Assistant Director of Aquatics (Recreation Leader), Recreational Sports

RECREATIONAL SPORTS (BL-RECS-IUBLA)

The Office of Student Life focuses on 3 key areas to support the student experience and their success: Care and Advocacy, Health and Well-being, and Involvement and Belonging.

Recreational Sports is a critical part of supporting student well-being and is a primary entry point at Indiana University (IU) Bloomington for supporting students in their health and wellness. Our mission is to connect, inform, and inspire people to lead an active, healthy lifestyle. We serve over 36,000 students, faculty, staff, and public participants annually. Our team consists of 46 appointed staff members, and over 800 part-time student staff members. Our organization fosters a team focused, collaborative work environment that emphasizes strong business practices, operational excellence, and participant development. Our organization is committed to a student development philosophy that encourages student involvement in decision-making and leadership.

Recreational Sports is committed to promoting learning while maintaining an environment that respects all individuals. We commit to creating and maintaining an environment where all are supported.

Department-Specific Responsibilities

• Reports directly to the Director of Aquatics.
• Collaborates closely with various departments.
• Plays a vital role in advancing the unit's priorities, ensuring a seamless and effective Aquatics program for the university community.
• Leads and manages a dedicated team, which includes 1 Coordinator, 2 Program Assistants, 70 lifeguards, 35 swim instructors, 12 head lifeguards, and 8 outdoor pool managers. These personnel work across 8 pools located at 4 distinct aquatic facilities: the Counsilman Billingsley Aquatic Center (CBAC) at the Student Recreational Sports Center (SRSC), Royer Pool, Pool 194 at the School of Public Health (SPH), and the IU Recreational Sports Outdoor Pool.
• Oversees all facets of the Aquatics program and caters to the needs of students, faculty, and staff at IU Bloomington.
• Leads the recruitment, hiring, training, supervision, scheduling, and performance evaluation of 120 part-time student hourly staff members.
• Directly supervises and evaluates 1 Coordinator and 2 Program Assistants, ensuring alignment with organizational goals and fostering a productive work environment.
• Integrates student development principles into all staff training and performance evaluations.
• Creates and facilitates opportunities for staff within the Aquatics team to enhance their professional skills, leadership capabilities, and personal growth.
• Maintains high-quality, personalized service by actively engaging with participants, responding to feedback, and prioritizing relational service excellence in all staff training and interactions.
• Encourages a culture of customer-focused care among the entire Aquatics team.
• Oversees the scheduling and use of 5 indoor and 3 outdoor swimming pools on IU's campus, coordinates lifeguard assignments for academic, athletic, rental, and recreational events, manages pool set-ups for varsity practices and competitions, and supervises all aquatic facility rentals to ensure smooth operations.
• Contributes to the annual development of program and unit goals, using assessment results to guide the creation of new programs and policies.
• Evaluates existing programs to recommend improvements, ensuring alignment with department priorities and enhancing the student experience.
• Develops, assesses, and updates the Recreational Sports Aquatic Risk Management Plan, ensuring compliance and safety protocols across all aquatic facilities and equipment.
• Leads staff training on safety measures, maintains certifications, and remains prepared to respond swiftly to emergencies, ensuring a safe and secure environment for participants.
• Works collaboratively with teams across Outreach, Information Systems and Analytics, Operations, Financial Affairs, Member Services, Programming, Student Personnel, Risk Management, and Research to meet organizational goals and drive the success of the Aquatics program.
• Assists with supply receiving, event coordination, inventory management, and space renovations to maintain smooth day-to-day operations.
• Ensures effective communication, monitors staff performance, and actively participates in strategic goal setting and operational planning.
• Contributes to budget monitoring, provides input into operational documentation, and supports financial management processes.
• Assists in coordinating department-wide special events and provides coverage during nights, weekends, and breaks as part of the professional staff rotation.
  
  

General Responsibilities

• Provides day-to-day operational management of recreational programming staff.
• Establishes short-term operational objectives.
• Identifies operational issues and/or areas of improvement and implements solutions to improve processes and/or operational efficiency.
• Analyzes, monitors, and evaluates performance of assigned staff; establishes work priorities, conducts performance reviews, and provides corrective action as needed.
• Ensures adequate staffing and effective scheduling; participates and informs employment decisions for assigned staff.
• Provides direct supervision and oversight of assigned staff and activities; impacts, and is held accountable for, the performance of team and/or assigned staff.
• Ensures and provides training to assigned staff to improve user support operations; researches and identifies development opportunities for assigned staff.
• Keeps next-level leader(s) informed of trends as well as significant problems.
  
  

Combinations of related education and experience may be considered. Education beyond the minimum required may be substituted for work experience. Work experience beyond the minimum required may be substituted for education.

EDUCATION

Required

• Bachelor's degree in Exercise Science, Recreation, Sports Management, or related field
  
  

Preferred

• Master's degree in Exercise Science, Recreation, Sports Management, or related field
  
  

Required

WORK EXPERIENCE

• 2 years of related experience with structured recreational programming
  
  

LICENSES AND CERTIFICATES

Required

• CPR/AED within 180 days from date of hire
• Standard First Aid within 180 days from date of hire
• Preventing Disease Transmission/Universal Precautions within 180 days from date of hire
• Currently certified as a lifeguard by a nationally recognized organization
  
  

Skills

Required

• Proficient communication skills
• Maintains a high degree of professionalism
• Demonstrates time management and priority setting skills
• Demonstrates a high commitment to quality
• Excellent organizational skills
• Effectively coaches and delivers constructive feedback
• Excellent collaboration and team building skills
• Instills commitment to organizational goals
  
  

This position requires both sedentary work and long durations of movement about the workspace. It requires the ability to move and transport objects and equipment weighing up to 50 pounds. The person in this role must be able to perform the essential tasks with or without an accommodation.

Bloomington, Indiana

This is an in-person position.

$58,000 - $66,500 based on education and experience

For full-time staff employees, Indiana University offers a wide array of benefits including:

• Comprehensive medical and dental insurance
• Health savings account with generous IU contributions
• Healthcare and dependent care flexible spending accounts
• Basic group life insurance paid by IU
• Voluntary supplemental life, long-term disability, critical illness, and supplemental accidental death & dismemberment insurance
• Base retirement plan with generous IU contributions, subject to vesting
• Voluntary supplemental retirement plan options
• Tuition subsidy for employees and family members taking IU courses
• 10 paid holidays plus a paid winter break each year
• Generous paid time off plans
• Paid leave for new parents and IU-sponsored volunteer events
• Employee assistance program (EAP)
  
  

Learn more about our benefits by reviewing the IU Benefit Programs Brochure.

Career Level: Operational

FLSA: Exempt

Job Function: Athletic Affairs

Job Family: Recreational Sports

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This posting is scheduled to close at 11:59 pm EST on the advertised Close Date. This posting may be closed at any time at the discretion of the University, but will remain open for a minimum of 5 business days. To guarantee full consideration, please submit your application within 5 business days of the Posted Date.

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Indiana University is an equal opportunity employer and provider of ADA services and prohibits discrimination in hiring. See Indiana University Notice of Non-Discrimination here which includes contact information.

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