Director of the Center for Multicultural Life

The Director of the Center for Multicultural Life (CML) leads an growing center that contributes to Bowdoin’s commitment to its multicultural students. The Director sets multi-year direction, goals, and assessment for the CML, and designs signature community building and celebratory programming — including heritage month observances — that serves students from historically underrepresented backgrounds while engaging the full campus. The Director supervises the Assistant Director of the CML and the Center’s student employees, manages the Center’s budgets, and assists in stewarding the Russwurm African American Center together alongside alumni, faculty, and community partners. The Director is one of several center directors based in Ladd House and works as a peer alongside colleagues in the Sexuality, Women, and Gender Center, the Rachel Lord Center for Religious and Spiritual Life, and THRIVE to realize the shared vision for Ladd as an affirming, intersectional cultural center for students. This position calls for sound judgment, and demonstrated skill in supporting students across the full range of backgrounds and identities at Bowdoin. ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS Strategic leadership, vision, and assessment: Set and steward multi-year direction for the Center for Multicultural Life — annual and multi-year goals, priorities, and a program calendar that carries forward from year to year. Represent the CML in divisional and College planning.Signature and educational programming: Design and deliver the Center’s signature programming, including heritage month observances and the events that anchor the CML’s year, giving students opportunities for celebration, community building, learning, and connection.Supervision and staff development: Supervise, mentor, and evaluate the Assistant Director of the Center for Multicultural Life. Hire, train, and supervise the Center’s student staff and ambassadors, partnering with the Office of Student Leadership Development to build their professional and leadership skills.Collaboration and partnership across campus and in Ladd House: Partner with academic departments and programs — Africana Studies and allied fields in particular — on co-sponsored programming, curricular connections, and faculty engagement.Budget, operations, and College citizenship: Manage the program and operating budgets for the Center for Multicultural Life. Education/Skills RequirementsBachelor’s degree required; Master’s degree in a related field preferred.Strong leadership and strategic planning skills, with the ability to establish priorities, translate vision into actionable goals, and assess outcomes to strengthen programs and services.Excellent interpersonal, communication, facilitation, and presentation skills, with the ability to build trusting relationships and communicate effectively with students, faculty, staff, senior leaders, alumni, and external partners.Demonstrated cultural humility and intercultural competency, with the ability to support and engage students across a broad range of backgrounds, identities, and lived experiences.Strong program development, assessment, and administrative skills, including the ability to design and evaluate educational and community-building programs, use data to inform decisions, and effectively manage budgets and resources.Collaborative, well organized, and experienced in advising, program planning, and evaluation. Experience Requirements4-7 years experience in a similar role required. 7+ year experience preferred.A minimum of three years of experience working with broadly diverse cohorts of students in an educational setting is also required.Demonstrated success supporting and advising students from a range of backgrounds and identities, including students of color, first-generation students, and students from low-income backgrounds, preferably within a residential college or university environment.Proven ability to develop, implement, and assess programs and initiatives that foster student learning, community building, belonging, and engagement for identity-specific and campus-wide audiences.A record of effectively supervising, mentoring, and developing professional and/or student staff, including hiring, performance management, goal setting, and professional development.Success building collaborative relationships across an organization and navigating complex or sensitive situations with sound judgment, discretion, empathy, and steadiness, including supporting students in distress and connecting them with appropriate resources. Administrative office hours are 8:30am-5:00pm. This is a full-time position working 40 hours/48 weeks, (0.92 FTE) with evening or weekends as required. This is an exempt level position that requires the time commitment to complete the essential duties of the position.This is an on-site role, and candidates must be able to work in person on Bowdoin College Campus in Brunswick, Maine. The hiring range for this position is expected to be: $ $78,500 – 87,500 annually.This is an 11-month position. BENEFITS AND PERKSA variety of health insurance plans (Medical, Vision, Dental)Generous Retirement Plan – 401(a) and 403(b)Life and Disability InsurancePaid Time Off: 20 days of vacation per calendar year, 12 days of personal/sick timePaid Holidays and Special Days Off: https://www.bowdoin.edu/hr/our-workplace/college-holidays-and-special-days-off.htmlPaid Parental Leave (Available after one year of service)Household access to many of the College’s facilities including the gym and poolFree fitness and wellness classes!And more: https://www.bowdoin.edu/hr/benefits-perks/index.html