practice, and developing common communications materials.

System, Campus, and External Partner Collaborations

• Collaborate with campus administrators, staff, and faculty to support public health approaches to student mental health and well-being.
• With support from supervisor, collaborate with campus Centers for Teaching and Learning to develop and implement evidence-based teaching practices that enhance student well-being.
• Facilitate administration of system-wide implementation of data and assessment strategies that support student well-being. Collaborate with internal and external partners to secure support and funding for data gathering such as administration of the National College Health Assessment (NCHA) and the Healthy Minds Study.
• Conduct analysis of system and campus data on student well-being to inform system needs related to student well-being, develop and inform leaders on strategic approaches, and drive implementation and effective assessment of activities.
• Provide regular updates on well-being initiatives to system, OCHE, and campus leaders.
• With support from supervisor, collaborate with partner state and national agencies, organizations, and partners to enhance efforts to support college student well-being.
• With support from Deputy Commissioner for Academic, Research, and Student Affairs and supervisor, collaborate with institutions offering academic programming related to mental and behavioral health, health promotion, public health, etc to enhance opportunities for workforce development and increase access to clinical and non-clinical well-being services.
• Inform MUS Board of Regents policy related to student well-being and support institutions in responding to new or revised policy.
• Represent OCHE and the MUS at state and national convenings related to student well-being.

Qualifications & Skills

• Master’s degree in public health, educational leadership, social work, counseling or other relevant field.
• 5-7 years of experience leading public health, mental health, or well-being initiatives and strategy, preferably in a higher education setting.
• Experience collaborating with multiple agencies or departments on developing and driving implementation of strategic initiatives.
• Commitment to driving development and implementation of strategies that are informed by empirical evidence.
• Commitment to student well-being as an integral part of student development and educational attainment.
• Commitment to contributing to a supportive, collaborative team.
• Ability to drive work independently and effectively communicate need for support and collaboration.
• Experience creating, implementing, and evaluating initiatives for efficacy.
• Strong communication skills.
• Ability to effectively facilitate high-level professionals with diverse perspectives to work together to define and achieve common goals.
• Ability to effectively analyze and draw insights from quantitative data to inform action.
• Expertise in student development, student well-being, and student mental health and knowledge of current best practices.
• Knowledge of federal compliance regulations related to student well-being such as Clery, Title IX, VAWA, Drug Free Schools Act and ability to monitor and respond to compliance changes that impact the system and institutions.
• Demonstrated efficacy in improving educational attainment outcomes for students from underserved backgrounds, particularly low-income, rural, American Indian, and veteran students.
• Certified in QPR and mental health first aid or willingness to become certified.

Preferred Qualifications

• Doctorate in public health, educational leadership, social work, or other relevant field.
• Experience leading mental health efforts with a university system office or in coordination with a system office.
• Knowledge and experience in developing institution, system, or state policy to support student well-being.

Application Requirements

Please submit (1.) a cover letter that addresses the qualifications, duties and responsibilities listed in the vacancy announcement, (2.) a comprehensive resume, and (3.) a list of three professional references.  Applications may be mailed to OCHE (Attention: Human Resources), PO Box 203201, Helena, MT  59620-3201, or emailed to OCHEhr@montana.edu.  Electronic submission of application materials is encouraged.

The position is open until filled.  Candidates should submit applications by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, October 7, 2024, to receive early consideration in an initial screening of applications.  This position is eligible for veterans’ preference in accordance with state law.  Approval will be obtained before contacting the candidates’ current employer.

Reasonable Accommodations:  Under state and federal law, qualified applicants with disabilities are entitled to reasonable accommodations. Modifications or adjustments may be provided to assist applicants to compete in the recruitment and selection process.  An applicant must request an accommodation when needed.  If you need any such accommodation, contact the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education at 406-449-9155.  TDD users may use the relay service by dialing 711.

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