Director, Writing Center

Position Details

Position Information

Announcement Number STAFF - VA - 27084 For questions regarding this position, please contact:

William G. Thomas III

Dean, College of Letters & Science

william.thomas22@montana.edu

Classification Title Managing Director Working Title Director, Writing Center Brief Position Overview

The College of Letters & Science is searching for a highly motivated and experienced educator to provide dynamic leadership for the Writing Center.

Position Number 4C0635 Department Writing Center Division College of Letters & Science Appointment Type Professional Contract Term Fiscal Year Semester If other, specify From date If other, specify End date FLSA Exempt Union Affiliation Exempt from Collective Bargaining FTE 1.0 Benefits Eligible Eligible Salary Starting at $73,000 annually, commensurate with experience, education, and qualifications Contract Type LOA If other, please specify Recruitment Type Open

Position Details

General Statement

The College of Letters and Science (CLS), the largest center for learning, teaching and research at Montana State University, offers students an excellent liberal arts and sciences education in nearly 50 majors, 25 minors and over 25 graduate degrees within the four areas of the humanities, social sciences, natural and physical sciences, and mathematical sciences.

Building on the great strength of our traditional disciplines, the college provides exciting opportunities for faculty and students at the cutting edge of interdisciplinary inquiry. CLS is dedicated to supporting student success, discovering and disseminating new knowledge, and providing an atmosphere in which discovery and learning are integrated and valued. CLS is at the confluence of intellectual tradition, discovery, and innovation.

The MSU Writing Center, through its peer tutor programs and faculty partnerships, provides increased access to educational programming for student writers across Montana State University. The MSU Writing Center's vision is to create a dynamic, collaborative environment that fosters and maintains a vibrant community of writers across the MSU campuses.

At the core of all Writing Center programming are its peer tutors. Writing Center tutors meet individually or in groups with students of all abilities and backgrounds at any stage of the writing process. Writing Center staff, in addition to working directly with students, collaborate with faculty to build partnerships that support the teaching of writing within the disciplines and across the curriculum.

The Writing Center's mission is to inspire and enable every MSU student to write, think, reason, and create for themselves. In a world of diminished human connection and communication, we believe the Writing Center is vital to the lifelong success of MSU students.

The Director of the Writing Center will guide the strategy to fulfill the center's mission and provide essential leadership to engage students, faculty and staff, support innovative programming, and represent the center in the university and beyond.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Provide dynamic leadership for the Writing Center in concert with MSU and CLS strategies and priorities:

• Work with the Dean and other campus leaders to forward the mission of the College and University;

• Maintain an advisory board of faculty and program directors from across campus;

• Develop and implement program learning outcomes and assess Writing Center programming annually;

• Produce an annual report to share with MSU stakeholders.

• Foster a culture that is participatory, dynamic, futuristic, and supports student, faculty, and staff excellence:

• Implement a holistic review process for all Writing Center staff and tutors;

• Engage staff in ongoing discussions about the shared work of The Writing Center;

• Build and maintain relationships with university faculty and program coordinators/directors;

• Stay current on the needs for writing support across campus.

• Lead, coordinate, grow, and administer the Writing Center's programming through collaboration with staff, tutors, and campus partners.

• Oversee the graduate and undergraduate tutoring programs;

• Develop new models of writing support to meet campus needs;

• Develop the tutor education curriculum; lead, and mentor those leading tutor education;

• Guide and support tutor research within the Writing Center; help tutors prepare and present their work for campus audiences and, when appropriate, professional conferences;

• Support the writing needs of undergraduate and graduate student researchers across the university.

• Oversee operations and budget; recruit, supervise, mentor, and evaluate staff and tutors.

• Stay current in writing center conversations and best practices; participate in scholarly communities; develop scholarly materials, when appropriate.

Required Qualifications - Experience, Education, Knowledge & Skills

• Master's Degree, MFA, or Doctorate in TESOL, English, Composition and Rhetoric, Creative Writing, Education, or a closely related field.
• A record of successful experience supporting or leading a university writing center or similar program.
• A record of effectiveness in building programs related to writing or teaching writing in the classroom.
• Experience managing and supervising others in a productive and efficient environment.

Preferred Qualifications - Experience, Education, Knowledge & Skills

• A record of working on interdisciplinary, university-wide or multi-college programs and initiatives.
• Experience working with generative AI writing technologies in educational settings.
• A record of successful grant writing, grantsmanship, or fundraising.

The Successful Candidate Will

• Demonstrates superior written and oral communication skills.
• Demonstrates innovation and flexibility, for example ability to think of teaching and learning as occurring in a variety of settings, and to think creatively about how learning occurs.
• Demonstrates strong decision-making skills and initiative.
• Demonstrates ability to be a team player as well as to work independently.
• Demonstrates strong presentation and interpersonal skills.
• Demonstrates an ability to work with a broad range of constituencies including students, staff, faculty, university administrators, funding agencies, professional associations and organizations.
• Possesses skills to deal with sensitive or difficult situations effectively.
• Demonstrates an ability to be reflective about work.
• Demonstrates the ability to maintain a calm, pleasant and positive demeanor even in difficult situations.

Position Special Requirements/Additional Information

This job description should not be construed as an exhaustive statement of duties, responsibilities or requirements, but a general description of the job. Nothing contained herein restricts Montana State University's rights to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time.

Physical Demands

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily with or without reasonable accommodations. The requirements listed above are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required.

This position has supervisory duties? Yes

Posting Detail Information

Number of Vacancies 1 Desired Start Date Upon completion of a successful search. Position End Date (if temporary) Open Date Close Date Applications will be:

Screening of applications will begin on September 21, 2026; however, applications will continue to be accepted until an adequate applicant pool has been established.

Special Instructions EEO Statement

Montana State University is an equal opportunity employer. MSU does not discriminate against any applicant on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, political ideas, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, marital status, national origin, physical or mental disability, or any other protected class status in violation of any applicable law.

In compliance with the Montana Veteran's Employment Preference Act, MSU provides preference in employment to veterans, disabled veterans, and certain eligible relatives of veterans. To claim veteran's preference, please complete the veteran's preference information located in the Demographics section of your profile.

Applicant Documents

Required Documents

• Resume
• Cover Letter

Optional Documents

Supplemental Questions

Required fields are indicated with an asterisk (*).