Director Academic Delivery

Director Academic Delivery

Western Governors University is a national nonprofit online university committed to expanding access to higher education through competency‑based programs.

In this role you will lead the people and systems responsible for instruction or evaluation within your school or domain, ensuring every learner experiences excellence from the moment they begin a course to the moment they demonstrate mastery. You will shape how WGU teaches and measures learning at scale, work closely with the Vice President of Academic Delivery and faculty, and drive academic excellence, operational efficiency, and student success.

• What You’ll Do: Deliver measurable student success, build high‑performing teams, drive operational excellence at scale, use data to drive better decisions, advance innovation in teaching, learning and evaluation, and champion WGU’s mission and culture.
• The Work:
  • Translate academic strategy into operational execution within your domain and across Academic Delivery.
  • Lead people managers responsible for instruction or evaluation functions.
  • Partner with deans, program leads, assessment designers to align curriculum, teaching, and evaluation.
  • Establish success metrics for student service and outcomes.
  • Manage budgets, staffing models, and adoption of new technologies.
  • Ensure quality, compliance and innovation across courses and programs.
  • Represent your domain in university‑wide forums on academic delivery and student outcomes.
• In Your First Year:
  • Drive gains in completion, return for graduates, and equity.
  • Build a culture of accountability, belonging, and continuous learning.
  • Build systems that enable sustainable growth while improving student experience and reducing unit costs.
  • Turn data insights into action, continuously improve instruction and assessment.
  • Partner across the university to pilot and scale new instructional models and technologies.
  • Lead with empathy and integrity, creating a psychologically safe, inclusive environment.
• In Your First Six Months:
  • Establish leadership presence, clarify the vision, and build trust.
  • Plan and execute an annual faculty summit.
  • Lead a strategic budget process, translating priorities into financial plans.
  • Launch AI tools to enhance the student experience.
  • Set data‑backed targets to improve key metrics such as completion rates and student satisfaction.
  • Improve retention through evidence‑based strategies and improved support timing.

• Student‑centered leadership that keeps learners at the heart of decisions.
• Strategic agility to connect vision with day‑to‑day execution.
• Operational excellence in managing scale, systems and stewardship.
• Data fluency – comfortable with dashboards and dialogue.
• Managerial courage to speak up with respect and resolve.
• Team development focus – hire and grow leaders who build belonging and deliver results.
• Change leadership – inspire confidence in times of uncertainty.
• Excellent communication – present information clearly and concisely.

The Director of Academic Delivery ensures that opportunity is delivered by uniting instructional excellence and evaluation integrity into a seamless learning experience that helps every student succeed, advancing WGU’s mission of equity and access.

• Master’s degree required; doctorate preferred.
• 8+ years of progressive leadership experience.
• Proven track record of leading teams with measurable improvement in student or institutional outcomes.
• Demonstrated ability to lead others, manage budgets and make data‑informed decisions.
• Experience or familiarity with the domain is a plus.

Pay Range: $ – $. Benefits include medical, dental, vision, telehealth, mental healthcare, health savings account, flexible spending account, life insurance, disability coverage, accident and critical illness supplemental, retirement savings plan, wellbeing program, discounted tuition, flexible paid time off, 11 paid holidays and up to 12 weeks of parental leave.

Please include a cover page that identifies the position(s) of interest and related experience with the domain or function.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to any protected characteristic as required by law.