Manager, Student Success Navigator

Welcome to Career Opportunities at Lindenwood University.

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PLEASE READ: For all applications, please include your resume and cover letter. You may skip the “ Quick Apply ” page by simply clicking “ Next ” at the bottom of the page. When you arrive at the “ Experience ” page, you may upload all desired documents using the upload box labeled “ Resume/CV. ” This is the appropriate box to upload all documents.

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Benefits of Being a Lindenwood Employee:

- Upon hire, employer-paid tuition benefits for bachelor’s (employee, spouse, and dependent) and master’s degree programs (employee and spouse only).
- Tuition discounts for doctoral programs (employee only).
- Comprehensive benefits plan: medical, dental, vision, life insurance, disability insurance, and retirement options.
- Paid holidays: MLK Jr. day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving break (Wednesday – Friday), and winter break (Dec. 23 – Jan. 1).
- Free lunch Fridays: LU employees are eligible for a free meal on Fridays at the Evans Commons Dining Hall or Spellman Dining Hall; Chick-fil-A and Qdoba included.
- Professional development opportunities through the Lindenwood Learning Academy (https://www.lindenwood.edu/human-resources/lindenwood-learning-academy/).

JOB TITLE SUMMARY

Job Title: Manager, Student Success Navigator

Division: Enrollment and Marketing

Evaluation Group: Staff Administrator

FLSA Status: Exempt

Reports To: Vice President, Enrollment Management

Positions Supervised: Student Success Navigators

Job Summary

The manager, student success navigator leads the Student Success Navigator team and oversees student outreach, caseload management, and service standards to support undergraduate retention and persistence. In partnership with the Vice President, Enrollment Management, the manager leads hiring, training, supervision, and performance evaluation; coordinates caseload assignments with Institutional Research; and collaborates with campus partners to address student concerns and maintain effective referral processes. The manager also maintains a reduced student caseload, resolves escalated cases, and uses data to improve team performance and student support.

Essential Job Functions and Performance Indicators

The intent of this job description is to provide a representation of the types of duties and level of responsibility that will be required of positions given this title. This job description shall not be construed as a declaration of the total of the specific duties and responsibilities of any particular position. Employees may be directed to perform job-related tasks other than those specifically presented in this description.

Job Responsibilities and Execution

- Manages the unit’s case queue and weekly outreach lists; confirms that alerts, holds, balances, and withdrawal requests are worked within the unit’s standards
- Plans and runs the unit’s term-start, pre-registration, and summer outreach cycles
- Works with Institutional Research to receive, assign, and refresh Navigator caseloads; balances caseloads across the team
- Serves as the unit’s lead user of the case-management system; works with Information Technology on configuration, alert routing, reporting, and data integrity
- Audits case documentation for completeness, timeliness, and accuracy
- Prepares the unit’s reports on caseload activity, indicator response, and retention and persistence for the supervisor on the unit’s schedule
- Receives escalated cases from Navigators and carries them to resolution with the responsible office
- Responds promptly to every indicator about students on their own caseload according to the unit’s response standards
- Takes the student’s concern to the office that can resolve it and confirms the resolution with the student
- Covers caseloads during Navigator vacancies and absences and redistributes work so that no assigned student is without a point of contact
- Confirms that Navigators refer significant personal, medical, mental health, basic-needs, family, and behavioral concerns to the appropriate Student Affairs office through the referral process, and that conduct and Title IX matters are referred immediately
- Maintains working knowledge of financial aid, student accounts, housing and dining, registration, academic advising structure, tutoring and academic support, and student life processes
- Coordinates the unit’s participation in move-in, welcome week, and orientation events

Leadership and Strategic Thinking

- Establishes long- and short-term strategic goals based on assessment data and ensures standards for the department and its field are met or exceeded
- Adapts and modifies leadership based on new information and/or data; works to set and unite people on the new direction
- Utilizes effective strategies to build collaboration for maximum execution
- Aligns division/department purpose and actions with relevant University initiatives and higher education trends

- Writes, maintains, and enforces the unit’s contact standards, response standards, outreach calendar, scripts, and templates, in coordination with the supervisor
- Reviews the unit’s standards each term against results and recommends changes to the supervisor
- Identifies patterns across the unit’s caseload (a hold type, a course, a process, an office) that generate repeated indicators and raises them with the supervisor and the responsible office
- Serves as the unit’s primary liaison to Admissions, Academic Advising, Student Financial Services, Student Affairs, the Registrar, Residential Life, Information Technology, and the colleges; maintains the handoff and referral processes with each
- Resolves lane questions between Navigators and partner offices and brings unresolved questions to the supervisor in the week they arise
- Represents the unit on University committees and working groups as assigned

Employee Management and Development

- Supports the mission (https://www.lindenwood.edu/about/mission-statement/) of the University and serves as an ambassador of the Q2 culture of service excellence

- Models, supports, and holds others accountable to the University’s values (https://www.lindenwood.edu/about/mission-statement/)

- Recruits, interviews, recommends, welcomes, observes, and monitors performance of department staff
- Sets clear performance expectations and holds employees accountable
- Conducts annual employee evaluations based on evidence, observation, and feedback
- Designs and delivers onboarding and ongoing training for Navigators, including University processes, systems, documentation standards, referral lanes, FERPA, and difficult conversations
- Coaches Navigators on individual cases, listens to calls and reviews case notes, and models the contact and documentation standards on a reduced caseload of their own
- Builds a team culture of ownership, follow-through, and service

Job may require other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications – An equivalent combination of education, training, and experience will be considered. Additional requirements may be designated by position.

- Bachelor’s degree

- Three years of experience in higher education advising, student success, student support, enrollment management, or a metrics-driven service role
- Experience supervising, leading, or training a team, or serving as a lead in a caseload-based role
- Demonstrated success achieving individual and team goals
- Experience using student information or CRM systems and associated reporting tools
- Availability to work occasional evening and weekend hours, including move-in and orientation
- Master’s degree (preferred)
- Experience building or leading a caseload-based student success, retention, or coaching program (preferred)
- Experience administering CRM systems or using learning management systems, student success platforms, early-alert systems, or retention analytics (preferred)
- Experience supporting first-generation, Pell-eligible, nontraditional, transfer, student-athlete, or international students (preferred)

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities – May be representative, but not all inclusive, of the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform this job competently.

- Demonstrated ability to work effectively with individuals from diverse communities and cultures
- Ability to establish clear standards, coach employees, address performance concerns, and hold a team accountable for results
- Strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and follow-through; ability to prioritize competing demands and carry cases and projects through confirmed resolution
- Strong written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills, including the ability to navigate difficult conversations with students and employees
- Ability to collaborate across departments, clarify responsibilities, and resolve concerns while maintaining effective partnerships
- Ability to interpret caseload and retention data, identify patterns, and recommend improvements
- Understanding of FERPA, confidentiality requirements, and appropriate referral practices
- Working knowledge of financial aid, student accounts, housing, registration, and academic support processes, or the ability to learn and teach them
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite and the ability to prepare clear, accurate documentation and reports

Work Environment – Environmental or atmospheric conditions commonly associated with the performance of this job’s functions. Please click here to view Lindenwood University’s flexible work designation descriptions.

- General office setting
- Non Standard Flex

- Considerable phone and computer time, utilizing a Virtual Private Network (VPN) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system
- Designated, quiet workspace with reliable, high-speed internet and camera for video calls

Physical Abilities – The physical demands described below are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform this job’s essential functions. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

- Ability to work effectively at a computer for extended time daily
- Ability to sit/stand for extended periods of time

- Ability to lift/carry items commonly found in an office setting including, but not limited to, documents, laptops, keyboards, etc.
- Ability to use repetitive wrist, hand, and finger movements to type regularly
- Regular attendance is a necessary and essential function

For fully remote positions, candidates must reside in or be willing to relocate to one of the following states in which Lindenwood University is authorized to employ:

- Arizona
- Arkansas
- Florida
- Georgia
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Michigan
- Missouri
- Nebraska
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Virginia

Equal Opportunity Employer

Lindenwood University is an Equal Opportunity employer. The University complies with appropriate federal, state, and local laws and provides equal employment opportunities and access to educational programs without regard to race, color, religion, gender, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran status, disability, or any other protected status to all qualified applicants and employees.  Lindenwood University is committed to a policy of non-discrimination and dedicated to providing a positive discrimination-free educational work environment.