Program Assistant

Description

A dependable and highly motivated professional, the Program Assistant works collaboratively as a member of the Advancement team to provide administrative support for the Office of Alumnx & Family Engagement. Responsible for providing comprehensive support to serve, foster, and strengthen alumnx and parent/family engagement and financial support for CalArts. In coordination with Senior Director of Advancement Marketing & Communications, manages social media profiles for alumnx and families. Reviews incoming correspondence and identifies items of special interest; handles routine correspondence and prepares appropriate responses. Responds to incoming telephone calls, maintains calendars, and prioritizes meeting requests for department. Handles logistics for meetings and special events. Manages receipts and expenses for the Alumnx Engagement budget and CalArts Weekend. Maintains databases and spreadsheets; may also analyze data and design/generate associated reports. Establishes and organizes filing and inventory systems. Performs related responsibilities as required.  Reports to the Director of Alumnx & Parent Engagement.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS:
•    Provide administrative and office support to alumnx and parent engagement that aligns with and generates unrestricted and restricted gifts to the CalArts Fund and other annual giving initiatives.
•    Assist with the planning and execution of events including large-scale, on-campus traditions like CalArts Weekend and alumnx reunions, plus off-campus workshops and gatherings. Responsible for logistics, from nametags to refreshments to setup to scheduling student workers. Maintains databases, spreadsheets, and generates associated reports.
•    Manages social media profiles specific to CalArts alumnx and families. Creates social media calendar and content for Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter either directly or through the use of Hootsuite, along with the alumnx directory (CalArts Connect). Monitors member approvals and interactions, creates events, and tracks engagement over all platforms to generate reports.
•    Communications support, including editing and updating department's web presence and documenting alumnx news and events to post on social media, in electronic newsletters, and via the alumnx directory.
•    Reviews incoming correspondence and telephone calls, identifies items of special interest, prepares appropriate responses, and initiates data updates and contact reports accordingly.
•    Initiates, processes, and monitors invoices, event revenue, and expenses, including credit card statements and personnel reimbursements. Maintains financial records, engaging in budget reconciliation.
•    Ensure accurate and complete constituent database records; capture contact, biographical and career information of alumnx and parents. Create surveys, spearhead accurate data entry, complete data mining projects, and create campaigns to track event and volunteer engagement.
•    Maintains logs, calendars, and branded merchandise inventory.
•    Work effectively with other coworkers to promote and maintain a positive work environment.  Support strategic partnerships and collaborative relationships across the Schools and with the Offices of Enrollment, Student Experience, Communications, the Patty Disney Center for Life and Work, and Students’ Union in support of alumnx and family engagement initiatives.
•    May supervise and train students/interns as needed or assigned.
•    Must be available to work additional hours during evenings or weekends, and at peak periods of the year. There are restrictions to vacations at certain times of the year.
•    Required to maintain confidentiality of all information entrusted to this position.

SKILLS/ABILITIES:
•    The candidate must possess exceptional precision, accuracy, and independence, and be a self-starter. Strong organizational skills, written and oral communication skills, perseverance, optimism, and the ability to think strategically and creatively toward the advancement of CalArts.
•    Expertise with creating professional correspondence, mail merges and spreadsheets.
•    Strong computer skills: MS Word, Excel, databases, mail merges, WYSIWYG web editing (HTML a plus), mass emails, Adobe Acrobat, Prezi and/or PowerPoint, event registration systems (Eventbrite), and survey software (Qualtrics).
•    Event planning support. scheduling, logistics, vendor coordination, processing paperwork, etc.
•    Previous experience tracking and processing revenues and expenses preferred.
•    Comfort with using photo and social media platforms, such as Hootsuite, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter and pulling relevant analytics.  
•    High level of self-motivation to proactively move multiple tasks forward at once while documenting and sharing progress, and meeting strict