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Specialist I, Assessment Development

The budgeted starting salary range for this position is $70,000-76,000.

Position Summary:

The Specialist I, Assessment Development (Assessment Developer I) plays a critical role in designing, developing, and continually improving valid, reliable, and secure authentic assessments that are aligned with program-level outcomes and institutional learning goals. This role requires knowledge of concept-based curriculum, competency-based education/assessment (CBE), and best practices in educational assessment design and evaluation.

Working in collaboration with academic leadership, faculty, subject matter experts (SMEs), curriculum designers, and psychometricians, the Assessment Developer contributes to the creation of both formative and summative assessments, ranging from multiple-choice exams to complex performance-based tasks and virtual reality-based simulations. This role ensures all assessments reflect principles of backward design, Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and regulatory compliance, including alignment to accreditor expectations such as NWCCU, CCNE, and CNEA.

The Assessment Developer I also supports institutional integrity by advancing secure testing practices, implementing innovative assessment technologies, and providing training and consultation to faculty and curriculum teams on best practices in assessment development and evaluation.

Role and Responsibilities:

Assessment Design and Development:

+ Design and develop concept-based, competency-driven assessments that support institutional and programmatic outcomes across nursing programs and within the professional development space.

+ Create varied assessment types, including traditional item formats, authentic assessments, adaptive tests, and technology-enhanced items to accommodate diverse learner needs and performance contexts.

+ Develop and refine detailed scoring rubrics and performance evaluation criteria to ensure fair, transparent, and consistent grading practices.

+ Ensure that assessments are mapped to learning outcomes, program competencies, and relevant clinical or simulation-based experiences.

+ Integrate UDL principles and accessibility standards into all assessment tools and deliverables.

Collaboration and Stakeholder Engagement:

+ Partner with SMEs, faculty, psychometricians, and curriculum design teams to validate and pilot new assessments, ensuring psychometric rigor and real-world relevance.

+ Participate in blueprinting sessions and assessment mapping reviews to support alignment with instructional content and learner engagement strategies.

+ Incorporate feedback from peer reviews, data analytics, and learner performance trends to iteratively improve assessment quality.

Quality Assurance and Accreditation Alignment:

+ Ensure all assessments meet internal standards for quality, rigor, and defensibility, including alignment with accreditation standards and guidelines.

+ Apply item analysis and post-assessment review processes to monitor assessment performance and inform continuous improvement.

+ Maintain compliance with assessment security protocols, including secure item banks, test delivery systems, and audit trails for high-stakes assessments.

Faculty Development and Capacity Building:

+ Contribute to faculty and curriculum team training on assessment design, rubric calibration, and data-informed evaluation practices.

+ Develop tools, templates, and guides to support assessment literacy and alignment across programs.

Qualifications and Education Requirements:

+ Educational Background: Master's degree (or Bachelor's with equivalent experience) in a relevant field such as Educational Assessment, Curriculum & Instruction, Psychometrics, Instructional & Assessment Design, or a related assessment discipline. Nursing-focused experience required.

+ Professional Experience: Minimum of two years of progressive experience in assessment design and development, ideally in higher education, licensure, nursing, or competency-based education (CBE) environments.

+ Assessment Development Expertise: Demonstrated expertise in designing concept- and competency-based assessments aligned to program outcomes using backward design and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles. Skilled in both formative and summative models, including performance-based and rubric-aligned assessments.

+ Project & Stakeholder Management: Proven ability to manage multiple concurrent assessment projects across development cycles. Experience collaborating cross-functionally with faculty, SMEs, instructional designers, and directors of assessment to ensure alignment, quality, and timely delivery.

+ Innovation & Psychometrics: Experience prototyping and validating new assessment types, including adaptive testing, simulation-based assessments, and next-generation question formats. Familiarity with item-level psychometric analysis (e.g., item difficulty, discrimination, reliability metrics).

+ Compliance & Accreditation Literacy: Working knowledge of assessment-related standards from accrediting and regulatory bodies such as NWCCU, CCNE, ACEN, QSEN, and the AACN Essentials. Committed to ethical, secure, and equitable assessment practices.

+ Data-Driven Decision-Making: Skilled in analyzing assessment data to evaluate learner performance, drive continuous improvement, and support program evaluation. Familiar with tools and dashboards used for assessment reporting and improvement cycles.

+ Technology Proficiency: Proficient in using Learning Management Systems (LMS), particularly Canvas, to implement, administer, and analyze assessments.

All new hires are required to attend New Collaborator Orientation (NCO) in Salt Lake City, Utah. The College will pay for travel and lodging accommodations.

Nightingale's commitment to diversity and inclusion is reflected both in our learners and collaborators because we believe the best outcomes for learners from underserved and diverse populations are achieved through collaborators with similar backgrounds and cultures. Nightingale College is an equal opportunity employer.

Our Mission (not just words on the wall, we live it, love it, and daily contribute to it): With the primary focus on higher learning in healthcare professions, Nightingale College contributes to elevating education, health, and employment systems through facilitation of academic achievement, personal growth, and professional development of its learners, alumni, and collaborators, while serving diverse communities.

At Nightingale College, our Innovative Education model helps transform rural health landscapes through our blended-distance learning platform. Every person involved with Nightingale College helps to change the lives of our learners, our communities, and ultimately the world by adding to the quality of healthcare. We are proud to have graduated over 3,400 nurses serving communities in need. We are serious about our outcomes and have a little bit of fun getting there.

The professional and personal development of our learners and our collaborators is our company's foundation. Not only do we develop strategies that promote a positive work-life integration, but we also create an environment that invites you to become an expert in your field, be it through higher education or professional development. Put simply, we elevate employment, elevate health, and elevate education. We're so happy that you've found us!