Administrative Specialist - Essential Details

Administrative Specialist - Essential

Mills College - Oakland, CA

Employment Type : Full-Time

Administrative Specialist - Essential
About Mills College:

Located in Oakland, California, in the heart of the San Francisco Bay Area, Mills College is a liberal arts college for women and gender non-binary students, with graduate programs for all genders. Consistently ranked one of the top master's universities and one of the best value colleges in the West by U.S. News & World Report, Mills also has been named one of the Best Colleges in the nation by The Princeton Review. The Mills experience is distinguished by small, interactive classes, one-on-one attention from exceptional faculty, a culture of creative experimentation, and cutting-edge interdisciplinary learning opportunities which empower students to make a statement in their careers and communities. As one of the most diverse liberal arts colleges in the country, we have a strong record of academic success with first-generation students, students of color, Latinx students, LGBTQ students, and other underrepresented students. Mills College has recently become a Hispanic Serving Institution. Applicants with expertise and experience in supporting and promoting success for Latina/o students are encouraged to apply.

Mills College encourages diversity in hiring and particularly welcomes applications and nominations from women, gender non-binary individuals, and minorities. Mills College seeks to recruit and retain a diverse workforce as a reflection of our commitment to equity, inclusion, and social justice and our desire to maintain the excellence of our faculty. In so doing, we offer our students not only the opportunity to learn about varied disciplines but to engage with diverse perspectives and ways of knowing and learning. For more information, please visit www.mills.edu.

Job Description:

Organizational Relationships
Reports To: Special Assistant to the Provost and Manager of Academic Operations
Supports: Provost and Dean of the Faculty; Associate Provosts (3); Executive Assistants (2)
Manages: Student Worker(s)

Summary of Position:
The Provost's office partners with faculty to cultivate the intellectual life of Mills College, to ensure academic integrity and excellence, and to promote gender and racial justice. We do this by supporting the faculty in providing rigorous, transformative and inclusive learning experiences for our students, stewarding Mills' academic resources, and connecting the campus to the wider educational ecosystem.

Under the direction of the Special Assistant to the Provost, the Administrative Specialist is a member of the Provost's staff team who plays a critical role in providing high-level support in the implementation of daily administrative operations, participates on College-wide and academic affairs event steering committees, organizes and tracks the Provost's area endowed funds, and coordinates the development and publication of the Provost's Office monthly enewsletter.

Primary functions include direct administrative support for all members of the office and requires a superior command of verbal and written communication, demonstrated skills in time-management and detail-orientation, and a willingness to approach challenges both critically and creatively. The incumbent works with a high level of autonomy, responsibility, confidentiality, discretion and initiative, through an equity lens.

This position is currently remote due to the State of California's and Alameda county's guidelines; the position will remain remote as long as government restrictions are in place and per the College's COVID-19 Response Team. The College will provide computer equipment.

Essential job functions

Administrative support

• Provides hands-on support to the Special Assistant in managing the fast-paced office of the Provost and Dean of the Faculty, requiring expertise in time management;
• Provides operational support to all members of the Office, including but not limited to: class and event reservations; submitting and tracking catering orders, event assistance day-of; email and document circulation; and a wide range of general support;
• Coordinates and prepares confidential and/or sensitive material such as correspondence, reports and spreadsheets with a high degree of accuracy and thorough attention to detail;
• Manages document routing queue for items requiring the provost's signature; monitors and tracks incoming and outgoing correspondence, as appropriate.
• Provides administrative assistance to the Special Assistant in collection of departmental monthly operational budgets, assists with maintenance of Office operational budget and endowed funds tracking sheet;
• Provides back-up coverage for Special Assistant;
• Organizes, manages, and provides administrative and technical support for special projects and other duties as assigned;
• Serves as initial point of contact for campus and external contacts via email, phone or on site;
• Promotes an open and inclusive environment in the Provost's Office via email, phone or on site; resolves issues when possible; and/or refers contacts to the Special Assistant.

Faculty personnel support

• Assists with faculty salary administration, including the support of contract preparation and the necessary documents for finance and human resources to facilitate payment (payroll and one-time), issuance of College ID, an email address, library access, etc;
• Enter, maintain and update faculty records, such as:
  • Data entry using personnel forms;
  • Digitization of hard copy personnel files, creation of online organizational structure, and maintenance of file accuracy;
• Assist in the development and preparation of reports, including sabbatical reports, faculty kudos reports, etc. for the Board and related subcommittees; financial and statistical reports, the completion of annual reporting and surveys (i.e., AAUP, Facts & Trends, CIC surveys, insurance, etc.)., and respond to other requests regarding faculty;
• Provides administrative support to the EA for Faculty Personnel in relation the Appointment Promotion and Tenure Committee;
• Provides administrative support to the EA for Faculty Personnel for maintenance of adjunct faculty personnel matters and records, and assist in supporting the management of the SEIU contract;
• Provides administrative support to the EA for Faculty Governance for appointment letters for endowed chairs and faculty emeriti;
• Provide comprehensive administrative assistance to manager of faculty personnel records;
• Other duties as assigned.

Additional duties and responsibilities:

• When necessary, serve as backup for other staff in the office. Format, type and edit a variety of complex material from dictation, rough draft or notes, including budgets, contracts, letters, memoranda, agenda, minutes of meetings, reports, and filing;
• Establish and maintain effective and productive working relationships within a diverse and multicultural environment;
• Additional duties as assigned.

Requirements:

Preferred education, work experience and technical skills

• College degree;
• 2-3 years in a professional administrative role;
• Familiarity with hiring and/or contract cycles preferred;
• Two years working in a multicultural environment;
• Demonstrated commitment to advance diversity, inclusion, and equity in past or current work environments;
• Advanced computer skills involving databases, spreadsheets, graphics and/or other applications utilizing software applicable to the function;
• High proficiency with Google Apps and advanced knowledge of Microsoft;
• Knowledge of higher education a plus.

Abilities

• Establish and maintain effective and productive working relationships with students, faculty and staff within a diverse and multicultural environment;
• Demonstrated ability to take initiative and responsibility balanced with a collaborative learner stance with colleagues;
• Commitment to Mills College's mission and demonstrated ability to create and sustain an organizational climate based on inclusion, social justice and equity;
• Political acumen and sensitivities to differing perspectives at all levels of the College and external constituencies;
• Ability to manage information with a high degree of confidentiality, work in a tiered reporting structure, and process detailed instructions with accuracy while maintaining deadlines;
• Demonstrated professionalism working in a fast-paced office;
• Effective written and verbal communication skills for a range of audiences;

Soft Skills

• Cultural competency necessary to work with a multicultural, diverse population;
• Resourceful, quick learner-Stays with a plan of action until completed, seeks guidance;
• Good judgment-Makes quality decisions based on logic and factual information;
• Motivated, flexible, collaborative-Able to adapt or modify behavior to reach a goal;
• Initiative/drive-Takes action to achieve goals. A self-starter;
• Reliable/punctual;
• Tolerates stress-Stable performance under pressure.

This position description is not intended to contain a comprehensive list of activities, duties, or responsibilities. Additional duties may be assigned based on business operational needs.

Additional Information:

This is a full-time, non-exempt position with an FTE of 1.0. Hourly wage is $20.33 - $23.85, and includes an excellent benefits package including medical/dental/vision/life/LTD insurance, 403(b) retirement plan, 10 days of vacation for year one, 15 days of vacation for years 2-10, and 22 days of vacation years 10+ plus, 12 sick days and 17 paid holidays (subject to annual review).

Mills College does not permit discrimination based on pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, race, religious creed, color, national origin or ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, marital status, age, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity. For more information on Mills' non-discrimination policy, please go to https://www.mills.edu/policies/ada-policies/nondiscrimination-statement.php.

All positions are subject to a background check. Prior to the first date of employment, an applicant's background check must be cleared.

Application Instructions:

Click the "Apply Now" button below and follow instructions to submit the following documents:

• Employee Application
• Resume
• Cover Letter and
• Contact Information for 3 References
• Salary Requirements
• Writing Samples

Please note that you can only upload 6 "Other" documents. You can consolidate multiple pages/documents into one file upload. The file size limit for each upload is 10Mb.

Review of applicants will begin immediately; applications will be accepted until the position is filled.

To apply, visit https://mills.interviewexchange.com/jobofferdetails.jsp?JOBID=126866&CNTRNO=0&TSTMP=0