Details
Posted: 14-Apr-22
Location: Lake Forest, Illinois
Type: Full Time
Required Education: 4 Year Degree
Categories:
Dorm Supervision
This is an exciting opportunity to contribute to the recognition and development of the enormous potential of young women.
Established in 1858, Woodlands Academy of the Sacred Heart is one of 25 Sacred Heart schools in the United States and Canada. Sacred Heart education at Woodlands Academy is grounded in effective, innovative, educational practices to empower girls seeking academic excellence; the school aims to create thoughtful, curious, and informed global citizens. Woodlands Academy transforms young women within a differentiated, relational dynamic which upholds the dignity of each member of the school community.
The Director is a committed professional who challenges and supports Woodlands Academy boarding students and adult team members to perform at their best in every area of their school/work lives. The Director enthusiastically accepts the role of acting in loco parentis for the boarding students, while maintaining open communication with students’ families and guardians; throughout, the Director must maintain an acknowledgement and understanding of diverse and multicultural perspectives. This position requires strategic leadership, the creation, oversight and implementation of boarding programing, and the management of day-to-day support for a national and international community of female boarding students at the secondary level.
The Director oversees the administration of safety, health and emergency responses, student transportation, residence life budgets, extracurricular activities, and the overall development of individual students and the community of students and adults.
The Director of Residence Life reports to the Associate Head of School and works closely with the Academic Team and Administration to ensure successful support for both boarding and day school objectives.
Specific responsibilities include:
Leadership
- Establish a strategic direction of the boarding school for the academic year including adult team orientation, professional development, and evaluation
- Cultivate a collaborative living, working, and learning environment where all are valued through thoughtful programming and an active day-to-day engagement with the students and adults in the residential life program
- Schedule flexible, yet predictable daily duty rotation, providing for emergency coverage as needed
- Provide a safe, welcoming, growth-fill environment in which students can thrive
Program development and implementation
- Assist in the planning and execution of student orientation and Welcome Weekend activities
- Develop and manage a disciplinary program that is restorative for both student and community
- Ensure that adult team members monitor the social, emotional, physical, spiritual, and intellectual health of students
- Review, update, and communicate policies and protocols related to physical and mental health
- Oversee the continued development of a comprehensive resident activities program, with a focus on weekly all-dorm dinners and weekend activities/events
Student support
- Work closely with the Student Support Team to support students
- Coordinate physical and mental health services for individual students
- Annually coordinate the international student insurance
- Coordinate student permissions and other student needs
Communication
- Maintain and oversee communication among residential life team members and school departments, including academics, student life, food services, maintenance, administrative staff,
- Partner with the communications and marketing departments as appropriate
- Compose monthly parent communication letters
- Partner with the Alumni and development departments as appropriate
Emergency management, safety, and security
- Oversee after-hours building safety and security in conjunction with security and maintenance teams
- Plan and execute fire, tornado, and lockdown drills with residents
- Liaise with maintenance team members to communicate with local emergency services
- A female with a bachelor’s degree
- A minimum of three years of residence life or boarding school experience
- Excellent interpersonal skills
- Effective written and oral communication with a wide variety of constituents
- Detailed-oriented and highly organized
- An understanding, support, and modeling of the Goals and Criteria for Sacred Heart Schools
- Uphold professional standards of personal presentation, discretion, and punctuality
- Experience working effectively with adolescent girls
- Able to lead and mentor with creativity, wisdom, compassion, and clarity
- Engagement in the life of the school
- Completion of Virtus: Protecting God’s Children training
- Successful completion of criminal and sexual offender registry background checks
The Woodlands Academy community seeks to hire outstanding and diverse team members who work together to advance the common mission of the school.
Why you should join our community:
- Woodlands Academy offers generous health/dental/vision plans, group life and long-term disability, voluntary life, and voluntary short-term disability plans, 403(b) with 5% contribution of annual salary, and flexible spending accounts (benefits for full-time employees working 30+ hours per week only)
- Room and board included
- Get to go on exciting and fun trips with the students to museums, zoos, Chicago, Milwaukee, shopping, professional sports games, AND MORE!
- Special holiday breaks, including Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring Break
- Opportunities to volunteer
- Get to make a tremendous impact on the lives of young women
How to apply:
Please complete the application materials on our Employment page here. All applicants must apply with a cover letter, resume, and Personal Reflection on the Sacred Heart Goals and Criteria. We also strongly suggest applicants to submit three written references.
Woodlands Academy of the Sacred Heart is an all-girls, Catholic, college preparatory day and boarding school in Lake Forest, IL. Visit the school’s website at www.woodlandsacademy.org and the website of the Network of Sacred Heart Schools at www.sacredheartusc.education to learn more.
Woodlands Academy of the Sacred Heart is an equal opportunity employer. It does not discriminate against any individual on the basis of race, color, religion*, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national or ethnic origin, ancestry, genetic information, age, disability, status a veteran or being a member of the Reserves or National Guard, or any other classification under state of federal law.
*The School reserves the right to use religion as a hiring criterion for selected positions and nature of a school as a faith-based institution as permitted by law.