Associate Dean, Humanities and Social Sciences

Under the direction of the Dean, Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS), the Associate Dean provides day-to-day leadership for the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. The Associate Dean works with faculty, staff and administration to co-ordinate the planning, development, implementation, and review of programs, and to uphold academic standards. The Associate Dean assists the Dean with budgeting; handling complaints, grievances and appeals; selecting and supervising faculty and staff; overseeing work assignments and scheduling; coordinating professional development opportunities; and other duties as required.

Together with the Dean, the Associate Dean, Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) is accountable for the following:

• Representing the Office of the Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences;
• Providing direction and leadership to faculty and staff;
• Working with the Dean, Chairs, and Coordinators to ensure that new curriculum for the credit and non-credit programs is planned, developed and implemented, and that existing curriculum is regularly reviewed and updated; ensuring quality standards for program review and curriculum development;
• Assisting with developing, implementing and monitoring of departmental operational plans in coordination with the Dean, Chairs and Coordinators;
• Working with HSS faculty and staff and relevant College areas to manage and resolve student-related issues;
• Supporting student success by working with students and faculty, as required, to address performance and/or academic issues, proactively upholding the values of academic integrity within the Faculty, and resolving complaints following principles of procedural fairness;
• Ensuring the quality and integrity of activities within the Faculty;
• Participating in selection processes, hiring decisions, and orientation of new hires;
• Managing the process of evaluation for probationary faculty and overseeing the post-probationary faculty evaluation process;
• Reviewing and recommending to the Dean approval of faculty professional development, vacation, sick leave and other leaves of absence requests;
• Maintaining knowledge of and ensuring compliance with the DCFA and BCGEU Collective Agreements and all relevant College policies and procedures;
• Working with the Department Chairs, Coordinators and program staff to monitor enrolments and ensure the development and implementation of student success and enrolment management measures;
• Working with the Chairs and Coordinators to ensure high quality online and print communication materials related to Humanities and Social Sciences programs;
• Working with the Chairs and Coordinators to ensure the staffing, scheduling of workload, timetabling, and instructional hours are in alignment of the Collective Agreement;
• In collaboration with the Dean, ensure Faculty and departmental budgets are developed and maintained within the approved parameters;
• Representing the Dean and the Faculty in selected external relationships;
• Under the direction of the Dean, ensuring the establishment and maintenance of a Program Advisory Committee for each program and representing the Dean on selected Program Advisory Committees;
• Responsibility for specific initiatives in the Faculty as identified by the Dean;
• Assisting with program-related market research and needs assessments, and participating in promotional and marketing opportunities;
• Supporting the development and implementation of new programming in the Faculty; in the case of collaborative degrees, assists in communicating program needs to other areas of the College (such as Enrolment Services) and to collaborative partners (within the College or at other institutions);
• Work with the Office of Institutional Effectiveness to establish data analytics and research priorities to best support program management decisions;
• Support a culture of excellence in teaching though professional development;
• Lead the development and implementation of initiatives in support of the College’s Strategic Plan;
• Performing other related duties as required.

To Be Successful in this Role You Will Need:

• A minimum of five years post-secondary Full-Time Equivalent teaching experience;
• A minimum of three years of experience in academic administration or similar role;
(such as Department Chair, Program Coordinator, Associate Dean) within a post-secondary institution;
• Ability to meet the qualified to teach determination in at least one department or program within the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences;
• Demonstrated interpersonal and relationship building capabilities including the ability to foster teamwork and facilitate collaborative working relationships; mediation skills; and the ability to build consensus among diverse stakeholders;
• Demonstrated organizational, time management and technology skills; and ability to meet deadlines and work under pressure with self-direction;
• Proven capacity to manage change, and a demonstrated ability to drive innovations from conception through to implementation;
• Proven leadership ability;
• Excellent oral and written communication skills; and
• A demonstrated record of scholarly activity and the ability to support research and scholarly activities within the Faculty.