Manager, Student Writing, Communication and Learning Support

at  OCAD University

OCAD University acknowledges the ancestral territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Haudenosaunee, the Anishinaabeg and the Huron-Wendat, who are the original owners and custodians of the land on which we work, stand and create.
OCAD University, Canada’s largest and oldest art and design university, is a vibrant community of bold, curious and compassionate artists, designers and scholars who are imagining and creating a joyful, equitable and sustainable world. The University is an internationally renowned hub for art, design, digital media, research, innovation and creativity, and arts administration. It embraces collaborative and interdisciplinary approaches to change-making through art, design-thinking curriculum and research, making OCAD U a local, regional, national and global leader in art and design.
It is an exciting time to join the OCAD U community. The University is at a key stage in its institutional transformation, with the implementation of its Academic and Strategic Plan and guiding principles—driving positive impact, decolonization, indigenization, and equity, environmental sustainability, emerging as a vibrant hub, student-centered approaches, innovation in learning, teaching, and research, and financial stewardship.
Reporting to the Director, Teaching & Learning, the Manager, Student Writing, Communication and Learning Support leads a diverse portfolio of student-facing programs and initiatives that support undergraduate and graduate student writing, communication and language skills development in studio-based art and design education. The Manager provides university-wide leadership and advocates for promising pedagogical practices across curricular and co-curricular contexts to facilitate the creation of equitable, accessible student learning experiences and oversees the planning, development and implementation of all Writing & Learning Centre (WLC) programs and services for OCAD University (OCAD U) students. Working closely with academic leadership, academic support units and key partners internally and across the sector, the Manager builds relationships and collaborations to enable the development and delivery of responsive student programming that is grounded in OCAD U’s curricular context and aligned with our Academic and Strategic Plan. A community builder and change leader, the Manager is knowledgeable about the evolving needs of our diverse student body and fosters dynamic student programs that facilitate their connection with peer networks and supports their engagement with scholarly, creative and disciplinary communities.
The Manager advises the Director, Teaching & Learning on the strategic direction of the WLC portfolio and its operational needs and collaborates with the teaching and learning management team to facilitate alignment and communication across portfolio areas. Through collaborative leadership approaches, community engagement, and scholarly, evidence-informed practice, the Manager promotes student-driven and peer learning approaches across all program areas, grounded in a knowledge of and commitment to decolonizing, anti-racist, accessible and translingual pedagogies and approaches in art and design education.
The WLC is part of the Teaching and Learning portfolio at OCAD University and is co-located with faculty-facing staff and programs. Together, we collaborate with the university community and provide leadership and support to create and sustain equitable and engaging teaching and learning environments for all OCAD University students.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Graduate degree in a related field (i.e., Education, Applied Linguistics, Language Teaching, Writing Studies) or equivalent
• A minimum of five (5) years of progressive experience working in a post-secondary writing centre, English language support unit or similar designing and delivering student academic support programs including experience managing projects, staff and programming, and working with administrators, faculty and students
• Knowledge of best practices in multilingual pedagogy with experience developing co-curricular post-secondary English language learning programs and an understanding of the barriers and support needs of post-secondary students studying in a second language; certification in Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) a strong asset
• Knowledge of visual rhetoric and familiarity with and prior experience working within the curricular context of an art and design education institution; post-secondary studies in Art or Design and/or a present or past art practice a strong asset
• Strategic planning skills with experience identifying and translating strategic priorities into programming and day to day operations
• Demonstrated experience working within the context of university academic governance to advance university and portfolio goals and priorities
• Strong knowledge of best practices in writing pedagogy, student learning and student academic skills development
• Understanding of and experience developing peer learning approaches and pedagogies in co-curricular programming
• Demonstrated experience developing and integrating decolonizing, anti-racist, accessible and translingual approaches and pedagogies in previous work or study
• Excellent management skills and experience managing, supervising, evaluating and developing collaborative staff teams
• Excellent communication, interpersonal and leadership skills, and a demonstrated ability to exercise tact, sound judgment and commitment to confidentiality; demonstrated commitment to relationship building within and across teams
• Program planning skills with ability to meet deadlines and manage complex projects; demonstrated attention to detail
• Experience designing and implementing needs assessment and program evaluation tools
• Educational research and data analysis skills and experience with knowledge mobilization
• Experience leading organizational change processes and building shared goals and consensus across diverse teams and stakeholder groups
• Advanced facilitation skills; Instructional Skills Workshop certification an asset
• Experience planning, overseeing and implementing budgets
• Experience managing staff in a unionized environment
• Demonstrated commitment to principles and practices of decolonizing, anti-racism and accessibility and experience promoting a respectful work and learning environment for students, faculty and staff; knowledge of critical Disability Studies scholarship an asset
• Strong digital literacy and computer skills, including a high degree of facility in the use of all Microsoft 365 applications; familiarity with multimedia technologies and the use of communication, collaboration, and other teaching and learning technologies; experience using the Canvas Learning Management System by Instructure or other learning management systems to support student learning is required
  Compensation: Commensurate with experience, plus benefits.
  Hours of Work: Total of 35 hours per week. The incumbent in this role will be expected to report to work on campus.

IN ORDER TO ALLEVIATE THE UNDER-REPRESENTATION OF RACIALIZED AND INDIGENOUS ADMINISTRATORS, PRIORITY IN HIRING WILL BE GIVEN TO QUALIFIED RACIALIZED AND INDIGENOUS PERSONS WHO SELF-IDENTIFY AS SUCH IN THE APPLICATION PROCESS. THIS INITIATIVE IS A SPECIAL PROGRAM UNDER THE ONTARIO HUMAN RIGHTS CODE.

OCAD University is committed to providing an inclusive and barrier free experience to applicants with accessibility needs. Requests for accommodation can be made at any stage during the recruitment process. Please contact People & Culture for more information or refer to OCAD U’s Policy of Accommodation in Employment for Persons with Disabilities
All qualified persons are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents of Canada will be given priority. While we thank all candidates for their interest, only those short-listed will be contacted.

Strategic Leadership, Operations and Administration

• Building on the vision, mission and mandate of the teaching and learning portfolio, and in close alignment with the OCAD U Academic and Strategic Plan, lead the development of a vision and multi-year plan across all student-facing program areas (i.e. writing, language, academic communication and learning programs and initiatives)
• Share scholarly and community-based research and promising practices across the university to advance evidence-based decision-making and practice to enhance the student learning experience
• Conduct needs assessments and develop and oversee the implementation of WLC program monitoring and evaluation processes to track, assess and report on WLC co-curricular program activities; facilitate the regular review of evaluation data to inform program development and delivery and quality assurance processes
• Develop collaborations and partnerships with stakeholders across the university community to inform the creation of responsive, well-integrated programs and services for undergraduate and graduate students; support staff relationship-building with other academic support units to promote knowledge sharing, collaboration and capacity building
• Hire, train and supervise WLC staff, including setting goals and objectives, monitoring progress, evaluating employee performance, coaching and fostering professional development
• In consultation with the Office of Diversity, Equity & Sustainability Initiatives, work with the Director and management team to develop, implement and maintain a departmental equity plan that ensures anti-racist and decolonizing approaches to policies, procedures and practices that remove barriers in employment and service delivery and that advance equity and sustainability principles
• Facilitate ongoing critical reflection and lead the development and integration of decolonizing, anti-racist, accessible and translingual approaches and pedagogies across all student-facing program areas
• Manage the WLC budget, participate in annual budget planning processes and work with relevant staff to fulfill budget reporting requirements
• Work collaboratively with members of the teaching and learning management team to facilitate strong working relationships and consistency in pedagogical approaches across program areas; ensure that emerging curricular directions are informing student program directions, approaches and priorities

Program Development and Implementation

• Facilitate program planning processes and establish annual priorities for the development and delivery of student academic support programs (e.g. writing, academic communication, language; work with relevant staff to establish an annual plan of WLC programming and priorities
• Oversee the development, delivery and evaluation of a routine cycle of WLC co-curricular support programs and resources for undergraduate and graduate students; identify emerging program areas and guide the implementation and evaluation of pilot programming
• Guide the intentional integration of multilingual pedagogy across program areas, determining where specialized programs and resources are required
• Oversee the planning and delivery of academic integrity resources and programs for students and related communications to facilitate the implementation of academic policy and procedures; liaise with the Associate Deans to inform service levels and program planning, supporting interpretation of the Academic Misconduct Policy as required
• Oversee the implementation of an annual marketing and communications plan for WLC student programs, including the development and maintenance of the WLC website, knowledge base and social media content
• Oversee the development and implementation of WLC student program policies and procedures; ensure all WLC student program policies are documented and up to date
• Establish and oversee service levels and program targets

Scholarly and Professional Engagement

• Conduct educational research and develop research funding proposals to advance portfolio goals and priorities
• Maintain currency in advances and trends in writing, academic communication, language and student learning in post-secondary education with an emphasis on art and design education; participate in academic and professional conferences and associations
• Support the WLC and provide leadership across the university by attending meetings, serving on committees, and acting as a collaborative partner on campus and community initiatives related to student success and engagement
• Assist the Director in other related tasks that contribute to the successful operation of the WLC and support the Centre’s strategic objectives