The Bill and Melinda Gate’s Foundation is currently seeking an exceptional candidate to support the Advising Solution on the Postsecondary Success Team. The Postsecondary Success strategy seeks to transform colleges and universities to increase their credentialing productivity to dramatically improve credential attainment and the eradication of equity gaps for low income and students of color. This strategy will assist in meeting the nation’s workforce development needs, specifically to produce 11 million more credentials in the United States by 2025, and concurrently to close attainment gaps by race/ethnicity and income. If this position is of interest, we request, along with your resume, that you submit a cover letter to share how the topic of lived experience and it’s relation to education is meaningful for you individually or family origin.
The foundation believes that integrated advising and student support redesign leveraging technology can help more colleges and universities provide proactive, personalized, and holistic supports and better advising to best meet the needs of today’s postsecondary students. The Program Officer (PO) will report to the Deputy Director (DD) and support the Senior Program Office (SPO) as follows:
- Assist the Senior Program Officer and Deputy Director with strategic investments and portfolio management in advising redesign, IPASS, and other student retention and student success interventions
- Provide research and market analysis and develop and provide analysis and insights required for effective strategic grant making
- support ongoing advising portfolio management, and contribute to both development and coordination of key investments related to this portfolio.
Support the management and development of a portfolio of grants and contracts related to the Advising Solution that best leverage the Foundation’s prior investments in this space, strategic vision, and future vision with respect to the success of this approach and the broader goal of institutional transformation
- Reviewing existing grant and contract progress and drafting internal analyses for internal use. Summarize lessons learned and support shaping of new investments and overarching strategic goals based on investment outcomes and achievements.
- Consult with grantees and external stakeholders to achieve desired impact of grants; conduct site visits, provide technical guidance, convene meetings, and nurture and optimize relationships with key partners.
- Carrying out research and literature reviews, landscape analyses and other analytical reviews as assigned. Prepare and write briefs and synthesize existing literature. Provide written analysis of key topics for SPO and Foundation Management.
- Providing support for preparation of materials and slide presentations on team initiatives or specific projects or topics as needed, including externally facing materials for relevant stakeholders, presentations to support knowledge sharing and deliverables for relevant internal co-chair presentations.
- Participating in regular internal and external team meetings.
- Plans, manages and implements a wide range of activities in support of strategic planning, prospect and develop complex investment opportunities, grant management and external relationship management.
- Manage internal processes and portfolio progress while ensuring appropriate documentation, grant budgeting and reporting. Improve operational efficiency and effectiveness.
This role is responsible for high quality interactions and clear and consistent communications while adjusting to the audience.
- Excellent knowledge across relevant technical area/expertise
- Experience with research methodologies and/or the deployment of data informed strategies, artificial intelligence, chatbots, or other predictive analytical approaches commonly deployed in service of student success, improved retention, degree planning, and better student advising.
- Thorough quantitative, analytical, writing, and verbal skills essential for communicating progress and stewardship with a broad and diverse audience including senior foundation leadership.
- Effective as a collaborator. You relish the opportunity of contributing to the foundation’s broader collective success and to improving both the PS strategy and the Solution team’s performance.
- Solicits and values feedback. Growth mindset and ability to adapt in a dynamic and feedback rich environment.
- Strategic thinker and doer – able to wrestle with complex and multi-dimensional problems
- Derives energy and positivity by working with critical stakeholders and partners across the PS strategy and in the field.
- Ability to work with efficiency, diplomacy, discretion, and integrity.
Education and Experience
- Preference for prior higher education or strategic philanthropy experience
- Preferable but not required: experience in the implementation or execution of a major advising redesign program or related student success and student retention program on a campus or within a higher education system;
- Preferable but not required: knowledge of and preferably experience selecting, evaluating, licensing, and working with the information technology providers that serve U.S. higher education institutions, especially enterprise data systems and student success platforms currently being utilized to redesign student supports and undergraduate advising