Senior Administrative Assistant

The Chronicle Of Higher Education, Inc.; Washington (District of Columbia); Hybrid; USD 36,000 - 40,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive benefits package

Job summary

American University is seeking a Senior Administrative Assistant to support the AVP of Alumni Relations and the Alumni Relations team. The role involves handling mail, phones, scheduling, travel, and event logistics to engage a 160,000+ member AU alumni network.

Responsibilities include data entry in Ellucian CRM Advance, preparing correspondence, and coordinating volunteer leadership activities, with a focus on organized, proactive communication and client service.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent required; 1–3 years in alumni, donor, or community relations for educational institutions or nonprofit organizations preferred.
• Bachelor's degree or equivalent preferred.
• Demonstrated organizational and decision-making skills with follow-up abilities.
• Computer literacy with MS Word and Excel; strong written and verbal communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Provide administrative support to the AVP of Alumni Relations and staff.
• Schedule meetings, appointments, travel arrangements, and events; manage mail and phone communications.
• Maintain filing systems and generate mailings and meeting materials.
• Update CRM records and assist with data extraction and reporting as needed.
• Coordinate volunteer engagement and donor stewardship activities.

Skills

Customer service

Organizational skills

Written & verbal communication

Interpersonal skills

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Bachelor's degree

Tools

MS Word

Excel

Job description

Department

Alumni Relations

Time Type

Full time

Job Type

Regular

FLSA Status

Non-Exempt

Work Modality

Hybrid 01 (On Campus 3-4 Days/Week)

Union

Excluded

Job Description

Summary

The Senior Administrative Assistant will provide administrativesupport in the Division of University Advancement, primarilyassisting the Assistant Vice President of Alumni Relations (AVP) aswell as other staff members as directed by the AVP. In their work,the Senior Administrative Assistant will enhance alumni relationsprograms and volunteer initiatives that increase alumni engagementwithin the 160,000+ member AU alumni network. Responsibilities include but are not limited to processing mail;answering phones; scheduling meetings; appointments and travel(including arrangements); transcribing correspondence and phoneoutreach to constituents; organizing and maintaining filingsystems; assisting with events; and other meetings held by the AVP;making on-campus deliveries or pick-ups of materials; reconcilingcredit card transactions of the AVP; conducting basic research (fornames, phone numbers and addresses); and producing mailings andmeeting materials. In addition, the Senior Administrative Assistantwill draft internal and external correspondence. The SeniorAdministrative Assistant will interact with senior administrators,alumni, volunteers, and donors to the University.

Essential Functions

1.) General Administrative Duties

• Assists with events, schedules meetings and appointments, maintains travel calendar for the AVP.
• Processes mail, answers phones and personal and shared email inboxes, makes on-campus deliveries.
• Conducts basic desktop research including names, phone numbers, addresses, career and degree info.
• Reconciles credit card transactions for the AVP.
• Drafts internal and external emails and other correspondence, produces mailings and meeting materials.

2.) Volunteer Management and Logistics

• Manage the logistics and communications for four quarterly AUAlumni Board (AUAB) meetings including space reservation, catering, and preparations of materials.
• Manage logistics and communications for annual AUAB new member orientation.
• Interact with AUAB members to schedule phone calls, committee meetings, ensure participation, send reminders, etc.
• Maintain and update current rosters AUAB and other alumni relations volunteer leadership groups.
• Provide secondary support for other alumni relations volunteer leadership groups including those in the Mosaic Collective, career, enrollment, and regional chapters.

3.) Data Management and Reporting

• Updates records in the Ellucian CRM Advance database including contact reports, engagement, biographical and demographic data.
• Prioritizes data hygiene and organization to ensure that engagement activities, event lists, and lists of alumni volunteer leaders and interested alums are kept up to date in the CRM.
• Utilizes CRM and MicroStrategy business intelligence reports and dashboards to support the AVPs, alumni relations directors, and other UA and AU leaders in employing a data-driven approach to evaluating and refining alumni engagement programs and activities.

4.) Volunteer Engagement and Stewardship

• Support the division’s goals to increase alumni engagement through volunteer management by managing volunteer stewardship projects including, but not limited to: monthly congratulations letters, birthday and anniversary mailings and emails to volunteer leaders, and frequent direct outreach to volunteer leaders, coordinating AVP, VP, and alumni relations directors’ direct outreach to volunteer leaders, compiling and distributing relevant content for volunteer leaders’ benefit, and regular audits of volunteer coding in the CRM.

5.) Other Duties as Assigned

Supervisory Responsibility

• This position may supervise student and/or part-time staff.

Competencies

• Serving Customers.
• Prioritizing and Organizing.
• Supporting Coworkers.
• Acquiring and Analyzing Information.
• Championing Customer Needs.

Position Type/Expected Hours of Work

• Full-time.
• 35 hours per week.
• Availability to work some nights and weekends.

Salary Range

• $26.11 - $28.87 per hour.

Required Education and Experience

• High school diploma or equivalent.
• A minimum of 1 - 3 years of successful experience in alumni, donor, or community relations for educational institutions or non-profit organizations.
• Ability to independently formulate long-range objectives, and manage varied programs and services Ability to set priorities, meet deadlines and work independently.
• Demonstrated organizational and decision-making skills with follow-up abilities.
• Mature and professional attitude, customer/client focus; highly developed interpersonal skills; energetic and detail-oriented.
• Clear, concise reporting and writing style Computer literacy, particularly MS Word and Excel.

Preferred Education and Experience

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent.
• 2 - 4 years of relevant experience.
• At least one year of experience in volunteer management.
• Training and/or experience managing community initiatives and/or programs preferred.
• Intercultural communication skills or a level of intercultural competence preferred.

Additional Eligibility Qualifications

• Hiring offers for this position are contingent on successful completion of a background check.

Benefits

• AU offers a competitive benefits package.

Other Details

• Hiring offers for this position are contingent on successful completion of a background check.
• Employees in staff positions at American University must deliver their services to the university from either the District of Columbia, Maryland, or Virginia, or perform work on-site at the university.
• Please note this job announcement is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.
• American University is an E-Verify employer.

Current American University Employees

American University current employees must apply through their employee Workday account. If you are a current employee at American University, please log into Workday and select the Find Jobs report which will take you to our internal career listings.

Contact Us

For more information or assistance with the American University careers site, email [e-mail].

American University is an equal opportunity, affirmative action institution that operates in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The university does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex (including pregnancy), age, sexual orientation, disability, marital status, personal appearance, gender identity and expression, family responsibilities, political affiliation, source of income, veteran status, an individual’s genetic information or any other bases under federal or local laws (collectively "Protected Bases") in its programs and activities.