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Role Description

The Esalen Institute is seeking a Director of Education, who will be responsible for developing and overseeing Esalen’s educational strategy, ensuring alignment with Esalen’s mission while fostering innovative and impactful learning experiences. This role provides strategic leadership for all educational programming, leveraging data-driven decision-making for program evaluation and administration.

This is a remote position requiring on-site visits to Big Sur, CA every three months for 4-7 days (travel, lodging, and food provided).

Key Responsibilities

• Educational Strategy & Leadership:
  • Develop and execute Esalen’s long-term educational strategy in collaboration with our Programs Committee, educational team, and Esalen leadership, ensuring alignment with mission and values.
  • Oversee all Esalen programs, including public workshops, SGE (self-guided experience), educational initiatives, and fellowships/residences.
  • Stay ahead of emerging trends in experiential education.
• Research and Development Strategy:
  • Discern cutting-edge educational opportunities, drawing on relevant social, spiritual, and intellectual traditions.
• Data, Metrics & Performance Analysis Oversight:
  • Translate Board-level strategy into actionable key performance indicators (KPIs) that are quantifiable.
  • Incorporate enrollment trends, retention rates, and learner feedback to refine and optimize strategy and mitigate risk.
  • Utilize data-driven insights to inform content strategy, faculty selection, and curriculum adjustments, in close conversation with intellectual discernment.
• Oversight of Workshop and Educational Programming:
  • Lead and manage the educational team.
  • Oversee the educational master calendars and forecasting tools to ensure optimal scheduling, occupancy, and revenue performance.
  • Act as a point of collaboration for the educational team in the selection of faculty, workshops, and other programs, ensuring a balance between new and returning faculty.
• Collaboration with Marketing & Outreach:
  • Work closely with the future Director of Marketing to develop targeted outreach that increases participation and engagement in all educational offerings.
  • Track and flag underperforming and new programming initiatives in need of marketing support.

Qualifications

• Substantial, relevant experience in educational program development, experiential learning, and/or curriculum design.
• Master's Degree or higher (or equivalent) preferred.
• Highly collaborative, adaptable, and skilled in cross-functional leadership.
• Proficiency in Google Suite, Excel, and organizational tools and platforms.

Physical Requirements

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee must be able to sit for long periods of time, occasionally carry and lift up to 25 pounds, and be able to perform daily repetitive hand motions as it pertains to computer mouse and keyboard.

Compensation

• This role offers a generous benefits package including competitive pay commensurate with experience, medical and dental insurance, and paid time off.
• In alignment with Esalen’s mission in advancing human potential, staff are encouraged to engage in a wide range of personal and professional development programs designed by Esalen faculty and staff.
• $120,000 - $140,000 a year.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Esalen Institute is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.