Asst. Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students

Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students

A student-centered senior leadership opportunity within a Catholic, Franciscan learning community in Sioux City, Iowa.

About Briar Cliff University

Founded in 1930 and rooted in the Catholic Franciscan tradition, Briar Cliff University is a vibrant, values-based community dedicated to academic excellence and personal growth. Located on the scenic Loess Hills overlooking the Missouri River, "The Cliff" maintains a tight-knit learning environment with an institutional 15:1 student-to-faculty ratio.

Academically, the university offers over 30 undergraduate programs and several respected graduate degrees, including regionally recognized programs in Nursing, Physical Therapy, and Sport Management. Our commitment to the student-athlete experience is equally robust; as members of the NAIA and Great Plains Athletic Conference, the Briar Cliff Chargers have earned 19 conference championships and were recently honored as an NAIA Champions of Character Gold Level institution.

A city of 85,000 stretching across the corners of Iowa, South Dakota, and Nebraska (referred to as "Siouxland"), Sioux City is nestled along the Sioux River approximately 80 miles from both Omaha, NE, and Sioux Falls, SD. The city offers a vibrant, friendly community with a cost of living that is attractive for families and individuals alike. Sioux City possesses a bustling riverfront, a lively downtown arts and entertainment scene, numerous parks, and rich cultural opportunities, combining small-town charm with the amenities of a larger metropolitan area. As a regional hub for business and culture, the city features over 50 parks, the historic Orpheum Theatre, Tyson Events Center, and a mix of national retailers and award-winning local favorites. Sioux City has twice been named an "All-America City," highlighting its strong community and significant quality of life.

Our Mission

Briar Cliff University is a community committed to higher education within the liberal arts and Catholic perspectives. In the Franciscan tradition of service, caring, and openness to all, Briar Cliff emphasizes quality education for its students, combining a broad intellectual background with career development. The University challenges its members to grow in self-awareness and in their relationship to others and to God.

Our Vision

The lifelong learning place preparing ethical world changers.

Our Values

Building a Caring Community

• We nurture healthy relationships.
• We value and respect the uniqueness of each person.
• We treat others with care, compassion, and kindness.
• We are welcoming and open to all we meet.

Peacemaking

• We promote peace and non-violence, and work for justice.
• We encourage open dialogue.
• We accept and value differences.
• We resolve conflicts through respectful listening and negotiating.

Reverencing Creation

• We see all life as sacred and relate to all of creation with a sense of reverence.
• We honor the goodness of God's presence in all of creation.
• We strive to live in harmony as sister and brother.
• We conserve and preserve our natural resources for future generations.

Connection with Joyful Service

• We are open to gratefully receiving the gifts of others.
• We give as we have received and joyfully share our gifts with others, locally and globally.
• We recognize that every person can make a difference in another's life.
• We seek to serve those most in need.

These values are not just the values of the Franciscan order that founded Briar Cliff University over 90 years ago, they are the foundation of everything we do and believe here at Briar Cliff University. We ensure that every single academic program and activity is centered on these ideals to help instill these Franciscan values in our community.

The Opportunity

Briar Cliff University seeks a student-centered, mission-driven leader to serve as Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students. Reporting to the Provost and Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs, this position serves as the University's chief student affairs officer and a member of the Provost's senior leadership team, with responsibility for the departments, services, and initiatives that shape the extra- and co-curricular student experience.

The Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students provides strategic leadership, supervision, and oversight for Residential Life and Housing, Student Activities, Mission and Campus Ministry, Counseling Services, Health Services, student conduct, and behavioral intervention through the CARE Team - working in close partnership with academic leaders, enrollment management, athletics, and the Title IX Coordinator to create an inclusive, student-centered environment consistent with the University's Catholic and Franciscan mission.

Franciscan Mission Integration

This role is, at its core, a role deeply tied to the institutional mission. The Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students is expected to actively advance Briar Cliff's commitment to educating the whole person - fostering an environment that promotes academic achievement, personal growth, wellness, service, and community engagement in the Franciscan tradition. In practice, that means:

• Grounding student conduct and CARE Team work in Building a Caring Community - treating every student with dignity, even in difficult moments.
• Approaching conflict, crisis response, and Title IX collaboration through the lens of Peacemaking - respectful listening, fair process, and restoration.
• Supporting Campus Ministry and the broader Catholic and Franciscan identity of the University as an active partner, not a bystander.
• Modeling Connection with Joyful Service in how the division supports students most in need, on campus and in the Sioux City community.

This directly reflects Briar Cliff's Institutional Learning Outcome that graduates will be people who "ethically lead in purposeful, loving service to creation" - a standard the division's leadership is expected to model, not just teach.

Key Areas of Responsibility

Student Affairs Leadership

• Provide vision and strategic direction for the division as a member of the Provost's senior leadership team.
• Develop policies, procedures, and programs that support student engagement, well-being, persistence, and success.
• Promote a campus culture grounded in respect, integrity, accountability, and inclusion.

Residential Life and Student Activities

• Direct residential life and housing operations, including housing assignments, occupancy management, and residence hall programming.
• Provide leadership in developing student life programs and services
• Supervise professional and student residence life staff and student activities staff
• Oversee residential student conduct
• Oversee activities related to our Catholic Franciscan Mission and Campus Ministry
• Ensure safe, healthy, and supportive living-learning environments that foster belonging and community.

Counseling and Health Services

• Supervise campus counseling services, mental health initiatives, and crisis intervention and referral systems.
• Oversee campus health services, immunization compliance, health records management, and public health guidance.
• Develop wellness, prevention, and health education programming that supports student success.

Student Conduct, CARE Team, and Behavioral Intervention

• Administer the University's student conduct process and serve as, or supervise, the primary student conduct officer.
• Chair the CARE Team, ensuring students in distress are identified early and connected to the right support.
• Work closely with Compass Navigators to address early alerts to ensure that students do not fall through the cracks between academic life and student life
• Engage in threat assessment and after-hours crisis response

Compliance, Risk Management, and Assessment

• Ensure divisional compliance with FERPA, Title IX, the Clery Act, ADA, The Stop Hazing Act, and other applicable regulations.
• Develop and maintain emergency response protocols affecting students.
• Monitor departmental effectiveness through assessment and data-informed decision-making, and report to senior leadership.

Personnel, Budget, and Collaboration

• Hire, supervise, develop, and evaluate staff across assigned departments
• Manage departmental budgets
• Partner with faculty, staff, and student organizations to enhance campus life and support retention initiatives.
• Serve as an advocate for student needs and concerns across the institution.

Qualifications

Required

• Master's degree in Higher Education Administration, Student Affairs, Counseling, Educational Leadership, or a related field.
• Minimum of five years of progressively responsible leadership experience in higher education student affairs.
• Demonstrated experience supervising professional staff and managing complex student support services.
• Knowledge of student development theory, student conduct, crisis management, and support services.
• Familiarity with, or affinity for, faith-based or mission-driven higher education environments.

Preferred

• Terminal degree in Higher Education, Educational Leadership, Counseling, or a related field.
• Experience overseeing multiple student affairs functional areas, including residential life and counseling.
• Experience with student conduct and Title IX process training, such as ATIXA or NaBITA, as well as
• experience with Clery reporting

Core Competencies

• Student-centered, mission-aligned leadership
• Strategic planning and execution
• Crisis management and sound decision-making
• Communication and relationship building
• Budget and resource management
• Equity, inclusion, and conflict resolution

Work Environment

• Ability to respond to emergencies outside regular business hours, with occasional evening and weekend responsibilities.
• Ability to move throughout campus facilities and attend student events.

Application Process

This is a full-time, twelve-month, exempt position. The successful candidate should expect to begin January 4, 2027, or as soon as possible thereafter. A competitive salary is commensurate with professional experience and academic credentials.

Interested candidates should visit the Briar Cliff University employment website for more information and to apply. Candidates should submit:

• A letter of interest describing the alignment of the candidate's qualifications with the position requirements
• Current curriculum vita
• A statement of philosophy that addresses ways in which the candidate creates and sustains a culture of belonging, fairness and appreciation for different perspectives on campus
• Graduate and undergraduate transcripts (unofficial copies are fine at this point)
• Contact information (only) for three professional references

For full consideration, candidates should submit their applications no later than October 31, 2026, although review of applications will continue until the position is filled. Any final offer is contingent on a successful background check. If you have any questions about this position, contact Provost@briarcliff.edu.