Director of Global Engagement

Nestled in Maryville, Tennessee, between the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the city of Knoxville, our campus combines the beauty of a rural setting with the advantages of an urban center. With a wide range of academic programs and a strong tradition of career preparation, our alumni live “strong of mind and brave of heart,” carrying forward our Presbyterian founder's charge to do good on the largest possible scale.

Mission

As an employer, Maryville College offers more than a mission - it offers support. Our employees receive a comprehensive benefits package that includes medical, dental, and vision coverage, a generous paid time off program, a retirement plan with an employer match of up to 5%, and the opportunity to grow in a collaborative community that values both professional excellence and personal well-being.

“Maryville College prepares students for lives of citizenship and leadership as we challenge each one to search for truth, grow in wisdom, work for justice and dedicate a life of creativity and service to the peoples of the world.”

Values

• Scholarship: We commit ourselves to lifelong curiosity and learning, to the search for knowledge, and to intellectual creativity.
• Respect: We commit ourselves to honor the worth, dignity, and freedom of ourselves and all creation, and to treat others as we wish to be treated.
• Integrity: We commit ourselves to truth, honesty, dependability, and responsibility in all our actions and relationships.

SUMMARY

The Director of the Center for Global Engagement provides strategic and operational leadership for Maryville College's international education and global engagement portfolio. The Director leads the Center and its staff; advances international student enrollment, success, and regulatory compliance; oversees education abroad, global learning, and intercultural initiatives; manages budgets and resources; and coordinates institutional risk management and crisis response for international programs. Working across academic and administrative divisions, the Director aligns global engagement with the College's mission, strategic priorities, and commitment to student learning and success.

Education and Experience

Education required to ensure success in this position:

• Master's degree in international education, higher education administration, student affairs, or related field. An equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered.

Experience required to ensure success in this position:

• Minimum of five years of progressively responsible experience in international education, higher education administration, enrollment management, student services, or a related field; seven or more years preferred.
• Demonstrated experience with F-1 student and J-1 exchange visitor regulations, SEVIS compliance, and institutional recordkeeping.
• Demonstrated experience supervising and developing staff, managing budgets and operations, and leading cross-functional initiatives.
• Experience developing institutional partnerships and managing health, safety, risk, or crisis-response responsibilities in international education.
• Experience living, studying, working, or traveling internationally, or comparable sustained intercultural experience.
• Evidence of ongoing professional development and engagement with relevant professional standards and associations.

Preferred:

• Proficiency in a language other than English.
• Experience in a liberal arts/private college setting.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

Leadership, Strategy, and Institutional Collaboration

• Provide vision, strategic direction, and operational leadership for the Center for Global Engagement and the College's internationalization and global learning priorities.
• Lead Center planning, policy development, assessment, and continuous improvement; establish goals and measures of effectiveness aligned with institutional priorities.
• Supervise, mentor, and evaluate professional, administrative, and student staff; clarify responsibilities, support professional development, and maintain continuity of essential services.
• Serve as the College's principal administrative resource and advocate for international education, advising senior leaders and collaborating closely with Academic Affairs, Enrollment Management, Student Development, Finance, Advancement, the Registrar, faculty, and other campus partners.
• Lead and participate in relevant institutional committees, including service as an ex officio member of the International Programming Committee.

International Student Enrollment, Services, and Regulatory Compliance

• Provide strategic and operational oversight for international student services across the student lifecycle, including pre-arrival support, orientation, immigration advising, intercultural programming, retention, and transition or completion support.
• Serve as the College's Primary Designated School Official (PDSO) and Responsible Officer (RO), as appointed and designated, and ensure institutional compliance with applicable Department of Homeland Security and Department of State regulations, SEVIS reporting requirements, records-retention rules, and institutional policies.
• Maintain appropriate business continuity and internal controls for F-1 and J-1 compliance, including the designation, training, supervision, and periodic review of qualified DSOs and AROs.
• Partner with Enrollment Management to develop and implement international recruitment and enrollment strategies and to coordinate a clear, student-centered transition from inquiry and admission through enrollment and ongoing support.
• Provide or coordinate specialized international admissions and enrollment services, including recruitment outreach, admissions counseling, application and credential review support, immigration-document workflows, and pre-arrival communication, and provide direct service coverage as staffing and enrollment needs require.
• Use enrollment, retention, and service data to identify barriers, improve processes, inform resource decisions, and support international student success.

Education Abroad and Global Learning

• Provide strategic and operational oversight for the College's portfolio of faculty-led, semester, year-long, summer, internship, service-learning, and other approved education abroad opportunities.
• Lead policy, process, and systems development for education abroad, including program development and approval, marketing and recruitment, advising and application, enrollment and registration, budgets and accounting, pre-departure preparation, in-country support, reentry, and program evaluation.
• Develop and manage relationships with universities, program providers, consortia, and other partners; periodically review agreements, program performance, academic fit, student support, cost, access, and risk.
• Collaborate with faculty, academic divisions, the Registrar, and the International Programming Committee to maintain a coherent program portfolio, integrate global learning with the curriculum, facilitate credit transfer, and support faculty developing or leading programs abroad.
• Lead administration, faculty support, curricular integration, assessment, and continued development of the Global+ Program and other institutional global-learning initiatives.
• Advance equitable access to education abroad and other global learning opportunities, with attention to financial, academic, identity-related, and logistical barriers.

Health, Safety, Risk, and Crisis Management

• Maintain and regularly review comprehensive health, safety, risk-management, emergency-response, and business-continuity protocols for College-sponsored international activities and for inbound international students and exchange visitors.
• Partner with the College's crisis-management and other appropriate teams to assess program and destination risk, prepare travelers, monitor significant incidents, coordinate response and communication, and document follow-up.
• Serve in an on-call leadership capacity for international program emergencies and coordinate timely escalation to College leadership and external assistance providers, as appropriate.

Fiscal, Operational, and Resource Management

• Develop and manage the Center's operating and program budgets; monitor expenditures, program costs, scholarships, grants, contracts, and other funds; and ensure sound stewardship and compliance with institutional policies.
• Oversee the Center's policies, procedures, technology, records, communications, vendor relationships, and service standards, ensuring efficient, accessible, and well-documented operations.
• Prepare reports, analyses, and recommendations for senior leadership, accreditation, compliance, planning, and resource-allocation purposes.
• Partner with Advancement and other colleagues to support donor engagement, grant development, fundraising, and stewardship related to scholarships and global initiatives.

Partnerships, Campus Engagement, and Professional Leadership

• Develop and sustain strategic relationships with domestic and international institutions, government agencies, community organizations, consortia, and professional associations that advance College priorities.
• Provide consultation, training, and resources to faculty and staff on international student support, education abroad, intercultural learning, and relevant policies and professional standards.
• Serve as an institutional point of contact for students, families, government agencies, program partners, and other stakeholders on significant matters within the Center's scope.
• Represent Maryville College in relevant professional organizations and maintain current knowledge of applicable laws, regulations, standards, and emerging practices, including those advanced by NAFSA: Association of International Educators and the Forum on Education Abroad.
• Perform other responsibilities and special projects as assigned to advance the College's mission and maintain a positive, respectful, and collaborative learning and working environment.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Advanced working knowledge of F-1 and J-1 regulations, SEVIS, and institutional compliance responsibilities.
• Broad knowledge of current standards and effective practices in education abroad, international student enrollment and services, intercultural learning, and global engagement.
• Demonstrated ability to lead a multi-functional unit, supervise and develop staff, set priorities, delegate effectively, and sustain service continuity in a resource-conscious environment.
• Strong fiscal, operational, project-management, and analytical skills.
• Excellent written, oral, interpersonal, and intercultural communication skills, including the ability to communicate complex requirements clearly to varied audiences.
• Ability to establish measurable goals, assess student learning and program effectiveness, interpret data, and use findings for improvement and decision-making.
• Sound judgment and the ability to assess risk, manage crises, protect confidentiality, and make timely decisions under pressure.
• Commitment to ongoing professional development and engagement with relevant international education associations and standards.
• Ability to build trust and productive partnerships across institutional divisions and with external stakeholders.

License, Certification, or Registration Necessary

• Must be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident and otherwise eligible to serve as a PDSO and RO under applicable federal requirements.
• Relevant professional training (e.g., NAFSA Core Education Program Workshops) in F-1/J-1 compliance, education abroad, international enrollment, or risk management (preferred).
• Familiarity with the Forum on Education Abroad's Standards of Good Practice and other relevant professional standards (preferred).
• Experience with international education systems (e.g., Terra Dotta, ISSM), student-information systems, and/or customer-relationship-management systems (preferred).
• Proficiency in a second language (preferred).

Work Environment and Physical Requirements

• Professional office environment with regular interaction with students, faculty, and staff.
• Regular availability for occasional evening and weekend responsibilities, emergency response, and domestic or international travel.

Ability to operate the following vehicles or equipment:

Standard office equipment, College vehicles, relevant systems (e.g., SEVIS, Terra Dotta, other international education management platforms, and the College's student-information and CRM systems).