Assistant Manager Wood, Metal, & Light Lab

newschool; United States; On-site; USD 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

The New School in New York City seeks an Assistant Manager for 25 E 13th Street Making Center facilities. You will oversee Wood/Metal Shops, Light Lab, and open work areas, manage technicians, and coordinate safety, procurement, and scheduling in a fast-paced environment.

You will lead a cross-functional team, maintain policies, and ensure safety standards across multiple spaces while supporting curricular making and interdisciplinary collaboration.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree and 3-5 years of relevant or professional experience.
• A flexible schedule that may include nights and weekends.
• Completion of university-required staff trainings and COFs within 6 months.
• Gain knowledge of CNC plasma cutting equipment operation within 6 months.
• Advanced knowledge of wood, metal fabrication techniques and related practices.
• Ability to safely operate a wide array of hand/power tools and machinery.
• Experience maintaining, repairing, and troubleshooting equipment/tools.
• Familiarity with Windows and macOS environments.
• Familiarity with Adobe Creative Cloud.

Responsibilities

• Oversee daily workings of the Making Center's Shop Facilities (Wood/Metal/Light Lab) and related spaces.
• Manage full-time and part-time technicians and student workers, including interviewing, training, scheduling, and supervision.
• Manage a fixed budget including tracking expenses related to inventories, schedules, projects, and repairs.
• Assist with facility improvement projects and hardware/software purchase recommendations.
• Maintain checkout, satellite store, scheduling, recordkeeping, and inventories; generate usage data.
• Organize calendars and communications for facilities, including website updates and safety orientations.
• Facilitate health and safety trainings for staff, safety walk-throughs, and COF requirements.
• Collaborate across Making Center systems to streamline efficiency and communication.

Skills

Staff supervision

Budget management

Facilities operations

Health & safety

Customer service

Cross-functional

Project coordination

Safety training

MacOS

Windows

Adobe CC

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Tools

CNC plasma

Power tools

Machinery maintenance

Adobe CC

Job description

Join The New School

At The New School, we redefine the boundaries of education, creativity, and innovation. Founded in 1919 and located in the heart of New York City, we are home to approximately 9,000 students from over 100 countries, offering more than 135 degree and diploma programs across our renowned colleges, including Parsons School of Design and the College of Performing Arts (Mannes, Jazz, and Drama), Lang College and the New School for Social Research, and Parsons Paris. Our progressive, interdisciplinary approach has earned us recognition as one of the most forward-thinking institutions in the world.

POSITION/ROLE OVERVIEW

Parsons, Mannes, Jazz, and Drama, a division of The New School, seeks an Assistant Manager of the 25 E 13th Street (E3/E4) Facilities for the Making Center. Parsons Making Center is a collection of more than 70,000 sq. ft. of labs, shops, studios, and open workspaces that provide curricular support for making across a broad range of mediums and disciplines and support experimentation and interdisciplinary collaboration. The Assistant Manager should be a personable, proactive, detail-oriented individual who will become integral to the daily workings of the facilities within the Making Center, with the ability to learn new skills and technologies as needed. This is a fast-paced, dynamic environment that runs year-round. The Assistant Manager will interface with students, faculty, and staff to support multiple processes and resources for all users in a range of making spaces.

This is an exempt administrative position that reports to the Facilities Manager for Wood and Metal Shops.

CORE CAPABILITIES, PRIMARY DUTIES, AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Oversee daily workings of the Making Center's 25 East 13th Street Shop Facilities, including but not limited to the Wood Shop, Metal Shop, Light Lab, and associated Open Work Areas, Tool/Equipment Checkout, Material Store, and storage areas.
• Management of full-time and part-time technicians and student workers, including interviewing, hiring, training, scheduling, tracking accountability, task assignment, scheduling/attending team and one-on-one meetings, and coordination and/or providing emergency coverage for unexpected absences.
• Management of a fixed budget including tracking, planning, and prioritization of expenses related to inventories, schedules, projects, and repairs.
• Work with the Facilities Manager and/or Director with the following: Assist with special initiatives and facility improvement projects, as well as, hardware/software purchase recommendations as they pertain to the curriculum.
• Maintain policies and systems for checkout, satellite store, scheduling, recordkeeping, and inventories, in addition to generating macro and micro levels of usage data and statistics - evaluating and updating these as needed.
• Organize calendars and communications for facilities: including creation of website updates, shop signage, safety orientations, technical/instructional documentation for labs/equipment, workshops, class demos, deliveries, special events, and modified holiday hours.
• Facilitate health and safety trainings for E4/L&E staff, safety walk-throughs, COF requirements.
• Work across systems in the Making Center, connecting separate areas in order to streamline efficiency and communication.
• Adapt to changes in the work environment; adjust approach and prioritize competing demands as necessary.
• Provide a high level of customer service, maintaining a positive and professional demeanor and attitude in all interactions with students, faculty, and staff.
• Cultivate a diverse, inclusive, and welcoming learning environment with productive and positive workplace relationships.
• Stay current with relevant technology and developments within the field.
• Perform other duties as assigned by supervisor.

QUALIFICATIONS

• A Bachelor's Degree and 3-5 years of relevant or professional experience within the industry.
• Flexible schedule - ability to work non-traditional schedules that may include nights and weekends, in addition to schedule shifts with semester changes.
• Completion of university-required staff trainings and necessary COF's for all Making Center Facilities within the first 6 months of employment.
• Gain knowledge of CNC plasma cutting equipment operation within the first 6 months within position.
• Advanced knowledge of a variety of production and fabrication techniques in wood, metal, and other materials; Be familiar with practices related to current design and art practice - including: general fabrication, furniture making, sculpture, product prototyping, hot + cold metal working, jewelry and non-ferrous metalworking, architectural or art installation.
• Ability to work safely with, and demonstrate proper use of, a wide array of hand tools, power tools, and machinery.
• Experience maintaining, repairing, and troubleshooting equipment/tools.
• Understanding of working in a cross-platform (Windows and macOS) environment.
• Familiarity with Adobe Creative Cloud, C