Director of Institutional Effectiveness

The Director of Institutional Effectiveness will work closely with the Dean and other senior leadership to advance the goals and objectives of the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. The Director oversees institutional planning, assessment, accreditation, and data analytics to support evidence-based decision-making and regulatory compliance. This role advances the Graduate School’s mission by promoting a culture of excellence, accountability, and innovation across all academic programs.

Reporting: The Director of Institutional Effectiveness reports directly to the Dean of the Graduate School

Key Responsibilities:

• Strategic Planning and Institutional Effectiveness:
  • Lead the development, implementation, and evaluation of the Graduate School’s institutional effectiveness framework, ensuring alignment with the Graduate School’s mission and strategic plan.
  • Collaborate with the Graduate Advisory Council and Curriculum Committee, overseeing the data review and action planning process for the institutional effectiveness plan.
  • Coordinate annual and multi-year strategic planning processes across academic and administrative units.
  • Provide analysis and recommendations to the Dean and senior leadership on institutional performance, resource allocation, and strategic priorities.
• Assessment and Program Evaluation:
  • Collaborate with the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs to develop and maintain systematic processes for evaluating graduate programs.
  • Collaborate with Program Associate and Assistant Deans, staff, and faculty to design and implement learning outcomes assessment plans and student success metrics.
  • Support continuous improvement through analysis of outcomes related to admissions, retention, completion, time-to-degree, publications, grants, and career placement.
• Accreditation and Compliance:
  • Serve as the primary liaison for federal, state, and regional accreditation and compliance reporting including regional accreditors and state agencies such as the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) and the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC).
  • Coordinate the preparation of self-studies, compliance certification, program reports, and site visits.
  • Ensure compliance with federal, state, and external reporting requirements, including IPEDS, NIH training grant requirements, and other sponsor-related data requests.
• Institutional Research and Data Analytics:
  • Oversee data collection and analysis and reporting for academic operational, and student outcomes.
  • Develop and maintain institutional dashboards and data visualization tools to support leadership decision-making.
  • Collaborate with IT and other groups to enhance data quality and reporting systems.
• Continuous Improvement and Institutional Culture:
  • Promote a culture of assessment, accountability, and evidence-based improvement throughout the Graduate School.
  • Provide training, consultation, and resources to faculty and staff on assessment methods, program review, and data-informed decision-making.

Minimum Education and/or Training:

• Bachelor's degree required.

Minimum Experience:

• Minimum Requirement: 10+ years of experience in a business facing Program Management role, with substantial consulting leadership & program implementation experience.
• Demonstrated experience managing/ overseeing/ leading multiple/large/complex program(s) keeping the impact on/ needs of customer in mind.
• Demonstrated experience in strategic planning, prioritizing of programs and defining approaches for implementation.
• Significant experience in risk management, issue resolution, resource management, and financial tracking across multiple programs.
• Significant experience in operational management, and budget planning & management through multiple diverse program teams.
• Experience building systems/tools/processes to leverage program synergies and drive continuous improvement in quality and consistency of programs.
• Experience managing program managers/ teams with direct reporting.
• Proven performance in earlier role/comparable role.

Preferred Education: 

• Master’s degree required in Higher Education Administration, Educational Research, Biomedical Science, Public Health, Data analytics, or a related field. Doctorate (PhD, EdD, or equivalent) strongly preferred, particularly with experience in biomedical sciences or health-related sciences education.

Preferred Experience:

• Minimum of 5-7 years of progressive experience in institutional effectiveness, accreditation, institutional research, or program assessment within higher education or a research-intensive environment. Experience in biomedical sciences, health-related sciences, or STEM graduate education strongly preferred. Prior experience with SACSCOC or other regional accreditation processes is preferred.

Skills:

• Strong analytical and project management skills with the ability to synthesize complex data.
• Knowledge of higher education assessment and accreditation principles, particularly as applied to research-focused graduate education.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to collaborate across academic and administrative units.
• Proficiency with data tools such as SPSS, R, Tableau, Power BI, or similar platforms.
• Understanding of research compliance, graduate education policies and funding mechanisms (e.g. NIH T32, NSF GRFP, etc).

Compensation

In recognition of certain U.S. state and municipal pay transparency laws, St. Jude is including a reasonable estimate of the compensation range for this role. This is an estimate offered in good faith and a specific salary offer takes into account factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets, experience and training, licensure and certifications, and other business and organizational needs. It is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the salary range and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. A reasonable estimate of the current salary range is $104,000 - $186,160 per year for the role of Director of Institutional Effectiveness.

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