Working/Functional Title
Program Director D.M.A.D.E.
Position Summary
Michigan State University seeks a strategic, creative, and community-minded leader to join the Transfer and Transitions team as a Program Director for the Detroit M.A.D.E. Scholars Program. This role provides overall leadership and vision for a cohort-based initiative designed to increase the number of Detroit students who graduate from MSU. The program Director will oversee holistic student support services and promote outreach, transition, student success, retention, and degree completion through a data-informed and assessment-based lens.
The position is responsible for developing and implementing core service components on MSU’s five opportunity areas for student success: Educational Success, Sense of Belonging, Community, Sense of Purpose, and Well-being. These include:
- High Impact Practices (First-Year Seminar, Education Abroad, Service Learning, Internships, Undergraduate Research)
- Advising and student development workshops
- Outreach to Detroit schools and community organizations
- Relationship-building with Detroit-based partners to maintain continuous connection points before, during, and after students’ time at MSU
The position provides strategic planning in long- and short-term goals, including the development of program learning outcomes and assessment. The position also has responsibility for keeping students connected to the city of Detroit through partnerships with people and organizations in Detroit. As a campus leader for student success, this role is important in living out the land-grant mission with its outreach in urban areas and enhancing student success to meet the goals and outcomes of Michigan State University’s strategic plan.
Primary Duties:
Outreach (50%)
- Lead partnership development with Detroit public and charter schools, community organizations, and local businesses to enhance collaborative opportunities.
- Collaborate with MSU Admissions and Detroit partners (Detroit Promise, Detroit College Access Network, Detroit Dollars for Scholars) to develop and implement strategic outreach and recruitment plans.
- Facilitate workshops for students, families, school staff, and community members.
- Represent the program on relevant city, state, and community committees.
- Oversees and develops the application process for new cohorts.
Other (20%)
- Hire, train, supervise, and evaluate program staff, and graduate and undergraduate student employees.
- Manage program budget and donor-based funds to align with program, donor, and institutional goals.
- Coordinate student support efforts, referrals, data sharing, outreach, and program activities with campus partners (Admissions, Student Life, Student Retention, and the colleges).
- Develop and manage programming efforts including workshops and summer transition programs.
- Lead strategic planning and fundraising efforts for the program.
- Maintain efficient program operations and documentation.
- Represent the program on institutional and regional committees to advance Detroit M.A.D.E. to reach goals and priorities.
- Collaborate with REHS on leading DMADE living learning community.
Advising (15%)
- Develop comprehensive academic advising and coaching programs in alignment with university advising policies and practices for Detroit M.A.D.E. Scholars Program.
- Advise program participants on both academic and social needs, using holistic, intrusive, and proactive advising techniques
Research (10%)
- Develop and implement a comprehensive assessment plan and strategies to evaluate learning outcomes and program effectiveness.
- Utilize institutional data, engagement data, and student feedback to evaluate past interventions, guide programming, and monitor student success and persistence.
- Collaborate with MSU’s Assessment and Data Analytics team to produce reports that highlight program outcomes to funders and stakeholders.
Teaching (5%)
- Coordinate, develop curriculum, and teach 1-credit UGS 110 first-year seminar courses for students in the Detroit M.A.D.E. Scholars Program.
Equal Employment Opportunity Statement
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, citizenship, age, disability or protected veteran status.
Required Degree
Masters -higher education, student affairs, or related field
Desired Degree
Doctorate -higher education, student affairs, or related field
Minimum Requirements
- Master’s degree with 5 years of experience in higher education, student affairs, or another related field
- Excellent communication skills including the ability to work diplomatically and effectively with campus partners.
- Experience managing and supervising staff towards program goals and ability to apply project management concepts.
- Knowledge of concepts, theories, and practices related to student success, persistence, and/or community development.
- Experience with or ability to access, understand, and interpret data from multiple sources to facilitate and promote student success through proactive and innovative student services.
- Experience implementing student success, retention, or cohort-based initiatives.
- Experience working with donors.
- Demonstrated competency in workplace technologies and experience with student support technology systems.
- evidence of promoting effective teamwork among faculty and staff.
- Proven commitment to student success.
- Demonstrated ability to work with students and colleagues from diverse backgrounds
Desired Qualifications
- The ideal candidate will have a deep knowledge of issues pertaining to first-generation college students and undergraduate student success concepts, theories and/or practice.
- Previous work in developing, leading, or supporting first-generation student success initiatives.
- Budget management including knowledge of student financial aid and work with donor-based funds.
- Program management including planning, implementation, and assessment of activities.
- Evidence of skill in documentation and data management.
- Event planning, and ability to facilitate student engagement.
- Experience teaching, advising, leading, and/or mentoring diverse undergraduate students.
- Terminal degree
Required Application Materials
Applicants must submit both a cover letter and a curriculum vitae (CV) to be considered. Please note that supplemental materials such as transcripts and additional documents will not be reviewed. Applications that do not include the required cover letter and CV will not be considered for review.
Special Instructions
This position will remain open until filled. For fullest consideration, applications should be submitted between February 2, 2026, and March 2, 2026.
Applications received after March 2, 2026, will be reviewed only if the position remains unfilled following the initial interview process.
Review of Applications Begins On
03/02/2026
Remote Work Statement
MSU strives to provide a flexible work environment and this position has been designated as remote-friendly. Remote-friendly means some
