Director of Practice

Mon, Mar 23 2026

The Contemplative Sciences Center is seeking a Director of Practice to strategically develop, manage, and oversee the Center’s programs and events. Since opening the Contemplative Commons, the Center has slowly increased its programming and availability. In the Spring of 2026, the Commons will extend its hours to include weekends and nights. The Director of Practice will play a pivotal role in this next phase, ensuring that the building is activated and utilized, and that the Center is successfully serving its mission as it relates to programs.

The Director of Practice will be a key member of the Center’s leadership team, working collaboratively with the Executive Director, Director of Research, Chief of Staff, Director of External Relations, and other Center leads to direct the strategy and management of the Center’s program and events. The Director of Practice will manage a team of program and event staff, including student staff, to provide engaging, educational and impactful programs and events. All Center staff, if interested and qualified, have the opportunity to participate in and/or lead contemplative practices as part of their employment with the Contemplative Sciences Center.

Key Responsibilities:

Program Strategy & Launch Readiness

Drive early-stage program and event ideation and development in partnership with Center staff, UVA, and community partners
Evaluate operational readiness prior to launch, ensuring that systems, processes, and teams are fully prepared
Determine continuity of programs and events based on assessment of engagement and impact
Manage a team to successfully complete end-to-end project and event planning, documentation, and reporting

Cross-Functional Leadership & Stakeholder Management

Coordinate across teams and departments within the university and schools: finance, leadership, operations, instructional design, marketing, recruitment, student success, tech, etc.
Provide real-time recommendations and hands-on support to address emerging issues
Communicate program health and progress through updates and clear narrative, building positive relationships, trust, and transparency across all parties
Lead the Center’s efforts at expanding its work in engaging and supporting surrounding communities
Collaborate with the Research team to create programming that is evidence-based, and determine opportunities for research to be applied to existing Center or partner programs

In addition to the above job responsibilities, other duties may be assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

Education: Bachelor's degree

Experience: 7+ years related professional experience, to include 3+ years of formal managerial experience required. Related experience includes strategic thinking and execution, developing and managing events, creative programming, and engagement with local communities.

Preferred Qualifications

Excellent facilitation, collaboration, communication, and presentation skills
Experience with creating, managing, and monitoring programs at a University or non-profit setting
Ability to take a collaborative, partnership approach, uplifting the vital work of the UVA and Charlottesville communities while generating programs and events that are unique to the Contemplative Sciences Center
Ability to understand the demands of programming a large, complex building, and the nuances of how the built environment influences the programmatic opportunities and vice versa
Possess an understanding of contemplation, integrative wellness, and undergraduate student development
Strategic planning, assessment, reporting and budgeting experience
Willingness to create new policies, workflows, and operate within uncertainty

Physical Demands

This is primarily a sedentary job involving extensive use of desktop computers. The job does occasionally require traveling some distance to attend meetings, and programs.