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Title: Director of Housing and Residence Life

Division: Student Affairs

Department: Housing & Residence Life Operations

FLSA Status: Exempt

Salary: $85,000

EEO Job Group: 1.1 C1

Position Summary

The University of Southern Indiana is seeking a dedicated student-centered leader to guide our campus housing operations and enrich the student housing and residential life experience. The Director of Housing and Residence Life at the University of Southern Indiana serves as the chief housing officer managing a comprehensive campus housing and residential life operation and collaborating with campus service organizations to provide more than 2600 residents business operations, administrative services, housekeeping, maintenance, and more. The Director oversees more than 100 full-time, part-time and student employees, an annual operational auxiliary budget of $11 million, 43 apartment buildings and four residence halls. This position works closely with students, Resident Assistants (RAs), campus partners, and university leadership to ensure that residential communities foster personal growth, safe and healthy spaces, opportunities for engagement, and success.

Duties/Responsibilities 

Leadership and Staff Development:

• Provide strong leadership, team development, and inspire a shared vision for the future of Housing and Residence Life (HRL).
• Establish and implement effective operational and strategic planning processes to support the realization of shared goals and vision for HRL.
• Maintain strength of residential life.
• Employ, train, supervise, lead, and evaluate an effective team of professional, support, and student staff to achieve goals and responsibilities of the department.
• Create, develop, and improve staff professional development opportunities.
• Promote professional development and/or training to enhance problem solving, leadership, and communication skills.
• Organize and attend on-going professional development and in-service training for all residence life staff members.
• Review/oversee the process of the selection and training of all resident assistants.
• Serve in the highest level of HRL on-call responsibility duties (as back up to Area Coordinators and Leadership Team).
• Serve as a representative on divisional and university committees as assigned by the Vice President for Student Affairs.
• Ensure ongoing effective marketing, recruitment, and retention initiatives for the department, including, but not limited to, in person presentations at various professional organizations.

Operations and Management:

• Direct/supervise the housing application, room selection, and occupancy processes.
• Address students concerns related to room changes, special accommodations, and their housing appeals experience.
• Oversee the effective financial management of the housing and residence life operation, including monitoring the housing and residence life budget and recommending capital purchases.
• Work with staff, develop and refine promotional material, website, and social media efforts.

Data Management:

• Assess program outcomes and goal achievement by providing opportunities for student evaluation of the housing and residential life system and implement appropriate recommendations.
• Supervise the development, implementation and evaluation of the residential curriculum.
• Providing assessment for residence life and housing policies, processes, and initiatives.
• Reviewing housing trends and making recommendations to retain students in campus housing.
• Prepare retention reports for senior leadership and stakeholders.
• Maintain and revise policies that impact retention (e.g., housing agreement processes, grievance procedures, etc.).
• Ensure compliance with fair housing laws and organizational standards.

Student Advocacy and Engagement:

• Actively seek student feedback to improve housing policies, programs and living conditions.
• Serve as a primary resource for students regarding housing concerns, roommate conflicts, and residence life experiences from external partners.
• Be visible and accessible to students and family/guardian members through office hours, apartments and residence hall visits, and campus events.
  
  

Community Building and Relationships:

• Sets the tone for the implementation of a residential environment that is positive and engaging and challenges students’ growth.
• Foster a sense of community in apartments and residence halls through student-centered activities.
• Support and mentor staff to enhance the residential experience.
• Develop and sustain strong and effective collaborative partnerships and relationships with key constituencies across campus.
• Establish and sustain relationships with HRL staff across the state and region. Maintain knowledge of standards and operating procedures for Housing and Residential Life.
• Foster an environment for students to participate in an array of opportunities such as leadership learning, social and educational programming, and community responsibility.

Policy Enforcement, Conflict Resolution and Crisis Management:

• Create and maintain HRL programming policies and procedures to enhance student satisfaction, promote academic success, and contribute to student retention.
• Provide leadership in resolving student housing disputes, roommate conflicts, and community concerns.
• Respond to and manage emergencies as needed.
• Partner with Public Safety and others to create and maintain a safe and secure housing environment through the implementation of various safety awareness programs, the distribution of pertinent materials, the maintenance of equipment and hardware which contribute to the security of the living units and using other methods as appropriate.
• Serve as a hearing officer for housing conduct cases as needed.
• Serve as core member of the university Campus Action Response and Engagement (CARE) Team.
• Serve as core member of the University’s Behavioral Intervention Team (BIT).

Other duties as assigned.

Required Knowledge and Skills

• Master’s degree in student personnel, educational administration, business administration, or other related areas.
• Seven (7) years of progressive experience in housing and residence life with a minimum of three (3) years at the associate director level or above-required.
• Experience must demonstrate strong leadership and operational skills with strong service orientation and refined problem resolution expertise.
• Skilled in policy and process development and implementation.
• Experience should include budget development and management. Skills should include analytical and numeric aptitude appropriate to effective management of large, complex budget.
• Possess strong familiarity with legal issues (including but not limited to Title IX, Clery Act, VAWA, and other compliance related requirements) impacting higher education.
• Communicate effectively, both orally and in writing, and project a positive image of Housing and Residence Life.
• Requires interpersonal skills appropriate to develop and maintain strong relationships with students, parents/guardians and all staff levels, both within the department and throughout the university.
• Embrace the community and relate effectively to all student and staff populations.
• Commitment to student leadership development and willingness and ability to interact effectively with students.
• Ability to work effectively with parents as partners in problem solving student issues.
• Effective public speaking and marketing skills to assist in growing the student population and to fulfill community outreach role.
• Highly effective organizational, prioritization, and time management skills.
• Refined judgment and discretion with ability to maintain confidentiality.
• High level of integrity.
• Experience and competence with personal computers, databases, word processing and spreadsheet programs.
• Experience with and knowledge of assessment as a method to improve efforts of department.

Preferred Knowledge and Skills

• Knowledge of Maxient, StarRez, and Banner.
• Knowledge of Title IX rules and regulations to obtain Deputy Title IX Coordinator certification (e.g., all relevant training will be provided to the new employee if not obtained by start of employment)

Regular Work Hours/Travel Requirements

About USI   

The University of Southern Indiana is a public higher education institution located on a beautiful 1,400-acre campus in Evansville, IN. We offer employees exceptional benefits! Benefits for this position include:

• Affordable medical, dental, vision, life and short term and long-term disability insurance plans.
• Retirement plan where the University makes the total contribution equivalent to 11% of annual salary.
• Full tuition fee waiver for employees/75% for spouses and dependent children.
• Vacation and sick time
• Holiday pay
• Free access to Recreation, Fitness & Wellness Center.
• Access to on-campus University Health Center and Dental Hygiene Clinic.

For more information about the benefits that USI offers, please visit www.usi.edu/hr/benefits.

• Cover letter
• Resume

Search Committee Chair:

If you have questions about the open position, please contact Dr. Xavia Harrington Burton, search committee chair, at xdharringt@usi.edu.

Best Consideration Date:

For best consideration, please submit materials by February 7, 2026.

Pre-Employment Screening

A background check will be required for employment in this position.

Authorization to Work in the United States

USI will not sponsor an employment-related visa for this position.

Interview Accommodations

Persons with disabilities requiring accommodations in the application and interview process please contact the manager of Employment at mcweinzapf@usi.edu or (812) 464-1840. Contacting the manager of Employment is intended for use in seeking disability-related accommodations only. For general applicant inquiries, contact Human Resources at HumanRes@usi.edu or (812) 464-1815.

EEO Statement

USI is an Equal Opportunity Employer as to all protected groups, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities