Student Services Manager - Assistant Registrar

The Assistant Registrar - Student Records supports the Registrar in the administration and oversight of the college's student academic records functions and assists in ensuring the integrity, accuracy, security, and compliance of official student academic records in accordance with institutional policies, federal and state regulations, accreditation standards, and industry best practices. This position promotes a positive, efficient, and student-centered experience, recognizing the direct impact on student enrollment, retention, and completion. This position provides operational leadership for student records management, including transcript evaluation, graduation certification, enrollment verification, academic records maintenance, and records compliance processes. The position serves as an escalation point for complex student records issues, providing expert guidance in resolving non-routine cases, determining appropriate exceptions to standard processes, and addressing institutional errors in accordance with policy, regulatory requirements, and best practices. This position is also responsible for accurate and timely enrollment reporting and graduation verification to the National Student Clearinghouse. The Assistant Registrar is responsible for managing the daily operation of student records functions, supervises assigned staff, and ensures compliance with federal and state regulations governing student records, including the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and institutional policies related to records confidentiality, academic records maintenance, and records retention. The Assistant Registrar develops and monitors internal controls, establishes operational procedures, and ensures that record processing timelines meet institutional standards to support student progression, financial aid eligibility, and institutional reporting accuracy. The Assistant Registrar must support the College Registrar by serving as a backup and maintaining cross-training in key functions such as 45th-day reporting, SIS security, fraud detection, and other critical records and compliance operations. This position also manages responses to subpoenas, legal records requests, enrollment verification inquiries, and other authorized disclosures of student information in accordance with legal and institutional requirements. Working closely with the Registrar, the Assistant Registrar assists in safeguarding student records and ensuring adherence to FERPA, federal reporting requirements, National Student Clearinghouse reporting, and state enrollment reporting requirements. The position also assists the Registrar with policy interpretation, process improvement initiatives, audit preparation, and system enhancements related to student information systems and records management processes. The Assistant Registrar serves as a subject-matter expert on student records policies and procedures and provides guidance on records governance, academic policy implementation, and regulatory compliance. The Assistant Registrar is also expected to be an active member of the Council for Admissions and Records within MCCD, including staying informed of new processes and policies and ensuring that the college operates in compliance with district, state, and federal regulations. In addition, the position collaborates with academic departments, advising, financial aid, institutional research, and information technology to maintain accurate academic records and support institutional reporting, graduation certification, and student progression. The Assistant Registrar (Student Records) plays a critical role in ensuring institutional compliance, operational effectiveness, and the integrity of the student academic record, while supporting the college's mission of promoting student access, persistence, and completion. Essential Functions 30% Leadership, strategic planning, and student records operations management ? Oversee the daily operations of student academic records processing to ensure accuracy, compliance, and timely service delivery within the Office of Admissions and Records. ? Focus of academic records integrity and records governance consist of the primary areas: student records maintenance, graduation certification, degree audits, transcript evaluation, enrollment verification, FERPA process administration, subpoena documentation support, records retention and imaging, records-related technology systems. ? Establish internal controls, oversee monitoring, maintenance, integrity, and confidentiality of official student academic records, and lead student records compliance oversight by ensuring all critical functions (FERPA logs, transcript evaluation timelines, graduation certification, Clearinghouse reporting, and legal requests) are actively monitored, documented, and audit-ready. ? Identify operational risks, backlog trends, and service gaps and implement corrective strategies to maintain timely processing of student records. ? Collaborate with the Registrar and Enrollment Services leadership to support strategic initiatives related to developing office procedures, workflow management processes, and operational timelines enrollment management, student success, and academic records governance. ? Contribute to strategic planning efforts related to student information systems, records modernization, and technology enhancements. ? Analyze operational data and performance metrics to improve records processing timelines and service delivery. ? Develop and monitor procedures for secure storage, access, and release of student records. ? Develop and implement operational plans, procedures, and workflow structures to support efficient student records services. ? Oversee official academic record updates including grade changes, withdrawals, academic standing, and record corrections. ? Support institutional audits, accreditation reviews, and compliance monitoring activities related to student records management and ensure compliance with institutional records management policies. ? Provide guidance and training to staff on student records policies, regulatory requirements, and operational procedures. ? Hire, train, evaluate, supervise and support classified student records staff assigned responsible for transcript evaluation, graduation processing, and records management maintenance. ? Serve as an escalation point for complex student records and enrollment issues, including resolution of non-routine cases, evaluation of exceptions to standard policies and procedures, and correction of institutional errors in coordination with the Registrar and appropriate departments. ? Maintain current knowledge of federal, state, and district regulations, as well as AACRAO best practices, and ensure timely implementation of changes to maintain ongoing compliance across all admissions and records functions. ? Provide operational leadership for the student records unit in the absence of the Registrar when assigned. ? Serve as a backup to the College Registrar and maintain cross-training in critical compliance and reporting functions, including 45th-day enrollment reporting, fraud detection processes, and other essential records operations to ensure continuity of services. 20% Graduation certification and degree audit oversight ? Manage the graduation certification process to ensure accurate and timely degree conferral and compliance with academic requirements. ? Oversee graduation certification processes including degree audits, verification of academic program requirements, and confirmation of degree eligibility. ? Coordinate processes for degree conferral and certify completion of certificate and degree requirements. ? Coordinate with academic departments on program requirements within the degree audit system. ? Ensure timely posting of degrees and certificates to student records and verify completion requirements. ? Oversee the proactive graduation process. ? Monitor graduation certification timelines to support commencement, transcript accuracy and institutional reporting. 20% Transcript evaluation, transfer credit processing, and academic records maintenance ? Ensure accurate and timely evaluation and posting of transfer credit and maintenance of official academic records. ? Oversee transcript evaluation workflows for incoming transfer credit, prior academic coursework, and prior learning assessment. ? Ensure proper posting of transfer coursework in accordance with institutional policies and articulation agreements. ? Ensure timely and accurate evaluation of transcripts to support student advising, registration, graduation, and financial aid eligibility. ? Review complex transcript evaluations and resolve discrepancies. ? Coordinate with academic departments regarding transfer credit applicability and equivalency determinations. ? Maintain accurate historical academic records in the student information system. ? Coordinate transfer credit articulation processes in accordance with institutional policies and articulation agreements. ? Monitor evaluation timelines and quality control processes for transfer credit processing. 10% Enrollment verification and records reporting ? Oversee enrollment verification services for students, lenders, employers, and other authorized entities. ? Manage National Student Clearinghouse enrollment verification within regulations. ? Coordinate and verify student academic eligibility for intercollegiate athletics in compliance with NJCAA requirements, including enrollment status, academic standing, and credit load verification. ? Assist with validation of enrollment records used for institutional reporting and external verification requests. ? Monitor accuracy of enrollment data associated with student records. ? Ensure accurate and timely submission of enrollment and graduation data to the National Student Clearinghouse, including oversight of reporting processes, data validation, and reconciliation of discrepancies. 10% Legal requests, subpoenas, and authorized Information release ? Respond to subpoenas, court orders, and other legally authorized requests for student records in consultation with institutional legal counsel and the Registrar. ? Ensure all legal records requests are reviewed and processed in accordance with FERPA and institutional policy. ? Maintain documentation related to legal records requests and disclosures. ? Provide guidance to college departments regarding lawful release of student information. ? Support fraud detection and prevention efforts related to student records, enrollment activity, and identity verification in alignment with institutional policies and regulatory requirements. 5% Technology systems support and process improvement ? Assist with the operational management of the student information system (SIS) related to registration, academic records processing, and other enrollment technologies. ? Collaborate with institutional research and Information Technology to ensure and maintain data integrity for accurate configuration of systems supporting transcript evaluation, degree audit, student records management, compliance reporting, institutional planning, security protocols, and data governance standards. ? Participate in technology and workflow improvements that enhance the efficiency and accuracy of records processing. ? Produce reports related to student records processing activities. ? Utilize data analytics to support strategic enrollment management initiatives. 5% Other ? Stay current with developments in the field of higher education administration and provide expert guidance on best practices. Remain abreast to operational and reporting trends, regulations, and technology solutions; coordinate updates and modifications to the student information system related to registration, advisement, and academic records. ? Serve on various executive boards, college and district committees (including locally, regionally, and nationally) as designated and participate in meetings and conferences. ? Consult with other departments or officials as needed. ? Responsible for other reasonable related duties as assigned commensurate to the grade level of the position. ? Actively participate in the MCCD Council for Admissions and Records, staying informed of district-wide policy and process updates and ensuring institutional compliance with district, state, and federal regulations. Represents the college and the best interest of the college in the council and other spaces.