Executive Director - University Academic Advising

TITLE

Executive Director, University Academic Advising

JOB SUMMARY

The Executive Director of University Academic Advising provides strategic leadership and oversight for university-wide academic advising initiatives to support student success and retention. Texas Woman’s University employs a shared advising model, and this role is responsible for driving, aligning, and leading this approach across central advising teams, academic colleges, and departments. This position is responsible for developing, implementing, and assessing advising standards, protocols, and professional development programs, while ensuring alignment with institutional goals. The Executive Director supervises advising leadership and staff, leads hiring processes, manages budgets, and oversees the Academic Advising Center, encompassing lower-division advising professionals, specialized advising for at-risk, dual credit, online, exploring majors, and prospective students. Serving as the primary liaison between advising teams, faculty, and university leadership, this position ensures cohesive communication, collaboration, and alignment with academic programs. The Executive Director also manages advising and retention software implementation, develops early intervention strategies, and utilizes data-driven practices to improve student outcomes. Work is performed independently under limited supervision and performance is based upon completion of assignments and results obtained. The performance evaluation is conducted through the performance evaluation system and in accordance with the University Policy & Procedures.

ORGANIZATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS

Reports to : Vice Provost, Student Success

Supervises: Associate Director, University Academic Advising; Assistant Director, Academic Recovery & Resilience; Assistant Director, University Academic Advising; Academic Advisors, Academic Advising Coordinators; Administrative Support Staff

ESSENTIAL DUTIES - May include, but not limited to the following:

• Lead, develop, and coordinate university-wide academic advising initiatives.

• Supervise academic advising leadership with line manager supervision of academic advisors.

• Lead hiring process for academic advising staff.

• Guide academic advisors to ensure high-quality service to students and stakeholders.

• Serve as the liaison to all campus entities regarding academic advising processes, ensuring a strong relationship exists between academic advising and academic programs.

• Lead professional development activities for academic advisors.

• Develop and present professional development workshops/trainings for advisors, affiliated faculty, and staff.

• Propose and manage academic advising budgets.

• Oversee the Academic Advising Center, consisting of cross-teams of academic advisors.

• Develop and implement Academic Advising Center standards and office protocols.

• Develop and implement common experiences for students surrounding academic advising.

• Directly oversee advising of special populations, including at-risk, probation and suspension, dual credit, online, exploring majors, and prospective students.

• Develop and implement the overall assessment of advising practices.

• Oversee the development and implementation of proactive parallel planning for undergraduate students.

• Respond to academic advising complaints and appeals.

• Develop and implement proactive intervention strategies targeting at-risk student populations.

• Create a dynamic early intervention protocol ensuring high-quality student service and faculty feedback.

• Utilize data, research, and reports to support university-wide retention and persistence goals.

• Work directly with faculty, academic leaders, and university leadership to ensure open communication between academic advising and college/university structures.

• Coordinate with the Vice Provost for Student Success to ensure alignment between academic advising and student achievement metrics.

• Oversee the implementation and ongoing development of a broad-based academic advising and retention software.

• Ensure academic advisors and university stakeholders receive appropriate training on best practices for utilizing academic advising and retention software.

• Address problems, challenges, and issues related to implementing academic advising software and develop solutions.

• Serve as primary liaison with academic advising and retention software vendors and other external academic advising organizations.

• Organize and lead various academic advising committees structured to ensure appropriate ongoing professional development, job training, and onboarding activities.

• Produce and distribute reports.

• Monitor professional advising standards and ensures alignment with professional advising best practices.

• Responsible for establishing job standards, while providing opportunities for professional development and leadership. The performance evaluation is conducted through the performance evaluation system and in accordance with the University Policies & Procedures.

ADDITIONAL DUTIES

• Assist in grant preparation.

• Support the overall efforts of the division of student success within the academic affairs organization by assisting colleagues as needed.

• Perform other duties as requested.

EDUCATION

Master’s degree required. Doctoral degree strongly preferred.

EXPERIENCE

At least five years of higher education academic advising experience, including supervision of employees, program development experience, and experience working with special populations of students at a university level. Experience collaborating with university administration, academic component administrators, faculty, and staff on a multitude of issues.

REQUIREMENT

Regular and reliable attendance at the University during regular scheduled days and work hours is an essential function of this position.

All employees share the responsibility of maintaining information security and privacy requirements within the university by adhering to Federal and State regulations, and TWU Policies & Procedures.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES - The following are essential:

• Knowledge of academic advising and student success initiatives.

• Knowledge of academic programming related to advising and academic support.

• Knowledge of professional advising standards and practices.

• Knowledge and application of principles and ethics associated with developmental academic advising.

• Knowledge of university programs, policies, and practices.

• Knowledge of effective supervision techniques and practices.

• Knowledge of management methods and ability to provide leadership, administrative guidance and direct training and supervision.

• Ability to apply budgeting and fiscal planning techniques within financial constraints.

• Ability to establish and maintain effective relationships with students, faculty, administrators, staff, the public, and service providers.

• Ability to work creatively, collaboratively, and effectively as a team member and independently to promote teamwork within the organization.

• Excellent verbal, written and interpersonal skills.

• Ability to use a personal computer and other office equipment, including related university software and email.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described in the Essential Duties and below are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential duties of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential duties.

The employee may be required to travel.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

All employees are responsible for maintaining an environment that is free from discrimination, intimidation, harassment, including sexual harassment. Work is normally performed in a typical interior work environment.

SAFETY

TWU promotes a safe working environment. Employees are responsible for completing assigned tasks safely and efficiently, and supervisors are responsible for creating and maintaining a safe work environment. Employees must report any unsafe work conditions or practices, as well as any near-miss incidents, to their supervisor and Risk Management. Supervisors and employees should ensure that injury/accident reports are submitted to the Office of Human Resources and Risk Management within 24 hours of the incident.

Texas Woman’s University, an AA/EEO employer, provides equal opportunity to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, gender, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected category, class or characteristic.

All offers of employment will be contingent on the candidate’s ability to provide documents which establish proof of identity and eligibility to work in the United States. Positions at Texas Woman’s University deemed security-sensitive require background checks and verification of all academic credentials.

If you are a male between the age of 18 and 25, federal law requires that you must be registered with the U.S. Selective Service System, unless you meet certain exemptions under Selective Service law. Under HB 558, enacted by the 76th Texas State Legislature, if you are currently of the age and gender requiring registration with Selective Service, but knowingly and willfully fail to do so, you are ineligible for employment with an agency in any branch of Texas state government. For additional information regarding registration or status, you can contact the Selective Service System at View phone number on aiapply.co or .

TWU is the nation’s largest university system focused on women and a federally recognized Hispanic-Serving Institution. TWU is situated approximately 30 miles north of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and is home to approximately 16,433 graduate and undergraduate students across three campuses; Denton, Dallas, and Houston respectively. This diverse academic student community is guided by faculty committed to excellence in teaching, scholarship, and service. TWU is ranked among the nation’s top ethnically diverse institutions according to U.S. News & World Report (2022).

Additional information about the University is available at