(Hybrid) Administrative Associate - Department of Sociology and Anthropology

The Department of Sociology and Anthropology in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences at West Virginia University is currently accepting applications for a (Hybrid) Administrative Associate.

About the Opportunity

The incumbent supports the academic efforts of the Department of Sociology and Anthropology (SOCA), Center for Women's and Gender Studies (WGST) and the Higher Education Prison Initiative (HEPI) in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences (ECAS), the point of contact for graduate programs, spearheads Departmental communications strategies, and provides administrative assistance to the department chair, directors, faculty and administrative assistant for each unit.

We strongly believe in work-life balance and keeping time for things we love outside our work. WVU offers generous benefits, including:

• 37.5-hour work week
• 13 paid holidays (staff holiday calendar)
• 15 annual leave (vacation) days per year (employee leave)
• 18 sick days per year (for when you're ill, for when you need time to care for sick family, for your own, or your family's, regularly scheduled medical appointments. Who is family for the purpose of this leave? A lot of people in your life including immediate relatives and in-laws as well as others considered to be members of your household living under the same roof)
• WVU offers a range of health insurance and other benefits
• 401(a) retirement savings with 6% employee contribution match, eligibility to continue health insurance, and other retiree perks. Looking for more retirement benefits information? Check out retirement health insurance benefits, retirement income, and FAQ's.
• Wellness programs

What You'll Do

Graduate Program

Provides academic and administrative support for the SOCA PhD program, WGST graduate certificate program, and graduate assistants in SOCA, WGST and HEPI as follows:

• Primary responsibility in providing information to and responding to inquiries for potential SOCA PhD, and WGST graduate certificate program students, including admission requirements, deadlines, student life, housing, funding, and assistantships; and international visas, as requested.
  
• Serve as department liaison to the ECAS graduate studies office and WVU Office of Admissions.
  
• Assemble SOCA application information from WVU Target X software by reviewing files for accuracy and completeness; request additional information from applicants to complete files; create Microsoft Teams group folder for SOCA Director of Graduate Programs (DGS) and SOCA Graduate Program Committee (GPC) access; create interactable ranking spreadsheet for applications for DGS and GPC review; and work directly with DGS to assemble final application ranking list.
  
• Prepare and distribute assistantship contract letters for SOCA, WGST and HEPI graduate assistants and confirm receipt of signed contracts; notify all applicants of decisions, including students accepted without funding and students declined admission into the program.
  
• Organize the SOCA new student orientation session and attend and conduct graduate orientation with DGS.
  
• Update SOCA student handbook and other graduate program information throughout the academic year, as needed.
  
• Process tuition waivers for SOCA, WGST and HEPI graduate assistants and merit waivers for other eligible graduate students for Fall/Spring academic year and work with graduate students to determine tuition/merit waiver needs for summer semester.
  
• Provide all relevant program completion information to graduate students, and collect and submit all necessary SOCA, WGST, and HEPI graduate program forms to ECAS graduate studies office.
  
• Maintain and update SOCA Graduate Program Master list within Microsoft Teams; add new graduate cohort information, archive completed and inactive graduate students, and update graduate student status, contact, and funding information.
  
• Organize and assist with graduate program recruitment activities through mailings and e-mail (including annual GRE list, eligible majors, SREB university list, etc.), attend recruitment events, and assist with recruitment weekend.
  
• Maintain and update department graduate student webpage by adding new students to directory, listing awards, honors, etc. and other information, as needed.
  
• Attend GPC meetings to take notes, document actions and decisions, provide information to committee, and assist DGS.
• Use TargetX to compile new student information and create tasks, as needed.

Departmental Administrative Duties

Provides administrative support to SOCA, WGST, and HEPI as follows:

• Supervise work study students assigned to the SOCA main office, assign tasks including exam preparation, course-related tasks, photocopying, etc., making sure work is done correctly and in accordance with faculty requests.
• Provide administrative assistance to SOCA Chair and WGST Director through tasks including, but not limited to, scheduling faculty and other meetings, preparing and sending emails, sending out Zoom meeting invitations, preparing reports, doing information searches, and other administrative tasks as needed.
• Serve as public face of academic programs in main office; greet and assist students, faculty, and vendors, etc. in the main office and answer telephone calls, providing appropriate answers and information in accordance with West Virginia University (WVU) policies and procedures
• Check SOCA e-mail accounts multiple times daily, manage incoming and outgoing mail, and check and respond to SOCA voicemail, as needed.
• Assist with purchasing supplies, books and textbooks, for SOCA and WGST faculty and staff, and the WVU HEPI, through Mountaineer Marketplace (MMP), Amazon, and other vendors as appropriate; process receipts through WVU MyExpenses procurement reconciliation platform; communicate with vendors to solve problems or report problems to administrative assistant or Shared Services; gather shipping and tracking information for HEPI program to help assure correct delivery to prison security processing centers.
• Process reimbursement requests through WVU MyExpenses platform for faculty, students and staff (travel and non-travel); and work with Shared Services, ECAS EBO and administrative assistant to answer questions, make corrections, etc. related to requests.
  Assist faculty with travel arrangements and reimbursements from multiple funding sources, including professional development, grants and other funding through WVU MyExpenses platform.
• Plan and coordinate guest, job candidate, and student travel.
• Use WVU 25Live software to reserve appropriate spaces for meetings, student presentations, etc., as requested for SOCA, WGST and HEPI faculty and staff.
• Provide administrative assistance to SOCA chair in preparation of faculty annual review letters; assist administrative assistant with coordinating distribution of faculty annual review letters crafted by the Faculty Evaluation Committee (FEC) and department chair.
• Edit SOCA and WGST websites through CleanSlate with updated information regarding faculty, undergraduate and graduate academic program updates, undergraduate and graduate student highlights and events, required forms, and department-related news, and policies and procedures information.

Departmental Event and Promotional Support

Provide administrative support to SOCA and WGST chair, director, faculty and staff for events and promotional activities sponsored by SOCA and WGST, as follows:

• Compile, design, and distribute annual spring Department newsletter.
• Coordination of department social media; compose short write-ups or assist with preparation of short write-ups about new courses, faculty and student accomplishments and other department-related news.
• Provide department news and event information to Eberly College media personnel or other appropriate units; update or oversee updating of website information; serve as liaison to ECAS web developer and marketing unit to assure compliance with university and college expectations.
• Promote department, faculty and student accomplishments and events by email and social media and maintain SOCA display cases and bulletin boards.
• Assist with planning and coordination of department-sponsored events, oversee advertising, and arrange guest travel related to visiting committee meetings, guest lectures, internal lectures, student presentations, workshops, graduation activities, alumni events, etc., as directed; work directly with Department chair, associate chair and appropriate faculty/committees and staff to plans for and develop budgets for departmental events; note: some events may require minimal travel or work hours beyond the standard 37.5 hour week.
• Serve as a prime organizer for SOCA's WVU Day of Giving campaign. Alongside other organizers, develop a game plan and general social media structure in the days and weeks leading up to WVU Day of Giving; create student, staff, faculty and alumni spotlights to increase social media engagement; upload pictures promoting department on social media; make pre-planned posts to come out periodically throughout WVU Day of Giving (from 12 AM to 11:59 PM).
• Create graphics, fliers, pamphlets, etc. in Canva, as requested, to promote new courses and department events, advising activities, etc. for distribution to students and faculty, and through social media.

Other responsibilities

• Provide administrative support for faculty search committees by posting approved job ads through publications such as the American Sociological Association and American Anthropological Association jobs bulletins among others; reserve rooms for committee meetings through WVU 25Live system; schedule on-campus interview activities for top candidates, including appointments with the ECAS Dean's office, individual meetings with committee members and chair; make arrangements for dining, as needed; make travel arrangements and prepare candidate itineraries; process invoices and receipts through Mountaineer Marketplace or MyExpenses, as appropriate.
• Serve as point of contact for computer-related issues by assessing problems and reporting same to Eberly College or WVU IT staff.
• Provide back-up support to the administrative assistant.

Pay Grade: 14

• Associate degree in office administration or related field.
• A minimum of two (2) years of progressive administrative experience.
• Any equivalent combination of related education and/or experience will be considered.
• All qualifications must be met by the time of employment.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Use personal computer and other standard office equipment.
• Ability to multitask, work independently, and prioritize work according to department needs and requirements in a clear, concise and timely manner.
• Ability to set-up and organize filing systems and databases and maintain accurate records.
• Ability to meet department operational office hours with minimal travel and weekend/evening hours.
• Demonstrated knowledge of or ability to learn minor desktop computer assessment.
• Demonstrated knowledge of correct English grammar, spelling, punctuation and sentence structure.
• Demonstrated knowledge of general office procedures and practices, including Microsoft Office software programs.
• Demonstrated knowledge of or ability to learn web development software and maintain websites.
• Demonstrated knowledge of or ability to learn creative software, such as InDesign or Canva.
• Demonstrated knowledge of or ability to learn WVU policies, procedures and programs.
• Demonstrated excellent communication skills both in person and in writing.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in office administration or related field.
• Experience in event planning.
• Experience in website maintenance.

West Virginia University is a place of purpose and community. We take pride in our profound impact on the state of West Virginia and are committed to the personal and professional growth of our employees.

From the groundbreaking R1 research at our flagship campus in Morgantown to the career-oriented programs at WVU Potomac State in Keyser, and the technology-intensive programs at WVU Tech in Beckley, the contributions of WVU employees resonate across the state, touching lives and shaping futures.

At WVU, you will discover a supportive community that champions work-life balance and fosters a collaborative atmosphere. Our core values - service, curiosity, respect, accountability and appreciation - unite us as Mountaineers.

Join us at West Virginia University, where your work will make a lasting impact. To learn more about WVU, visit wvu.edu.

West Virginia University is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We invite all qualified applicants regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, or Veteran status.