Stevenson School is a PK-12 co-educational, college-preparatory boarding and day school with enrollment of 770 students on two campuses in beautiful Central Coast California. The Upper Division campus (Grades 9-12) is located in Pebble Beach. The Lower/Middle Divisions Campus (Grades PK-8) is in nearby Carmel-by-the-Sea. Stevenson is a mission-driven school that aims to help students shape joyful lives while instilling a passion for learning and achievement to prepare them for success in school and beyond.
Stevenson School is seeking a Director of Residential Life to start July 1, 2025. Reporting to and working in close collaboration with the Dean of Students, the Director of Residential Life (DRL) coordinates many interrelated aspects of the School’s residential program and supports the day-to-day needs of the Student Life office. Given the impact of the residential program at Stevenson, the DRL has a critical role in maintaining and growing the positive culture of the boarding community, as well as bridging the residential and day communities. The DRL is essential to the smooth functioning of daily operations of the Student Life office and is key in supporting the Dean of Students through the changing rhythms of each year. While primarily a 10-month/year position, the DRL role includes a summer component and project work at the request of the Dean of Students and the Head of the Upper Division
Responsibilities Include:
Leadership of the residential faculty team
Serves as one of the School’s dormitory heads
Working in close collaboration with the dorm heads and the Dean of Students, develops and oversees residential policy, including annual and as needed updates of the resident faculty and student handbooks
Manages the dorm heads group, including planning and executing an annual retreat and weekly/regular dorm heads meetings; in coordination with this group, plans and executes all residential faculty meetings and training
Serves as a central point of contact for new residential faculty and potential residential faculty, including managing requests to join the residential community, interviewing applicants, onboarding new faculty, and working with the director of facilities to manage campus moves
Sets and maintains a positive resident faculty culture, both serving as a resource for resident faculty to voice questions and concerns and regularly supporting and celebrating resident faculty
Plays a central role in ensuring that employees living on campus and their families understand and abide by the School’s conduct expectations
Conducts an evaluation process for dorm heads and residential faculty
Creates and manages key logistics, including the weekend and weeknight residential duty schedules, and proactively communicates relevant operational details to resident faculty and partners
Leadership of the residential program for students
Oversees and has budgetary responsibility for all residential programming including coordination of weekend activities, Monday night programming, and resident traditions such as the Christmas Tree Committee
Manages all aspects of the student housing process
Oversees that portion of the dean of students’ administrative assistant’s work that pertains to reviewing and approving weekend and vacation passes, and providing additional support, as needed, in communicating with students, parents, and dormitory faculty regarding the pass process for weekends and major vacations
Serves as the point person for coordination of events and schedules with FLIK, our dining services partner
Conveys matters of importance to resident students and their families, including management of weekly logistics and more seasonal newsletters and bulletins
Serves as point of contact for third-party vacation programs
Serves as a dorm head carrying a regular resident faculty duty load; the DRL may serve as an administrator on duty as needed
Student discipline and accountability support
As major disciplinary events arise, supports the dean of students in coordinating and conducting investigations, convening a judiciary committee as needed, and coordinating necessary communications
Expand the School’s portfolio of and systems for templated residential life communications, particularly for resident student discipline matters
Takes the lead on student conversations and appropriate follow-up, including reporting back to dorm team, in lower-level disciplinary situations
Meets with resident students as part of a judiciary process with expanded restorative practices as they have opportunities to come off of probation and as needed
Monitors student attendance, meeting weekly with the administrative assistant to the dean of students to run queries, identify patterns and concerns, and plan appropriate follow-up
Student life programming support
Partners with the director of activities, serving as a resource for building out major programming, collaborating weekly with the director of activities on weekend activities needs
In coordination with the dean of students, the director of community education, and the director of counseling, helps to plan and execute signature programs, including new student orientation and the ninth grade retreat, as well as programming targeting resident community needs
Instructional
Carries a teaching load of two classes
Holds one co-curricular responsibility
Other
Other duties as assigned
Required Qualifications:
Bachelor’s degree
Prior experience in a residential educational setting
Significant experience with an adolescent population
Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to develop and maintain collegial relationships
Excellent communication (reading, writing, speaking, and listening) skills
Demonstrated ability to collaborate and build trust
Highest level of professionalism and commitment to confidentiality
Demonstrated commitment to culturally competent practice, serving the needs of a diverse and inclusive community with diplomacy and tact
Preferred Qualifications:
Prior experience in a school setting
Current dorm head
Leadership experience within a boarding school community
Fluency in multiple languages
The estimated salary for this position is $70,000 - $85,000 annually, based on experience.
This is a housed position with meals provided throughout the day during the school year. In addition to competitive salary, Stevenson offers a generous benefits package that includes a menu of Anthem health plan options, generous retirement plan contributions, life insurance, and professional development opportunities. Stevenson is pleased to offer transportation support and accommodations, as needed, along with an introduction to the local area, for those candidates who travel from outside of the region for on-campus employment interviews.
Stevenson is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by law.
Interested candidates are invited to use the link provided to submit a cover letter and resume to Susan Fahey Khanna, Director of Human Resources
Founded in 1952, Stevenson School is a selective co-educational boarding and day school with 750 students and 30 buildings on 50 acres of land and two campuses. The 500-student upper division, comprised of grades 9-12, is located on the Pebble Beach Campus, where about 60% of students reside in six faculty-supervised dormitories; the lower and middle divisions, totaling 250 students in grades PK-8, are located on the Carmel Campus.
As an American school with a global sensibility, Stevenson is premised on a vision of education as the means by which we discover ourselves in the world and thus contribute to its transformation. We believe that one’s education is best pursued in the company of others, for others’ benefit as well as one’s own. Our Latin motto—Suaviter in modo, fortiter in re (Gentle in manner, resolute in action)—inspires humility and perseverance. Our mission includes three aims: to prepare students for success in college and beyond, to foster their passion for learning and achievement, and to help them shape a joyful life.
In keeping with this project, Stevenson seeks to:
•Train students in critical academic, intellectual, social, and emotional skills;
•H...elp students to develop honor and integrity;
•Teach students to engage productively and peacefully with others;
•Nurture students’ ambitions and healthy pursuit of excellence;
•Balance convention and innovation such that we remain true to our enduring values and relevant to the emerging needs of the present generation of students.
We expect all members of our community to be:
•Devoted to our tenets of scholarship and citizenship;
•Honest, honorable, and empathetic;
•Able to examine and be responsible for their beliefs and behavior, respectful of the consequences that attend both;
•Willing to risk failure in the pursuit of wisdom;
•Committed to global literacy, environmental stewardship, and civic engagement.
Stevenson offers its students, faculty, and staff a values-driven community experience influenced by the distinctive beauty, ecological biodiversity, and contemplative culture of the Central Coast.