Community Engagement Specialist, College of Medicine

University of Saskatchewan; Saskatoon; Hybrid; CAD 69,000 - 108,000; Full time

Job summary

An established institution is seeking a Community Engagement Specialist to enhance relationships between the College of Medicine and community stakeholders. This role focuses on fostering effective partnerships that support health equity for marginalized populations. The successful candidate will lead community engagement initiatives, conduct consultations, and develop strategies to ensure the voices of vulnerable communities are heard. This position offers a dynamic work environment with opportunities for collaboration across various sectors, making a meaningful impact on health education and community well-being.

Qualifications

• Minimum five years of experience in community engagement and project management.
• Experience fostering relationships with community groups in health education.

Responsibilities

• Organize consultations with communities to gather feedback on health care access.
• Develop evaluation tools to assess community engagement activities.

Skills

Community Engagement

Project Management

Effective Communication

Interpersonal Skills

Public Speaking

Data Analysis

Relationship Building

Education

Undergraduate degree in social sciences

Master’s degree in anti-racism or anti-oppression

Tools

Contemporary Computer Applications

Job description

Community Engagement Specialist, College of Medicine

The Office of Vice Dean Indigenous Health (OVDIH) is a unit within the Dean’s Office at the College of Medicine (CoM) whose social justice mission is to humbly walk alongside all people of SK and the College of Medicine towards equitable health, well-being, and belonging, seeking truth and justice now and for the future generations. We build and challenge the capacity of the College of Medicine community to enhance the skills, attitudes, and education necessary to support the citizens of Saskatchewan so they can grow and thrive.

The office supports a coordinated approach to community engagement for priority projects of the college and works collaboratively across the college and provincial health system to ensure the high-level aspirations of the college and departments related to Indigenous Health, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) and Social Accountability strategy are met. The Division of Social Accountability (DSA) falls under the OVDIH.

Primary Purpose:. To work collaboratively within the OVDIH and DSA teams to provide leadership, coordination, and communication regarding College of Medicine community engagement strategies and initiatives. To enhance and maintain meaningful and mutually beneficial relationships between the College of Medicine and community stakeholders in health that facilitate education, research, and service activities of the College of Medicine’s re: Social Accountability and Community Engagement strategies.

Nature of Work: This position will work closely and support the DSA physician leads & staff (EDI specialist), report to the manager of the OVDIH and be accountable to the Vice Dean Indigenous Health. In coordination with OVDIH and DSA teams this role provides internal expertise in the area of community engagement as required and acts as a liaison between the DSA, and community stakeholders, where appropriate. The position is responsible for understanding the needs of community and how best to involve community in the work of the DSA and college. This includes determining the steps required to achieve the goals and vision for authentic engagement. The position is highly collaborative, interacting with university faculty, administration, community groups, agencies, organizations to facilitate the development and implementation of leading institutional engagement strategies that build mutually beneficial partnerships with communities. The position may include opportunities to work in new interdisciplinary and intersectoral ways with our health system partners and community to meet the needs of our most vulnerable and underserved communities. Some travel required.

Typical Duties or Accountabilities:

• Organize and conduct consultations with community in urban and rural/remote areas to gather feedback on medical education, health care access and the needs of our most vulnerable communities, where appropriate
• Support the preparation of an annual report of community needs that summarizes consultations with community and the latest environmental scan of key reports on local/national health statistics and health care issues to inform the work of the DSA, OVDIH, College, and accreditation standards
• Assist student groups in their advocacy efforts, look for ways to support and highlight the work of student groups; report on the work/impacts of student groups in the DSA annual report, when the advocacy supports identified community needs
• Serve as liaison between community members, committees, subcommittee chairs, college faculty members, students and other university stakeholders to ensure effective communication; provide coordination and leadership to Social Accountability Committee; participate in committees and working groups that support the social accountability mandate
• Collaboratively develop appropriate evaluation tools and resources to assess the social accountability activities that support community engagement goals of departments and units/programs of the college; develop and revise metrics, data collection plans and tools, data analysis, and report generation for various audiences
• Build opportunities to work in new interdisciplinary and intersectoral ways with our health system partners and community for the purpose of accomplishing DSA and CoM goals
• Maintain high-level awareness of social accountability in the college, and across the country, tosupportlong-term vision and strategic direction established by the DSA and college. Serve as subject matter expert to facilitate strategic planning and implementation within the DSA and across the college
• Support integration and alignment of community engagement across the college by identifying venues to highlight the community engagement work of the college; create community engagement content for newsletters and other communication channels
• Advocate for and facilitate community feedback into the DSA strategy
• Provide presentations on the DSA and/or social accountability
• Work with the Manager on annual budgets requirements for the community engagement and expected outcomes; report on budget expenses and forecast quarterly
• Work with the EDI Specialist to develop community engagement metrics that demonstrate the impact and outcome of community engagement; demonstrate a clear understanding of community engagement best-practices and literature in developing metrics
• Develop and expand community engagement framework/guidelines to support faculty, researchers, students and staff in authentic and reciprocal community engagement, as requested
• Provide community engagement communications leadership through management of the social media presence and website updates of OVDIH and DSA
• Other duties as assigned

Qualifications

Education: An undergraduate degree in social sciences, education or a health-related discipline. A Master’s degree in an area that provides a background on anti-racism and anti-oppression will be considered an asset. A combination of education and experience will be considered.

Experience: A minimum of five years of directly-related experience; proven experience fostering and developing university-community effective relationships and partnerships with community groups and stakeholders in the health education context; and a proven track record of effective communication and project management. Demonstrated leadership and advocacy for health equity for marginalized populations. Experience in dealing with diverse groups and peoples. Familiarity with university administrative structures. Prior experience in a post-secondary environment is an asset.

Skills: Demonstrated professional maturity, self-awareness, judgment and decisiveness; ability to take initiative and be self-directed; strong evidence of relationship building, and ability to work collaboratively with diverse groups; effective interpersonal, communication (both written and verbal), public speaking, presentation and negotiation skills; energetic, showing leadership in a highly collaborative manner; demonstrated ability to think and act strategically and exercise diplomacy and creativity in solving issues; proven ability and creativity in negotiating mutually beneficial solutions; ability to make data-driven decisions and demonstrated commitment to quality; demonstrated experience in project management and being highly organized; proven ability to manage and prioritize multiple projects simultaneously; demonstrated ability to initiate, implement, and support innovation and institutional change and enhance programs and services; ability to demonstrate progress and outcomes; and proficiency with contemporary computer applications.

Inquiries regarding this position can be directed to Bill Ng email: [e-mail]

Department:College of Medicine
Status: Permanent
Employment Group: ASPA
Shift: Mon-Fri, 8:00-4:30
Full Time Equivalent (FTE): 1
Salary: The salary range, based on 1.0 FTE, is $69,035.00 - 107,868.00 per annum. The starting salary will be commensurate with education and experience.
Salary Family (if applicable): Specialist Professional
Salary Phase/Band: Phase 2
Posted Date: 4/28/2025
Closing Date: 5/4/2025 at 6:00 pm CST
Number of Openings: 1
Work Location: May be eligible for hybrid work under the terms of USask's Alternative Workspace Guidelines

The successful applicant will be required to provide the following current verification(s) where 'Yes' is indicated below. Further information is available at: https://careers.usask.ca/tips-for-applying.php

Criminal Record Check: Not Applicable
Driver's License and Abstract Check: Yes
Education/Credential Verification: Yes
Vulnerable Sector Check: Not Applicable

The University is committed to employment equity, diversity, and inclusion, and are proud to support career opportunities for Indigenous peoples to reflect the community we serve. We are dedicated to recruiting individuals who will enrich our work and learning environments. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, in accordance with Canadian immigration requirements, Canadian citizens and permanent residents will be given priority. We are committed to providing accommodations to those with a disability or medical necessity. If you require an accommodation to participate in the recruitment process, please notify us and we will work together on the accommodation request. We continue to grow our partnerships with Indigenous communities across the province, nationally, and internationally and value the unique perspective that Indigenous employees provide to strengthen these relationships. Verification of Indigenous Membership/Citizenship at the University of Saskatchewan is led and determined by thedeybwewin | taapwaywin | tapwewin: Indigenous Truth policy and Standing Committee in accordance with the processes developed to enact the policy. Successful candidates that assert Indigenous membership/citizenship will be asked to complete the verification process of Indigenous membership/citizenship with documentation. The University of Saskatchewan’s main campus is situated on Treaty 6 Territory and the Homeland of the Métis. We pay our respects to the First Nations and Métis ancestors of this place and reaffirm our relationship with one another. Together, we are uplifting Indigenization to a place of prominence at the University of Saskatchewan.