Director of Academic Effectiveness
About the role
The University of Minnesota Morris (UMN Morris) invites applications for the position of Director of Academic Effectiveness. This position provides strategic and operational leadership for the institution’s institutional accreditation.
Responsibilities
Serve as UMN Morris’s primary institutional contact with the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), maintaining current knowledge of HLC Criteria for Accreditation, policies, and procedures.
Carefully coordinate all HLC-related activities, including Assurance Argument preparation, interim reporting, and responses to HLC inquiries or monitoring requirements.
Serve as the institutional resource and educator for faculty, staff, and administrators on institutional and program specific accreditation requirements, quality assurance processes, and emerging federal regulatory developments with accreditation implications.
Lead and coordinate academic assessment, including the evaluation of course, program, Morris Core learning outcomes, and the assessment of the Morris Core Experiences.
Provide functional direction to the Faculty Assessment Fellows, coordinating their work on the assessment program. The Fellows’ faculty appointments and personnel matters remain within their home divisions.
Oversee the academic program review cycle, providing methodological support to programs, coordinating external review processes, and synthesizing findings for academic leadership and faculty governance.
Maintain and improve assessment infrastructure, including assessment planning tools, documentation systems, and reporting frameworks aligned with HLC expectations.
Partner with faculty governance and division chairs to embed a culture of evidence-based program improvement across academic units.
Provide oversight and strategic direction to the Institutional Research function, ensuring the accuracy, integrity, and accessibility of institutional data used for planning, assessment, accreditation, and external reporting.
Supervise Institutional Research staff and serve as liaison between IR and Enrollment Management, the Office of the Chancellor, Academic Affairs, Student Affairs, and the broader campus community.
Analyze enrollment, retention, graduation, and student success data to identify trends, equity gaps, and opportunities for academic intervention.
Work closely with senior-level administrators and others to provide information and analysis that supports administrative decision making, strategic planning, and data relevant to federal and other grant applications.
Qualifications
A BA/BS degree plus 6 years of experience.
Demonstrated experience in accreditation, academic assessment, institutional research, program review, or a closely related institutional effectiveness function.
Demonstrated ability to collect, analyze, and communicate institutional data to diverse audiences, including faculty, administrators, and external bodies.
Capacity to work collaboratively within a shared governance environment.
Preferred
Doctorate.
Direct experience with regional accreditation, specifically HLC processes.
Experience with retention research, student success analytics, or assessment of high-impact practices.
Familiarity with the mission and context of public liberal arts education.
Salary
$78,000 - $92,500
Other Info
To apply, please visit this link. Required application materials: resume and cover letter. Additional documents may be uploaded after application by accessing your “My Job Applications” page and uploading documents in the “My Cover Letters and Attachments” section. To request an accommodation during the application process, please e-mail employ@umn.edu or call (612) 624-8647.