Vice President for Operations and Chief Operating Officer

Job Details

At Western Connecticut State University, diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging are foundational to who we are and how we lead. As a federally designated Hispanic-Serving Institution, WestConn embraces both the honor and responsibility of expanding access, advancing opportunity, and delivering student success through equity in practice—not just in principle. We are building a community where every person is respected, supported, and empowered to thrive, and we welcome applications from candidates who share these values and are committed to helping us live them every day.

WestConn invites applications, nominations, and expressions of interest for its newly established Vice President for Operations and Chief Operating Officer (VPO/COO), a senior executive role reporting to the President and serving as a core member of the executive leadership team.

As WestConn’s inaugural VPO/COO, you will shape—and lead—a newly established Operations Division with the mandate to make the university run smarter, faster, and more transparently. Reporting to the President, you will drive strategy and execution across finance, facilities, technology infrastructure, and auxiliary enterprises—building reliable, integrated systems and services that strengthen the student experience and advance the academic mission.

This is a builder role for a forward-thinking, solutions-oriented leader who enjoys taking on complex challenges and turning them into measurable improvements. You will bring a technology- and data-forward mindset, leveraging modern systems, analytics, automation, and responsible emerging tools (including AI-enabled capabilities where appropriate) to improve service quality, reduce delays, and increase clarity and trust across the institution.

With direct oversight of core operational and revenue-generating functions, you will elevate organizational performance, strengthen cross-campus coordination, and cultivate a high-trust, service-oriented culture that helps faculty, staff, and students thrive. You will also have the opportunity to design the division’s long-term structure and recruit key leaders—including the CFO, CIO, and facilities and operations leads—creating durable capacity for WestConn’s next chapter.

WESTERN RISING FOCUSED STRATEGY (2026-2028)

Weaving our Strengths. Building our Futures.

The Western Rising Focused Strategy (2026-2028) serves as a tactical roadmap to sharpen the university’s collective efforts over the next three years, ensuring financial sustainability while honoring its core academic mission. Led by President Jesse M. Bernal, the strategy was forged through a highly collaborative process involving hundreds of faculty, staff, students, and community leaders to synthesize existing planning into actionable priorities. This community-guided approach balances necessary fiscal stewardship, such as eliminating a structural deficit, with a commitment to student success and regional impact, ensuring that institutional decisions are transparent, evidence-based, and aligned with WestConn’s role as a vital regional anchor. WestConn has adopted five commitments to guide this phase of our work together. For the VPO/COO, Western Rising defines the work to be stewarded, and the future to be built.

Five Institutional Commitments and VPO/COO Leadership

• Strengthening Foundations:The VPO/COO is entrusted with ensuring that WestConn(’s finances, facilities, systems, and services are stable, modern, and reliable. This work creates the conditions for academic excellence – so faculty can teach, staff can serve, and students can thrive without unnecessary friction.
• Distinctively WestConn:The VPO/COO advances student‑centered, relationship‑rich experiences by aligning operations, infrastructure, and services with the needs of a diverse student body preparing for meaningful careers and lives of impact.
• Regional Anchor & Opportunity Engine:WestConn is deeply connected to place. The VPO/COO plays a critical role in strengthening partnerships, aligning operational capacity with workforce and community needs, and ensuring the university functions as a trusted engine of opportunity for the region.
• Culture of Shared Leadership & Renewal:This role calls for a leader who builds trust. Through clarity, collaboration, and respect for shared governance, the VPO/COO helps renew how work gets done – strengthening coordination, empowering leaders at every level, and modeling a culture of shared responsibility.
• Creating a Healthy Environment that Cultivates Growth & Thriving:The VPO/COO stewards an operational environment where equity, belonging, safety, and well‑being are not aspirational ideals, but lived realities. By embedding these values into systems, policies, and daily practices, the role helps ensure that all members of the WestConn community are supported and able to succeed.

Importantly, Western Rising is more than a plan – it is a moment. Over the next three years, WestConn is building on hard‑won momentum to strengthen our foundation, modernize how we operate, and position the institution for long‑term success in service of our academic mission. This focused strategy reflects a university that is moving with purpose – clear‑eyed about our financial realities, confident in our direction, and ambitious about what comes next.

PRESIDENT JESSE M. BERNAL

The VPO/COO will report directly to President Jesse M. Bernal, Ph.D., serving as a close strategic partner and a core member of the university’s executive leadership team. Since becoming WestConn’s leader in 2025, Dr. Bernal has advanced a focused period of renewal, working to strengthen trust, modernize systems, and center student success and campus well-being. He leads with integrity and transparency, with a deep commitment to shared governance and the belief that the best decisions are made when faculty, staff, and students are engaged early as true partners. WestConn’s mission of access, equity, and opportunity is central to his leadership, alongside clear expectations for measurable progress and responsible stewardship. His work style is high-paced, collaborative, energetic, and action-oriented, with a strong emphasis on creativity, prudent risk-taking, and high standards paired with genuine care for people and culture. In partnership with the President, the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, and the broader leadership team, the VPO/COO will strengthen operational excellence, build durable capacity, and help advance WestConn’s long-term trajectory.

UNIVERSITY FACTS

WestConn enrolls 4,573 credit students (Fall 2025): 3,696 undergraduates, 627 graduate students, and 260 dual-enrolled students. We proudly serve 1,473 first-generation students. Our highest-enrolling undergraduate programs include Psychology, Nursing, Management, Biology, and Public Health. At the graduate level, top programs include Counselor Education, Applied Behavior Analysis, Creative & Professional Writing, and Health Care Administration. Looking ahead, WestConn is focused on sustaining and growing enrollment by expanding into new markets and creating new pathways for learners—and we seek a VPO/COO who brings creativity and an entrepreneurial mindset to help translate those opportunities into results.

WestConn is part of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) system, governed by the Board of Regents (BoR). CSCU includes Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU), Central Connecticut State University (CCSU), Eastern Connecticut State University (ECSU), Western Connecticut State University (WCSU), CT State Community College (CT State), and Charter Oak State College (online). This system creates strong opportunities for partnerships, shared services, and cross-institutional collaboration—efforts the VPO/COO will help advance and scale.

WESTERN CONNECTICUT & DANBURY

WestConn serves as a regional anchor and opportunity engine for Western Connecticut, with deep ties to Danbury and the surrounding region. University leadership is expected to be visible, engaged, and community-facing. The VPO/COO will help strengthen partnerships with local business, civic, and nonprofit leaders to expand WestConn’s impact and advance its mission.

Danbury sits on Connecticut’s western border and spans 44 square miles—more than twice the size of Hartford, New Haven, or Bridgeport. With easy access to New York and comparatively affordable housing, it attracts residents from across Fairfield County and the greater metro area. The city’s economy is diverse, anchored by manufacturing, health care, construction, and higher education, and Danbury is among Connecticut’s most ethnically diverse communities—home to a vibrant mix of cultures and immigrant-owned businesses. Residents enjoy a strong quality of life with arts, dining, parks, and recreation at Candlewood Lake, along with convenient access to major airports within roughly 40 minutes to 1 hour and 25 minutes. With its central location, many WestConn students and employees commute from nearby communities, including New York.

THE OPPORTUNITY

POSITION SUMMARY

Reporting directly to the President, the Vice President for Operations and Chief Operating Officer (VPO/COO) ensures that WestConn’s operational systems—facilities, business services, financial stewardship (through oversight of the Chief Financial Officer), and enabling technology—are reliable, safe, and responsive, so faculty and staff can teach, mentor, and support students without unnecessary friction.

The VPO/COO leads through shared leadership and empowerment—building trust, clarifying decision rights, strengthening coordination across units, and partnering with shared governance to translate strategy into execution. The role calls for a technology-forward, data-informed leader who uses modern systems, analytics, automation, and responsible emerging tools (including AI-enabled capabilities where appropriate) to improve service quality, reduce delays, and increase transparency.

The Operations Division has been newly established, offering a unique opportunity to build durable capacity, strengthen critical functions, and recruit or appoint key leaders—including the CFO, CIO, and facilities and operations leaders.

Portfolio of Responsibility

The VPO/COO provides executive leadership, accountability, and coordination across the following areas:

1. Business and Finance

• Financial planning and budgeting; multi-year forecasting and decision support
• Controller/Fiscal Affairs functions: internal controls, reporting, audit coordination
• Administrative services (e.g., contract compliance support, mail services, travel services, property management/inventory coordination as assigned)

2. Auxiliary Services

• Auxiliary operations and contracts (including dining and catering, bookstore, ticketing/box office, laundry services, vending and beverage agreements, shuttle/transportation, and related services)

3. Facilities and Operations

• Facilities and campus operations (planning & engineering; facilities operations; project management; access control and one-card services; venue coordination and operational readiness)
• Service standards and coordination so students and employees experience one connected system

4. Bursar/Cashier’s Office

• Student-facing billing, cashiering, collection support, and transactional processes
• Integration with enterprise systems to reduce delays and improve service consistency

5. Technology, Infrastructure, and Cybersecurity

• IT infrastructure, networks, systems reliability, cybersecurity, identity/access management, and enterprise continuity
• Operational excellence for enterprise services that support teaching, learning, and student success

6. Media Services and Events

• Media production and technical delivery (including printing and photography), event production, and run-of-show coordination
• Conference and event management and venue production support
• Coordination with the Chief Marketing & Communications Officer to distinguish technical delivery from messaging, placement, and reputation strategy

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

1. University Operations Leadership and Service Excellence
   • Leads the university’s operational portfolio to ensure safe, reliable, and student-centered service delivery across campus locations.
   • Sets priorities, expectations, and service standards; establishes operational metrics and dashboards; drives continuous improvement through data-informed decision-making.
   • Builds a solutions-oriented culture grounded in respect, psychological safety, and accountability; recognizes excellence and removes barriers that prevent teams from doing their best work.
   • Aligns operational decisions with the rhythms of an academic community (e.g., class schedules, student life cycles, accreditation and instructional requirements).
2. Shared Leadership, Governance Partnership, and Strategic Execution
   • Serves as a key member of the University’s Senior Leadership Team and the President’s Council, translating institutional strategy into operational plans, timelines, and measurable outcomes.
   • Serves as the President’s senior operational deputy and, as delegated, acts on the President’s behalf to ensure operational continuity in the President’s absence.
   • Partners with shared governance leaders and campus stakeholders to strengthen clarity, transparency, and shared understanding—especially on decisions affecting service levels, resources, and campus experience.
   • Clarifies decision pathways and reduces “handoffs” between offices; establishes coordination routines that support timely escalation, follow-through, and accountability.
3. Financial Sustainability and Stewardship (with CFO or financial lead)
   • Provides executive oversight and performance management for the CFO to ensure strong budgeting, forecasting, fiscal controls, and clear decision support for leadership and shared governance.
   • Aligns operational planning and service delivery with financial realities, risk mitigation, and long-term sustainability while supporting the academic mission.
   • Promotes transparent communication about operational and financial tradeoffs to build trust and support informed decisions.
4. Facilities, Capital Planning, and Campus Operations (with facilities and operations lead)
   • Oversees facilities operations and campus services through the AVP for Auxiliary Services & Facilities to ensure reliability, cleanliness, safety, and campus readiness.
   • Advances capital project delivery, deferred maintenance planning, and infrastructure modernization through clear governance, disciplined project management, and effective vendor oversight.
   • Promotes accessibility, sustainability, and responsible stewardship of state assets across facilities planning and operations.
5. Auxiliaries and Student-Facing Service Integration (with auxiliaries lead)
   • Strengthens auxiliary operations and vendor/contract performance with a focus on quality, compliance, customer service, and aligned financial outcomes.
   • Oversees the Bursar/Cashier’s Office and student-facing operational processes to reduce delays, improve consistency, and enhance the overall student experience.
6. Technology, Cybersecurity, Innovation, and AI-Enabled Modernization (with CIO or IT lead)
   • Champions reliable, secure, and user-centered enterprise technology services that enable teaching, learning, research, and student success.
   • Supports responsible adoption of emerging tools (including AI-enabled capabilities where appropriate) to improve service quality, workflow efficiency, forecasting, analytics, and communication—while maintaining privacy, security, compliance, and human accountability.
   • Encourages thoughtful experimentation, balancing innovation with stability and the needs of a mission-driven academic institution.
7. Risk Management, Compliance, and Emergency Preparedness (with Campus Safety)
   • Supports university-wide readiness for emergencies and critical incidents; ensures coordination across operational leaders and response partners as appropriate.
   • Strengthens a culture of safety, compliance, and risk awareness; advances business continuity planning and operational resilience.
   • Ensures procurement, contract coordination, and operational practices align with applicable policies, regulations, and ethical standards.
8. People Leadership and Talent Development (with Human Resources)
   • Supervises professional and support staff within the Operations Division; establishes clear expectations, performance routines, and a culture of accountability and care.
   • Recruits, coaches, and develops a high-performing leadership team; invests in staff growth, training, and succession planning.
   • Builds effective cross-functional partnerships and constructive labor-management relationships in a unionized environment.
   • Advances an inclusive workplace that values different perspectives and supports equitable student outcomes and belonging.
9. Other Duties
   • Performs other related duties as assigned that do not change the essential nature and level of responsibility of the position.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• A bachelor’s degree in a relevant field (e.g., business, public administration, engineering, facilities, information systems, or related disciplines), or a combination of education, certifications, and progressively responsible experience that provides comparable preparation for the role.
• Progressive leadership experience with increasing scope and responsibility, particularly in operations and administration, within a complex organization. This experience should include managing multiple functional areas through leaders and teams.
• Demonstrated ability to lead through shared leadership practices, including building trust, clarifying decision-making pathways, and partnering effectively with diverse stakeholders (including shared governance contexts).
• Demonstrated experience using data, technology, and process improvement to strengthen service quality, reduce friction, and improve outcomes.
• Demonstrated fiscal stewardship and comfort working with budgets, contracts, risk, and compliance in a policy-driven environment.
• Demonstrated commitment to working effectively within a diverse community and to advancing student-centered outcomes.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Master’s degree or terminal degree in a relevant field.
• Ten (10) years of senior leadership experience in public higher education or comparably complex public-sector environments.
• Depth of experience in one or more domains within the portfolio (e.g., facilities/capital programs, auxiliary services, housing operations, enterprise IT/cybersecurity, events/venue operations, emergency management/business continuity).
• Demonstrated success leading large-scale change efforts (organizational redesign, service transformation, systems modernization, or major operational integration).
• Experience with enterprise systems (ERP, identity/access, reporting/BI, service management tools) and improving data quality, automation, and user experience.
• Experience applying responsible innovation practices, including assessment of AI-enabled tools, within appropriate privacy, security, and compliance boundaries.
• Experience working in unionized and/or highly consultative environments; ability to support constructive labor-management relationships.
• Experience advancing sustainability, accessibility, and community-facing partnerships through operational strategy.

APPLICATIONS AND NOMINATIONS

Salary & Benefits: The hiring salary range is $228,231 - $285,289 and is commensurate upon candidates' experience. WCSU offers a comprehensive benefits package. Additional information on benefits can be found at www.wcsu.edu/hr/benefits/. All employment, if offered, is contingent upon proof of citizenship or employability under the requirement of the Immigration and Control Act (IRCA) and the successful passing of a background check. WCSU is committed to providing a safe campus community. Background investigations include reference checks, a criminal history record check and a financial (credit) report or driving history check.

Work Environment:Typical office environment with frequent presence across campus and periodic evening/weekend commitments for meetings, emergencies, and major university events. Availability outside normal business hours is required for critical incidents and operational continuity. Some travel may be required for system, state, or professional meetings. This position may be eligible for a flexible or hybrid work arrangement consistent with University needs and policy. Reasonable accommodation will be made for incumbents and candidates with physical limitations.

Application Process: Prospective candidates must submit a cover letter, which includes the names and contact information for three (3) professional references and a resume. All materials should be submitted as PDF files. To apply, submit your materials to: https://westernconnecticutstateuniversity.applytojob.com/apply/SMvPh53qR6/Vice-President-For-Operations-And-Chief-Operating-Officer

Questions may be directed to hrpositions@wcsu.edu referencing Vice President for Operations/Chief Operating Officer in the subject line. Review of applications will begin Tuesday March 31, 2026 and will continue until position has been filled. The University reserves the discretion to close application review at any time.

Western is an Affirmative Action Equal Opportunity Educator/Employer