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Program Officer, Postsecondary

This job is no longer available

Seattle, WA, USA
Full-time

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

Areas of Responsibility: 
  • 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.

Educational Background: 
Bachelor’s and MBA/M.Ed. or other advanced degree with 5+ years of higher education or education technology experience.  
Skills/Experience: 
  • 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

Organization Info

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

Overview
Headquarters: 
Seattle, WA, United States
Annual Budget : 
More than $500M
Founded: 
2007
About Us
Mission: 

Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people’s health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people—especially those with the fewest resources—have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, Washington, the foundation is led by CEO Dr. Susan Desmond-Hellmann and Co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett.

We work with partner organizations worldwide to tackle critical problems in four program areas. Our Global Development Division works to help the world’s poorest people lift themselves out of hunger and poverty. Our Global Health Division aims to harness advances in science and technology to save lives in developing countries. Our United States Division works to improve U.S. high school and postsecondary education and support vulnerable children and families in Washington State. And our Global Policy & Advocacy Division seeks to build strategic relationships and promote policies that will help advance our work. Our approach to grantmaking in all four areas emphasizes collaboration, innovation, risk-taking, and, most importantly, results.

Programs: 
  1. Global Health
  2. Global Development
  3. United States
  4. Global Policy & Advocacy

Listing Stats

Post Date: 
Apr 25 2018
Active Until: 
May 25 2018
Hiring Organization: 
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
industry: 
Nonprofit