Job Opportunities

Are you looking to take your career to new heights with a leader in healthcare? SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University is one of the nation's leading metropolitan medical centers. As the only academic medical center in Brooklyn, we serve a large population that is among the most diverse in the world. We are also highly-ranked by Castle Connolly Medical, a healthcare rating company for consumers, among the top 5 leading U.S. medical schools for training doctors.

Bargaining Unit:

UUP

Job Summary:

The Department of Student Affairs at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University is seeking a full-time Director of Accessibility Resources & Services, Sr. Staff Associate.

Reporting to the Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs (AVPSA), the Director is responsible for strategic and visionary leadership and the day-to-day management of Accessibility Resource Services. The Director also serves as a senior member of the Division of Student Affairs team and serves as a generalist in the Office of Students Affairs and on Divisional and Institutional committees as appropriate.

The Director works collaboratively with campus partners, faculty, staff and students to provide a culture of inclusion and equal opportunity for students with disabilities aligned with the mission of the University and the Division of Student Affairs. The Director will be a visionary, creative thinker, eager to work collaboratively with a dynamic team committed to strengthening and maintaining a culture of access, holistic well-being, and belonging.

The Director shall:

• Serve as a member of the Division of Student Affairs Leadership Team and work to align the goals, priorities, and learning outcomes of Accessibility Resources with the mission, vision, values, and student learning outcomes of the Division and Institutional priorities.
• Provide oversight of policies, procedures and processes to ensure daily operations, programs and services are efficient, equitable, inclusive and conducive to student development.
• Provide leadership for and oversee all administrative functions of Accessibility Resources including budget, strategic planning and goal setting, technology, and facilities.
• Strategically advance the unit through benchmarking and organizational development based on the needs of current students, institutional growth and effective models of accessibility.
• Prepare annual reports related to college and health professions accessibility related trends, resource utilization, assessment, unmet needs, and emergent issues.
• Oversee coordination and direct implementation of accommodations and support services to students with disabilities.
• Provide direct service to students with physical, cognitive, psychological, psychiatric, and learning disabilities to determine eligibility for accommodations and the necessity and type of reasonable accommodations.
• Process housing accommodation requests; track and collect relevant documentation; conferring as needed with Residential Life.
• Provide administrative oversight of; the student information database to document student participation, accommodations, and progress; a confidential secure database and filing system with documentation related to accommodations and services; and the creation of appropriate accommodations documents for students to distribute to faculty.
• Effectively work with students with a variety of disabilities, employing a socially-just and student-centered approach. Serves as a point person for students on questions or concerns regarding accessibility services and/or decisions made regarding accommodations. Engage students in the "interactive process" to have a clarifying dialogue to assess condition, manner and duration of disability.
• Provide appropriate referrals to college resources, including Academic Support Services, Counseling Services and Health Services.
• Monitor and coordinate accommodation resource compliance activities that identify trends, potential areas of compliance, vulnerabilities, and risk.
• Maintain responsibility for technical consultation and expertise working closely with college personnel and Counsel as needed to identify and clarify legal mandates that support school/college departments, programs, policies, and activities, to ensure equal access to students and other members of the college community.
• Provide leadership and oversight of the implementation and administration of policies and procedures to promote compliance with federal and state equal opportunity laws, regulations and rules relating to nondiscrimination and equal access.
• Support the Vice President in meeting external compliance mandates related to the Americans with Disabilities Act, Sections 503 and 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and other federal and state laws and regulations pertaining to persons with disabilities.
• Provide expert consultation, information, resources, and training workshops to faculty and staff about supporting students with disabilities.
• Present at Admissions Open Houses and New Student Orientation events to provide information about Accessibility Services to new and prospective students and their families.
• Maintain effective partnerships with key departments to develop policies and procedures pertaining to students with disabilities including, Residential Life, Facilities, Academic Deans, Faculty, Counseling Services, Health Services, Information Technology, Office of the Dean of Students, Office of Learning Services and Registrar.
• Work with Facilities staff to provide guidance and consultation on new construction and renovation projects to ensure access and ADA compliance.
• Advocate for principles of universal access and an inclusive campus by making annual recommendations to senior leadership regarding facility and infrastructure improvements required for accessibility.
• Lead and participate in division-wide and campus-wide committees. Serve on Committees as assigned.
• Support diversity and inclusion efforts on campus through committee membership, outreach, and policy development.
• Participate in professional development and growth opportunities in order to maintain current knowledge of higher education law, state and federal law, student development and student learning research, theory and practice that best serve the needs of students.
• Serve as a generalist in the Office of Student Affairs to support the Vice President and Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs.
• Perform other job related duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications:

• Master's Degree in higher education administration, counseling, college student personnel or a related field.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in student affairs, accessibility resources or related field.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Thorough knowledge of all broad categories of disabilities (learning, mobility, visual, hearing, medical, psychiatric) and the reasonable accommodations that apply.
• Supervisory and budgetary experience.
• Ability to communicate and work effectively within a diverse community.
• Outstanding interpersonal and community relation's skills, and the ability to establish and maintain collaborative and effective working relationships with students, staff, faculty, and administration.
• Excellent analytical and written communication and presentation skills.
• Demonstrated management/administrative skills (for policy and program development and evaluation responsibilities).
• Extensive knowledge of higher education, student affairs philosophy, best practices, and the policies and procedures of a higher education institution.
• Knowledge of emerging trends and needs in the student population.
• Demonstrated experience working with and advocating for ethnically and culturally diverse student populations Ability to analyze problems and develop creative solutions to complex issues.
• Demonstrated skills in effective employee development and performance management, and the ability to analyze and assess training/development needs.
• Effective team building and collaboration skills.
• Ability to interface with internal and external constituents with diplomacy and tact.
• Ability to make administrative procedural decisions and use independent judgment to plan, prioritize, and organize a diversified workload with attention to detail.
• Ability to take initiative for projects and development of services.
• Advanced and contemporary knowledge of federal and legal issues and court precedents relevant to higher education, student affairs, and employment standards such as ADA, FERPA, Fair Housing, Clery, and Title IX Proficient knowledge of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA).
• Proficiency with assistive technology software and devices.
• A record of accomplishment as a student advocate and a champion for student success.
• Active participation in national professional associations and scholarly activities.

Work Schedule:

Monday to Friday; 9:00am to 5:00pm (Full-Time)

Salary Grade/Rank:

Salary Range:

Commensurate with experience and qualifications

Executive Order:

Pursuant to Executive Order 161, no State entity, as defined by the Executive Order, is permitted to ask, or mandate, in any form, that an applicant for employment provide his or her current compensation, or any prior compensation history, until such time as the applicant is extended a conditional offer of employment with compensation.  If such information has been requested from you before such time, please contact the Governor’s Office of Employee Relations at (518) 474-6988 or via email at info@goer.ny.gov.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement:

SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University is an affirmative action, equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, creed, age, disability, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, familial status, pregnancy, predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence victim status, criminal conviction, and all other protected classes under federal or state laws.

Women, minorities, veterans, individuals with disabilities and members of underrepresented groups are encouraged to apply.

If you are an individual with a disability and need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application process, or in order to perform the essential functions of a position, please contact Human Resources at ada@downstate.edu