Administrative Assistant 3 - Child Nutrition Services

State-of-Washington-Office-of-Superintendent-of-Public-Instructio; Olympia (WA); Hybrid; USD 48,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) seeks an Administrative Assistant 3 in the Child Nutrition Services division. The full-time position is based in Olympia, WA, with in-person onboarding five days a week and a hybrid schedule thereafter (in-office at least 3 days/week and up to 2 telework days).

The role supports CNS and collaborates with other CNS staff to ensure program success.

Qualifications

• High school graduation or GED equivalent AND Three (3) years of progressively responsible experience in office/clerical, secretarial, bookkeeping, accounting, or general administrative work experience OR Associates degree AND 2 year(s) of progressively responsible experience in office/clerical, secretarial, bookkeeping, accounting, or general administrative work experience OR Bachelor's degree AND 1 year of experience in office/clerical, secretarial, bookkeeping, accounting, or general administrative work experience

Responsibilities

• Administrative Support to Director/Department
• Fiscal Support for Travel, Purchasing, Contracts, Grants, and Budget in accordance with State (SAAM), Federal, and Agency Policy
• Meeting & Event Coordination and Support
• Communications Support
• Records Management
• Other Duties as Assigned

Skills

Microsoft Office Suite

Budgeting

Travel coordination

Records management

Education

High school diploma or GED + 3 years experience

Associates degree + 2 years experience

Bachelor's degree + 1 year experience

Job description

GENERAL SERVICE

JOB ANNOUNCEMENT

Administrative Assistant 3 – Child Nutrition Services

$48,048 – $64,512 annually

(Project Position to 12/31/2026)

Recruitment closes October 2,2026

The Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) seeks to fill an Administrative Assistant 3 in our Child Nutrition Services division. This full-time permanent position is based in Olympia, Washington. During onboarding you will be required to be in-person five (5) days a week. After onboarding, this position requires at least 3 days a week in office and up to 2 telework days. Telework is a combination of in-building and off-site days. We encourage interested candidates to visit the OSPI website to gain insight into our agency.

About OSPI and our initiatives

OSPI is the primary agency charged with overseeing public K–12 education in Washington state. Working with the state's 295 public school districts and 7 state-tribal education compact schools, OSPI allocates funding and provides tools, resources, and technical assistance so every student in Washington is provided a high-quality public education.

At OSPI, we recognize that our employees are the key to the success of the agency. We are committed to our work but value the balance with our personal lives. We demonstrate our commitment to employees by providing an environment that stimulates professional growth and values them for their expertise. OSPI is a great place to work and has several initiatives to help create a great working environment, including:

• We support a healthy work/life balance by offering flexible/alternative work schedules and mobile and telework options. (Depending on job duties and work location.)
• We have an Infant at Work Program that is based on long-term values of newborns and infant-parent bonding. Eligible employees who are new parents or legal guardians can bring their infant (six weeks to six months) when returning to work. (Depending on job duties and work location.)
• We value and are actively involved in promoting diversity, equity and inclusion within OSPI by way of cross-divisional, collaborative committee. The focus of the committee includes employee engagement and education; reinforcing OSPI values; and maximizing the value of diversity and identifying strategies for inclusion.

Vision, Mission, and Values

Vision: All students prepared for post-secondary pathways, careers, and civic engagement.

Mission: Transform K-12 education to a system that is centered on closing opportunity gaps and is characterized by high expectations for all students and educators. We achieve this by developing equity-based policies and supports that empower educators, families, and communities.

Values: Ensuring Equity, Collaboration and Service, Achieving Excellence through Continuous Improvement, Focus on the Whole Child

Equity

Each student, family, and community possesses strengths and cultural knowledge that benefits their peers, educators, and schools. Ensuring educational equity:

• Goes beyond equality; it requires education leaders to examine the ways current policies and practices result in disparate outcomes for our students of color, students living in poverty, students receiving special education and English Learner services, students who identify as LGBTQ+, and highly mobile student populations.
• Requires education leaders to develop an understanding of historical contexts; engage students, families, and community representatives as partners in decision-making; and actively dismantle systemic barriers, replacing them with policies and practices that ensure all students have access to the instruction and support they need to succeed in our schools.

Position Overview

Child Nutrition Services (CNS) is a division of OSPI that assists school districts and other institutions in providing quality nutrition programs that promote life-long healthful living while providing nutritious meals each day that prepare children for learning. Working with the USDA, CNS manages multiple USDA regulated programs such as National School Lunch Program, Afterschool Snack Program, Seamless Summer Option, Special Milk Program, Farm to Child Nutrition Programs, Child and Adult Care Programs and more. Visit the Child Nutrition Services website to learn more.

CNS is one of the largest divisions at OSPI with a staff of almost 60 and a support team of 5. Our specialists travel throughout Washington state to observe meal service and ensure sponsors are complying with USDA regulations. CNS is a great place to work and has several initiatives to help create a great working environment, including:

• We are a passionate and fun group that is dedicated to supporting our programs to provide nutritious meals to children and adults in Washington state.

AA3 positions in CNS provide daily communication and administrative support to internal staff and customers. These positions work under general direction of the program directors and provide support to program staff and customers. This position collaborates with other members of CNS to contribute to the overall success of the CNS team.

Key Responsibilities

Administrative Support to Director/Department

• Keep supervisor apprised of urgent, confidential, & sensitive/confidential situations
• Process mail
• Meet with team regularly to prioritize workload & tasks & coordinate schedules
• Create or maintain office databases, distribution lists, and/or other filing systems
• Performs complex word processing tasks (mail merging, sorting, integrating text w/graphics)
• Maintain office/inventory supplies/track
• Receptionist/front desk support
• Reports on work assignments/project status information

• Maintains calendars & scheduling
• Ensure compliance & process requests in accordance with state, federal & agency policy & procedure
• Engages in independent and collaborative professional development opportunities to include DEIB learning as directed by the department and division, other mandatory trainings, etc.

Fiscal Support for Travel, Purchasing, Contracts, Grants, and Budget in accordance with State (SAAM), Federal, and Agency Policy

Travel Support

• Prepare & maintain travel requests, process travel reimbursement, expense vouchers, registration purchase requests, stay current on state & agency policies and procedures
• Monitor travel requests and reimbursements throughout the process, collaborate with agency staff as needed to get paperwork completed, approved, and finalized

Purchasing Support

• Track, prepare, and manage Purchase Requests

Contract Support

• Draft, format, edit, submit, monitor, and pay invoices

Grant Support

• Draft, edit, and submit requests, track deliverables and expenditures, and draft reports

Fiscal Support

• Process invoices
• Monitor and track program budget and provide expenditure estimates and/or updates as necessary

Meeting & Event Coordination and Support

• Schedule in-person or virtual meetings, record minutes/compile & distribute & take notes

• Meeting/event on-site setup, registration, technology support, document distribution, customer support
• Prepare meeting documents (expense forms, committee/consultant forms, notices, agendas, PowerPoint, etc.)
• Schedules & reserves meeting & conference locations (rooms, venues, etc.)
• Travel reservations (plane, car, hotel, etc.)
• Virtual meeting-set up, support, break out rooms, polls, chats, posting materials, etc.
• Utilize software for closed captioning

Communications Support

• Create & support surveys
• Review & verify all materials (forms, presentations etc.) to agency standards and ensure ADA compliance
• Respond to phone calls & emails and provide program information and technical assistance
• Compose correspondence, bulletins, & other official communications in accordance with agency standards
• Monitor and/or updates program/department website/intranet (draft content, submit requests, review for updates/corrections)

Records Management

• Conducts & ensures compliance with paper/electronic retention & archiving requirements
• Provide support for public records requests

Other Duties as Assigned

• Support Human Resource activities (recruitments, personnel action requests, hiring requests, Evaluation and Expectations)
• Provide coverage for other departments/divisions as needed.

Required Qualifications

• High school graduation or GED equivalent AND Three (3) years of progressively responsible experience in office/clerical, secretarial, bookkeeping, accounting, or general administrative work experience OR Associates degree AND 2 year(s) of progressively responsible experience in office/clerical, secretarial, bookkeeping, accounting, or general administrative work experience OR Bachelor's degree AND 1 year of experience in office/clerical, secretarial, bookkeeping, accounting, or general administrative work experience
• Must reside in the state of Washington
• Limited travel to attend meetings, trainings, events (minimal overnight stay)
• This position may be eligible for partial telework up two (2) days per week after the initial onboarding period which is dependent on the successful candidate.

Preferred/Desired

• Experience with Microsoft Office Suite.
• Experience working with budgets.
• Intermediate level experience with Excel (formulas, pivot tables, etc.).
• Experience with programs/software such as SharePoint, GovDelivery, pdEnroller, Canvas, Alchemer, GoToMeeting, and EGMS.
• Experience preparing and maintaining travel requests for a State Agency.
• Understanding of state compliance regulations as it relates to travel, purchasing, contracts, grants, and budgets.
• Experience coordinating in-person and virtual trainings.
• Experience with file maintenance, record retention, and organization.
• Experience multi-tasking, prioritizing work for self and others, and handling short deadlines and high-pressure situations.
• Ability to work effectively as a team member.

Compensation

The annual compensation for the position is $48,048 – $64,512 annually per year and depends upon experience, educational background and qualifications. Geographic differentials may be applied based on work location of successful candidate. Washington State offers a generous benefit package including health, dental and life insurance, retirement and an optional deferred compensation program. Please visit Health Care Authority for information regarding health benefits and the Department of Retirement Systems for retirement plan information. This is a general service position. This position is not represented by a bargaining unit.

OSPI is an equal opportunity employer and encourages applications from job seekers who will contribute to our diversity. OSPI provides equal access to all programs and services without discrimination based on sex, race, creed, religion, color, national origin, age, honorably discharged veteran or military status, sexual orientation including gender expression or identity, the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability, or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal by a person with a disability. If you would like, please include your name and gender pronouns in your application, to ensure we address you appropriately throughout the application process. Persons needing accommodation in the application process or this announcement in an alternative format may contact the human resource consultant listed in "Application Process".