Pre-College Student Support & Operations Manager, Pre-College Programs

External Applicants: 

Please ensure all required documents are ready to upload before beginning your application, including your resume, cover letter, and any additional materials specified in the job description.

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Job Description Summary

Wake Forest University seeks an experienced, empathetic leader to oversee student support, summer staff, and daily operations for our Pre-College Programs. In this dynamic role, you'll be the primary driver of a safe, engaging environment for high school students experiencing campus life, balancing year-round operational logistics with intensive, live-in residential leadership during the Summer Immersion Program.

This position blends direct student care, staff leadership, and program operations, making it ideal for someone who has worked closely with high school students and families in a residential, camp, or school setting and enjoys both the people side and the logistics side of the work. You'll lead the response to student conduct and safety issues, serve as the primary point of contact for escalated parent and guardian concerns, and directly supervise residential staff, approaching challenging situations with empathy, sound judgment, and clear expectations.

During the summer, you'll live on campus and serve as the go-to overnight responder for student concerns and emergencies. Year-round, you'll lead staff recruitment and training, manage program logistics, and support both the Summer Immersion Program and the College LAUNCH for Leadership Program. This role requires experience working directly with high school-aged students and their families, the ability to balance student support with accountability, and the organizational skills to manage complex program logistics.

Job Description

*This position is not eligible for sponsorship of non-immigrant or immigrant visa status through Wake Forest University. All eligible applicants are encouraged to apply.

The Student Support & Operations Manager will support Pre-College Programs, including:

• Summer Immersion Program: A week-long, residential exploration of a career pathway or field of study for high school students.

• College LAUNCH for Leadership: A program expanding access to higher education by helping high school juniors build leadership skills, social awareness, and college readiness.

Essential Functions:

1. Student Support & Care Coordination

• Student Support: Serve as a primary resource for high school students experiencing homesickness, roommate conflicts, peer concerns, or difficulty adjusting to program participation and living away from home.

• Care Coordination: Identify concerns affecting student well-being or participation and connect students with appropriate university resources in coordination with parents or guardians and program leadership. Refer concerns requiring clinical assessment or treatment to qualified professionals.

• Staff Guidance: Ensure summer staff understand student support expectations, approved arrangements, and when to escalate concerns.

• Inclusion & Belonging: Foster an inclusive environment in which students feel respected, connected, and comfortable seeking help.

• Follow-Up: Document support actions and follow up with students, families, and staff as appropriate to assess whether concerns have been resolved or require further assistance.

2. Evening Programming & Residential Experience

• Visible Evening Leadership: Maintain an active, visible presence in residence halls and evening programming, providing real-time staff supervision, responding to student concerns, and leading incident responses.

• Spaces & Scheduling: Coordinate reservations, setup, recreational facilities, and event spaces used for residential programming.

• Activities & Workshops: Plan and oversee engaging, age-appropriate evening activities and workshops in collaboration with summer staff.

• Supplies & Equipment: Manage the purchasing, tracking, storage, and distribution of residential experience supplies, technology, signage, and evening activity materials.

• Student Engagement: Ensure staff actively lead activities, encourage participation, and create opportunities for students to have fun and build connections and a sense of community.

• Program Communication: Ensure students and staff receive clear, timely information about evening schedules, activity locations, participation expectations, and changes.

• Residential Environment: Oversee the student residential experience and coordinate with staff and campus partners to maintain clean, safe, and welcoming shared spaces.

• Program Improvement: Use student feedback, staff observations, and participation trends to adjust activities and strengthen the evening experience.

3. Program Operations & Logistics

• Operational Planning & Coordination: Lead year-round operational planning and summer implementation, including housing, campus spaces transportation, supplies, technology, staffing logistics, and student arrival and departure.

• Campus Partnerships: Coordinate program services and resolve operational needs with Conference Services, Dining Services, Facilities, Information Systems, Parking, and other university partners.

• Housing & Residential Logistics: Oversee room and roommate assignments, room changes, keys and access cards, residence hall inspections, inventory, maintenance requests, and check-in and check-out procedures.

• Systems, Rosters & Resources: Use Slate, Google Classroom, and other university systems to maintain student and staff information, assignments, rooming lists, attendance records, schedules, communications, and program resources.

• Documentation & Reporting: Maintain appropriate records of student concerns, incidents, support actions, disciplinary outcomes, and operational issues. Track unresolved matters, communicate approved student arrangements to appropriate staff, and provide timely updates to program leadership in accordance with university procedures.

• Analysis & Continuous Improvement: Analyze and present residential programming data and feedback from students, parents or guardians, and staff. Recommend improvements and identify technology and automation opportunities that strengthen program effectiveness, accuracy, communication, and operational efficiency.

4. Staff Recruitment, Training & Supervision

• Summer Staff Recruitment: Develop and implement recruitment strategies for Wake Forest undergraduate and graduate students serving as Teaching Assistants (TAs), Student Engagement Interns (SEIs), Marketing Interns, Operations Interns, and Residence Life Coordinators (RLCs).

• Selection & Onboarding: Coordinate interviews, hiring processes, required onboarding steps, and role expectations in collaboration with the designated supervisors of each position.

• Staff Training: Design and lead a comprehensive training week for 40+ undergraduate staff members, supplemented by asynchronous preparation and ongoing training. Address student support, adolescent development, safety, conflict resolution, disciplinary procedures, escalation, professionalism, inclusion, parent communication, and program operations.

• Direct Supervision: Directly supervise RLCs and SEIs, establish assignments and coverage expectations, and provide regular coaching, feedback, and performance evaluations.

• Staff Accountability: Lead staff meetings and individual check-ins, address performance concerns promptly, and coordinate corrective action with program leadership through established staff procedures.

• College LAUNCH Staffing: Recruit College LAUNCH alumni to serve as mentors, volunteers, and work-study staff. Coordinate onboarding and training with College LAUNCH program leadership, clarify role expectations, and support performance monitoring and follow-up.

• Staff Evaluation: Conduct mid-summer and end-of-program assessments to evaluate staff performance and improve recruitment, onboarding, training, and supervision.

5. Student Conduct, Discipline & Parent Communication

• Behavioral Expectations: Communicate and consistently uphold the student code of conduct and program expectations across classroom activities, residential settings, evening programming, and off-campus experiences.

• Incident Review: Lead the response to student conduct incidents, including reviewing reports, gathering relevant information, speaking with involved individuals, documenting findings, and determining appropriate next steps.

• Disciplinary Decisions: Determine and implement appropriate disciplinary actions within established program policies, including dismissal when warranted, in consultation with program leadership and designated university personnel as required.

• Conflict Resolution & Student Growth: Use mediation, restorative conversations, and developmentally appropriate interventions when suitable to help students understand the impact of their behavior, resolve conflicts, and meet community expectations.

• Parent & Guardian Communication: Serve as the primary point of contact for escalated concerns involving student behavior, well-being, and program participation. Manage challenging conversations, de-escalate conflict, explain decisions clearly, and uphold established expectations and consequences.

• Dismissal Coordination: Communicate dismissal decisions and coordinate parent or guardian notification, student departure arrangements, staff responsibilities, and required documentation in accordance with program procedures.

• Staff Escalation & Incident Resolution: Establish clear expectations for what seasonal staff can address directly and what requires immediate escalation. Ensure incidents receive timely review, documented resolution, and appropriate follow-up.

6. Student Safety & Emergency Response

• Safety Procedures: Develop, maintain, and implement program safety procedures in coordination with program leadership and appropriate university partners.

• Immediate Response: Lead the initial program response to urgent student concerns, emergencies, and health or mental health situations. Activate established procedures and connect students with appropriate professional assistance.

• Overnight Response: Serve as the primary overnight responder during residential program weeks. Respond to student concerns, conduct incidents, and emergencies; direct the immediate staff response; and contact campus emergency services, program leadership, or other designated resources as appropriate.

• Staff Preparedness & Coordination: Prepare seasonal staff on emergency procedures, supervision expectations, reporting responsibilities, and escalation protocols. Coordinate coverage, communication, and clear handoffs of unresolved concerns.

• Incident Debriefing: Review significant incidents with appropriate partners and recommend improvements to procedures, training, and response practices.

Work Schedule & Residential Requirements

• Year-round: Full-time, ~37.5 hours/week outside peak periods.

• Summer residential requirement: Live on campus Sunday afternoon–Friday afternoon during assigned Summer Immersion Program (June–July).

• Move-in & training: Required staff move-in (late May - early June) and training week (early June); exact dates communicated annually.

• Evenings/overnights: Regular summer evening shifts until midnight; on-call overnight during June and July.

• College LAUNCH Saturdays: One Saturday/month, September–May, ~9:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m., supporting programming in Winston-Salem and Charlotte.

• Travel: Regular travel between program locations is required. The employee must possess a valid driver’s license and meet university requirements for operating a vehicle, if applicable.

Required Education, Experience, Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution.

• Experience supporting and supervising high school-aged students and communicating directly with parents/guardians in schools, residential programs, camps, or other youth-serving settings.

• Demonstrated ability to apply behavioral expectations consistently, document incidents accurately, de-escalate conflicts, and lead difficult parent conversations regarding consequential decisions.

• Track record of recruiting, training, supervising, and holding seasonal staff or volunteers accountable.

• Sound judgment, composure under pressure, and the ability to recognize when to escalate.

• Strong organizational skills for managing complex, time-sensitive logistics.

• Clear written and verbal communication, including professional documentation of sensitive matters.

• Commitment to inclusive student experiences and Wake Forest's Pro Humanitate mission.

Preferred Education, Experience, Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

• Master's degree in Education, Educational Leadership, Counseling, Social Work, Student Affairs, Higher Education Administration, Youth Development, Business/Operations Management, or a related field.

• Professional experience in secondary education, school administration, counseling, youth development, or residential programs for high schoolers.

• Experience with restorative practices or conflict mediation.

• Experience with Slate, Google Classroom, or similar systems.

Additional Job Description

Time Type Requirement

Full time

Note to Applicant:

This position profile identifies the key responsibilities and expectations for performance. It cannot encompass all specific job tasks that an employee may be required to perform. Employees are required to follow any other job-related instructions and perform job-related duties as may be reasonably assigned by his/her supervisor.

In order to provide a safe and productive learning and living community, Wake Forest University conducts background investigations and drug screens for all final staff candidates being considered for employment.

Equal Opportunity Statement

The University is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes all qualified candidates to apply without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, genetic information, disability and military or veteran status.  

 

Accommodations for Applicants

If you are an individual with a disability and need an accommodation to participate in the application or interview process, please contact [email protected] or (336) 758-4700.