Wellness Educator

Job Summary:

To provide wellness education, promotion, and prevention services to Merrimack students, staff, and faculty focusing on wellness and healthy behaviors including suicide prevention, substance use harm reduction, sexual assault prevention, and overall emotional and physical wellness. Working collaboratively with campus constituencies, the Wellness Educator will provide student-driven educational programming as well as training, professional development and consultation to staff and faculty regarding student health and wellbeing. The Wellness Educator will be part of the Merrimack College CARE team providing case management to students and work with other CARE team members to identify proactive and reactive responses to student wellness trends, as well as assist in student referrals.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Plan, develop, and implement general wellness education programs for students, including but not limited to, preventative programming, sober late-night programming, educational/training events, mindfulness, relaxation, and bystander intervention. Maintain the programming budget.

• Conduct, manage, and report results of ongoing qualitative and quantitative wellness needs assessment.

• Conduct outcome assessments for signature events and maintain accurate records regarding activities and populations served. Utilize this information to compile a yearly Impact Report for the Karen Johnson Fund.

• Market and promote wellness events and online content, including social media strategy, website development, and printed reference materials for students, faculty, and staff.

• Collaboratively formulate Peer Education program, including recruitment and selection. Supervise Peer Educators and all Peer Educator programming.

• Develop strong collaborative and working relationships across the college which facilitate opportunities for collaboration, including creating a cross-campus Wellness committee. Train professional staff on topics related to wellness education.

• Serve as a member of the Merrimack College CARE team and provide case management of students referred to the Merrimack College CARE team.

• Work closely with members of the CARE team on individual student triage, as well as programmatic responses to student wellness trends. Conduct professional trainings and/or presentations in identification and referral of distressed students.

• Advise student groups related to wellness topics.

• Recruit, select, train and supervise graduate student staff.

• Assist in developing and facilitating Warriors Impact student leadership training.

• Partner with the Office of Residence Life to train staff on wellness topics.

• Assist the Director of Community Standards with the facilitation of student conduct sanctions, including BASICS meetings.

• Participate as a member of the Student Affairs division in campus wide events such as commencement, orientation, move-in, and other campus-wide events throughout the year. Coordinate OWE presence at Orientation and Accepted Students Days.

• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

• Minimum requirements of education, knowledge, previous experience, or equivalent required to perform the duties of this position at an acceptable level.

• Completion of relevant post-graduate degree (e.g. public health, higher education, counseling, or others)

• Knowledge of best practices in health education and/or promotion.

• Strong presentation and workshop facilitation skills.

• Excellent oral and written communication skills for a variety of audiences.

• Knowledge or experience in data management and reporting.

• Comfort and knowledge regarding use of social media.

• Comfort with wide range of health topics including suicide, substance use, sexual assault, and mental health.

• Prior professional experience within higher education.

• Prior experience managing event-driven programming for students.

Application Materials Should Include:

• Resume

• Cover letter stating motivation and interest in the position, citing experience relevant to the qualifications and including experience with, and commitment to, our Catholic Augustinian mission and our values.

This position is subject to the successful completion of a criminal background check.

Vaccinations and Work Location

This is an on-campus position as employees are essential in order to provide a fully on-campus, residential college experience for our students and the community.

The COVID-19 vaccine and booster for which an individual may be eligible are highly recommended for students, faculty and staff. Merrimack College does not require proof of COVID vaccination for enrollment, employment or to be a guest on our campus.

Statement on Our Mission

Merrimack College seeks candidates who understand, respect and can contribute to Merrimack’s Catholic and Augustinian mission and values.

About Merrimack College

The only Catholic, Augustinian institution of higher education in New England, Merrimack College is a private, independent, coeducational institution with more than 4,000 undergraduate and 1,400 graduate students from 43 states and 42 countries. The College features more than 100 career-focused undergraduate, professional and graduate programs, all taught by exceptional faculty who are passionate about their subject and student success. The College has five schools: arts and sciences, engineering and computational sciences, nursing and health sciences, education and social policy and the Girard school of business. The College’s suburban 220-acre campus is just north of Boston in North Andover, Massachusetts. Merrimack is a Master’s Colleges and Universities/Larger Programs (M1) institution in the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. Merrimack is one of the fastest growing educational institutions in the country and has steadily climbed up in the U.S. News & World Report’s ranking of Best Colleges, ranking 33rd in the Regional Universities North category in 2024. Merrimack is a NCAA Division I athletic institution.

Merrimack College is an Equal Opportunity Employer.