Art Director Assistant jobs in Illinois

Assistant Director of Campus Life

Campus Life

For more than 150 years, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) has been a leader in educating the world’s most influential artists, designers and scholars. Located in downtown Chicago with a fine arts graduate program consistently ranking among the top four graduate fine arts programs in the nation by U.S. News and World Report, SAIC provides an interdisciplinary approach to art and design as well as world-class resources, including the Art Institute of Chicago Museum, on-campus galleries and state-of-the-art facilities. SAIC’s undergraduate, graduate and post-baccalaureate students have the freedom to take risks and create the bold ideas that transform Chicago and the world—as seen through notable alumni and faculty such as Michelle Grabner, David Sedaris, Elizabeth Murray, Richard Hunt, Georgia O’Keeffe, Cynthia Rowley, Nick Cave, and LeRoy Neiman.

We offer a competitive, comprehensive benefits package:

• Generous paid time off

• Paid holidays (up to 14 days)

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance

• Generous parental, caregiver, and medical leave benefits

• Competitive retirement plan (up to 9% matching contribution)

• Tuition remission and Tuition Exchange Program

• Great employee discounts

• Complimentary general admission to participating cultural institutions

ABOUT THE DEPARTMENT: 

Campus Life is part of the Office of Student Affairs, and works to support the experience of the student outside of the classroom.  The department is in charge of many large-scale events, such as New Student Orientation, Family Weekend, annual public Art Sales, as well as Graduation.  Campus Life also works closely with over 60 registered student groups, and provides them support and guidance to facilitate their activities. Campus Life also operates the LeRoy Neiman Center, which is the hub of student activity on campus.

ABOUT THE POSITION: 

Advises and supports an average of 60 student groups and the faculty/staff advisors to those groups. Facilitates training each term for student groups and advisors. Hires, trains, and supervises student Orientation Leaders for fall and spring New Student Orientation and Welcome Week. Assists the Associate Dean and Director in coordinating the Leadership Development and Recognition initiatives for more than 200 student leaders. Supports department in staffing and programming of all Campus Life programs, including Fall and Spring New Student Orientation, Fall and Spring Welcome Week, Family Weekend, Holiday and Spring Art Sales, Leadership Dinner, Commencement, and other programs throughout the year. Assists Associate Dean in co-advising SAIC Student Government.  Works collaboratively with students, the Director and the Associate Dean to address student concerns, develop programs, and implement policies and procedures.  This is a live-in position that assumes 24-hour on call responsibilities for 1000 bed residence program.  Evening and weekend commitments should be expected.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. STUDENT GROUP ADVISING and SUPPORT - Serve as the Student Affairs advisor to registered student groups and the liaison to the faculty/staff advisors for those student groups; coordinate the Student Groups Registration process through our online system, “EngageSAIC”; facilitate development and recognition initiatives for student groups including the student group handbook, leader and advisor training sessions; attend student group meetings as appropriate; coordinate communication efforts to the community about students groups, such as digital boards and the “Engage SAIC” page; maintain current registered student groups list and disseminate to appropriate areas; serve as a resource for students who are interested in getting involved in student groups and responds to parental communication as appropriate; manage the reservation of rooms for student groups. Assist student groups in receiving funds granted by Student Government and manage funding processes.  

2.  UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT ORIENTATION and WELCOME WEEK – Coordinate the development, implementation and evaluation of Orientation Leader recruitment, selection, and training for both Fall and Spring New Student Orientation and Welcome Week. Develop and implement Orientation Leader training. Supervise and work collaboratively with all Orientation Leaders (65) and Senior Orientation Leaders (10). Track and enter all Senior/Orientation Leader work hours to maintain the approved student worker budget. Assist the Director in implementing Resource Fair and other programmatic elements, as needed.

3.  SUPERVISION - Supervise, train and recognize 75 student Orientation Leaders and the Campus Life student workers, and manage payment through the college work study system.  

4.  STUDENT GOVERNMENT SUPPORT - Serve as co-advisor to Student Government along with the Associate Dean.  Assist with the support and development of Student Government, the student organization involved in the governance of the school. Attend meetings twice a week. Manage the tracking and spending of Student Government budget and allocations  

5.  EVENT APPROVAL MANAGEMENT - Review student group events and assist in the event approval process for these and other events; serve as a liaison with Security and Operations staff and a resource/advisor for students, faculty and staff for student group programs.    

6. STUDENT LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT –. Work collaboratively with students, the Director and the Associate Dean to create a series of skills-based leadership development programs.

7.  STUDENT ADVOCACY/OUTREACH – Develop and maintain rapport with students (especially student leaders and new students); attend student group meetings as appropriate and weekly Student Government meetings; assess needs and concerns of students; advocate for students in all aspects of their educational experience.

8.  STUDENT ISSUES/CRISIS MANAGEMENT – Identify personal and emotional concerns of students; provide appropriate resources and referrals; assist with crisis management for campus-related issues and directly respond to on campus issues.

9.  COMMENCEMENT CEREMONY—Assist Associate Dean and recruiting and managing student employees. Collaborate with the Neiman Center Coordinator on the hiring, scheduling, and administrative needs of Commencement student employees. Assist with other aspects of the ceremony when needed.

10.  STUDENT SUCCESS--Work with students to successfully find their place in the SAIC community through participating in New Student Orientation, campus leadership opportunities, student groups, or other co-curricular opportunities within the SAIC community

11.  ASSESSMENT OF OUTCOMES--Facilitate the assessment of event outcomes or learning outcomes as directed by the Director of Campus Life.

12.  ON CALL RESPONSIBLITIES & STUDENT SUPPORT* - Participate in 24-hour on-call rotation with live-in professional staff colleagues; recognize that residence halls are open 365 days/year and therefore being on-call during holidays should be expected; respond to student and/or facilities issues/crises in person 24-hours a day; high level of in-person response to mental health concerns, other student support situations should be expected; professional staff may be asked to respond to the hospital if a student is transported via ambulance; consistent communication with Dean On-Call during crisis/emergency situations; maintain accurate incident reports using Symplicity Advocate Software; work with Residence Life and Student Affairs team to respond to critical incidents on campus; work with other departments including IRFM, Campus Security, Wellness Center, and others to provide appropriate response to crises. Identify personal and emotional concerns of students; provide appropriate resources and referrals; track and monitor student issues using Symplicity database; maintain contact with parents and other constituencies as appropriate.

13.  LIVE ON POSITION – This is a 12-month, live on position; weekend and evening commitments should be expected; assist on-call staff as needed for student and/or facilities issues/crises (e.g. fire alarms, flooding, multiple student issues, etc.); allowed one weekend away each month – to be approved by supervisor.

14.  ALL CAMPUS PROGRAMS– Assist with the planning and implementation of all campus programs such as Holiday Art Sale, Halloween Ball, All School BBQ, BIPOC student and community events.

15.  OTHER DUTIES as ASSIGNED

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

• Job will require sitting (65%) standing (35%), lifting objects*, pushing laundry carts of supplies*, moving tables, chairs and other supplies for events*.  Maximum lifting weight 40 lbs. 

Qualifications

• Master’s Degree preferred, Bachelor’s Degree required
• Prior work with organized student groups in a higher education setting
• Prior experience in working in a higher education setting
• Experience serving “on call” in a higher education setting preferred
• Effective communication skills
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite
• Ability to work with diverse populations, including multicultural experience, cross-
• cultural communication skills and the ability to create and promote an inclusive community
• Demonstrated collegiality and leadership ability
• Basic understanding of mental health and mental health support
• Strong written and verbal skills. Ability to effectively communicate in a dynamic and
• fast-paced environment.
• Strong organizational skills and the ability to prioritize work.
• Be a self-starter with a demonstrated ability to plan, organize and prioritize strategies
• and tasks in an independent way.

ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION 

The Art Institute of Chicago is an equal opportunity, equal access employer fully committed to achieving a diverse and inclusive workplace. We believe in a staff culture that benefits from a wide range of experience, backgrounds, and career paths, and we encourage nontraditional candidates to apply. 

Salary Grade 7 

Benefits
We offer a competitive, comprehensive benefits package: 

• Generous paid time off
• Paid holidays (up to 14 days)
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Generous parental, caregiver, and medical leave benefits
• Competitive retirement plan (up to 9% matching contribution)
• Tuition remission and Tuition Exchange Program
• Great employee discounts
• Complimentary general admission to participating cultural institutions
• Want to stay abreast of the latest job openings at the Art Institute and the School of the Art Institute? Sign up for our Employment Opportunities E-announcements.

Closing Statement 

The Art Institute of Chicago is an Equal Opportunity Employer that recruits, hires and promotes qualified individuals without regard to race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, ancestry, veteran status or citizenship. The Institute complies with federal and state disability laws and makes reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, please contact the Department of Human Resources at apply_help@artic.edu.

Union Info
This position is part of a bargaining unit represented by AFSCME Council 31