Associate Program Director

Job Summary:

About Concordia Language Villages:

Named one of Minnesota’s Best Summer Camps by Star Tribune readers for three consecutive years, Concordia Language Villages (CLV) brings language and culture to life in the beautiful North Woods of Minnesota. Each village is designed to reflect the culture it represents, creating an immersive environment where everything from the music played to the dishes used in the dining hall contributes to a rich cultural experience.

CLV’s mission is to inspire courageous global citizens. Our approach places participants in a grand simulation of a trip abroad, surrounding them with authentic cultural elements and thoughtfully designed learning experiences led by skilled language educators. Through our iso-immersion model, participants build language proficiency, intercultural competence, and a broader global perspective.

For youth in particular, traditional camp experiences—such as canoeing, campfires, and collaborative activities—are intentionally woven into the program to cultivate teamwork, empathy, leadership, and personal growth, all while supporting CLV’s mission of preparing engaged global citizens.

About the Position:

The Associate Program Director – Enrollment & Partnerships provides leadership and oversight for a portfolio of Concordia Language Villages’ summer and academic-year language and culture programs. Additional primary responsibility for enrollment-focused initiatives, customer experience, and partnership-based programming. This role supports the Program Director by advancing program sustainability, strengthening enrollment pipelines, and supervising program leaders within assigned language communities and program areas.

The Associate Director will supervise program leaders and staff and support seasonal leadership development and ensure program quality and fiscally responsible programs. The Associate Director will also be a key leader in supporting enrollment growth in language programs, ensuring high-quality, mission-aligned, margin-conscious programs while supervising program leaders and staff within assigned language communities and program areas.

The Associate Director works collaboratively with other program leaders, site-based operational staff, and cross-functional partners to ensure strong educational outcomes, effective staffing, and consistent program experiences across villages.

The Associate Director will work specifically with Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish.

Work Modality:

• Must be on-site at Turtle River Lake campus in Bemidji, MN during Summer Programs
• Must be able to reside in either Bemidji, MN area or Moorhead, MN area during Academic Year

Job Duties

• Program Leadership for Assigned Language Communities
  • Provide oversight for summer and academic-year adult and family programs in Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Swedish, Portuguese, and Spanish. Changes in portfolio of languages may occur based on market and needs of CLV; any such changes will be determined in consultation with Program Director and CLV leadership.
  • Ensure financial goals, program quality and operational goals are met for all responsible language programs and collaborate with enrollment and marketing teams to achieve enrollment targets for all programs.
  • Supervise and support deans and program leaders through program planning, as well as recruitment, hiring, onboarding, goal setting, and performance review processes
  • Maintain regular communication with deans during both the academic year and summer season to support planning, staffing, and program readiness
  • First point of contact for villager and staff issues in assigned language communities, with escalation to Program Director
  • Maintain presence at programs offered by language community.

• Enrollment & Customer Experience Leadership
  • Provide program-side leadership for enrollment and customer service initiatives for language and culture
  • Collaborate with enrollment and marketing teams to support recruitment, retention, and communication strategies
  • Ensure consistent, high-quality experiences for participants, families, and partners and lead program staff responding to concerns related to customer service.

• Storytelling, Community Engagement & Outreach, Partnership & Program Growth
  • Support program narratives, events, and outreach efforts in collaboration with communications and external relations staff
  • Lead or support summer school groups, partnerships, and custom programs
  • Explore and support potential government-sponsored or externally funded programming, as appropriate
  • Serve on or lead committees related to enrollment, community engagement, and storytelling
  • Work to enhance brand recognition and enrollment pathways between CLV and Concordia College

• Staff & Seasonal Leadership Development
  • Participate in staff recruitment, orientation, and professional development efforts
  • Support recruitment, onboarding, supervision, and evaluation of program leaders and seasonal staff
  • Contribute to annual and seasonal leadership meetings and Village Leadership Council (VLC) activities

• Pan-Village Communication & Coordination
  • Support consistent communication and shared practices across language communities across assigned areas
  • Contribute to shared resources, manuals, and program guidance materials
  • Participate in organization-wide leadership meetings and planning sessions

• Administrative & Compliance Responsibilities
  • Ensure program practices align with institutional policies, accreditation requirements, and risk management standards
  • Support documentation, reporting, and planning processes related to assigned programs

• Collaboration with Site & Administrative Teams
  • Work collaboratively with site-based operational teams to support program delivery and staff needs
  • Serve as representative/point of contact of CLV program team on tasks requiring collaboration with Health and Wellness, Marketing and Enrollment
  • Coordinate with enrollment, marketing, health and wellness, and operations staff as appropriate
  • Escalate complex program or personnel issues to the Program Director

• Other Duties as Assigned

Qualifications:

Minimum Qualifications:

1. Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and experience
2. Experience in language immersion, education, or youth/residential programming
3. Demonstrated leadership, organization, and communication skills
4. Proficiency in English and at least one additional world language
5. Commitment to CLV’s mission and values

Preferred Qualifications:

1. Master’s degree
2. Experience with enrollment strategy, partnerships, or external-facing programs
3. Prior leadership in residential, camp, or immersive education environments
4. Experience supervising staff or seasonal leaders

• Health Insurance
• Health Savings Account
• Flexible Spending Account
• Vision Insurance
• Dental Insurance
• Preventative Chiropractic Program
• Retirement Plan
• Long-Term Disability Insurance (full-time only)
• Life Insurance (full-time only)
• 13 Paid holidays including the time off between Christmas and New Year's
• MN Paid Family and Medical Leave
• Up to 100% tuition with discounts and scholarships for yourself and dependents at Concordia College and Concordia Language Villages
• Up to 50% tuition discount for dependents with Oak Grove Lutheran Schools
• Up to 100% tuition discounts for dependents with participating partners: CIC-TEP, ELCA schools, and Tuition Exchange Inc.
• Extras: access to athletic facilities, library, fitness classes, athletic events, theatre events, purchase dining on campus, free MATbus rides

Proficiency in English and at least one additional world language