Posted on August 15, 2012

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Senior Program Associate

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) seeks an experienced Senior Program Associate to facilitate science leadership for enhanced public policy as the lead staff managing the Health, Education & Human Services (HEHS) Fellowships.

This is a full-time position anticipated to extend for a period of one year.

Major duties and responsibilities:

• Manages partnerships and interactions with federal agencies and entities in the assigned area(s) of the HEHS Fellowships
• Implements strategies to build and maintain positive relations with senior staff, supervisors/mentors and grant contract staff in host agencies
• Conducts outreach to determine technical needs, establish collaborations, foster the effective use of PhD-level Fellows from early to senior career stages and support Fellows’ education and career development
• Manages interactions with 50-60 first and second year executive branch HEHS Fellows annually with the aims to: build affinity with AAAS and support positive and productive yearlong public service/professional development fellowship experiences through full engagement in program offerings
• Consults on opportunities for program enhancements and cultivates new hosting partnerships
• Maintains up-to-date files on partnership activities
• Conducts annual site visits and handles follow-up with designated HEHS Fellows and their supervisors/mentors
• Keeps tabs on progress of professional development plans and maintains ongoing contact to set clear expectations, guide Fellows, trouble-shoot challenges and pursue opportunities as they arise
• Monitors effectiveness of HEHS programs and recommends strategies for enhancement
• Monitors Fellows’ mid-year and year-end reports to determine trends; utilizes information to enhance the fellowship experience for Fellows and host offices; reports on results by writing/editing annual summaries of Fellows’ activities and achievements for funders
• Contributes input to policy issues affecting Fellowships programmatic operations and to Fellowships annual strategic planning efforts
• Conducts the selection and placement process for approximately 65 executive branch fellows
• Researches potential committee members, soliciting participation, establishing and managing three to four committees (approximately 8 members each); guides applicant evaluations and interviews and selection of finalists
• Counsels candidates and communicates about process, decisions, and final award of fellowships.
• Guides second-year renewal Fellows in designated HEHS agencies
• Manages placement-related communications with Fellows and host offices and implements guidelines and systems; coordinates fellowship assignment interviews, offers and verification of acceptance
• Stays abreast of HEHS-related issues and acts as liaison with scientific, engineering, educational, governmental and other stakeholders to discuss AAAS programs and issues
• Provides input to annual marketing and outreach plans and to production of marketing collaterals and presentation materials on the Fellowships
• Serves as an ambassador for the AAAS Fellowships to external audiences and participates in outreach events and presentations at government meetings, networking gatherings, scientific and engineering professional society conferences and campus and career events
• Provides strategic input to the schedule of Fellowships’ programmatic activities, processes and events to establish goals and deadlines and ensure timely, quality implementation
• Coordinates with administrative support staff, to include assigning work, monitoring work progress and providing training and input to performance reviews

Minimum qualifications:

• Position requires extensive academic training leading to a Bachelor’s degree in government relations, political science or policy, health science, communications, or a related field; Master’s degree in a relevant field preferred
• Five to seven years experience in progressively responsible positions in program development and management; one to two years experience supervising others
• Demonstrated ability to organize, present and implement programming for a high-profile program
• Project management skills including proposal development, program administration and processes, monitoring, assessment and reporting and ability to use independent judgment to make decisions and guide projects effectively and efficiently
• Outstanding oral, written and interpersonal skills; professional and diplomatic manner; confidence and mature judgment; ability to work with individuals from different disciplinary and cultural backgrounds
• Experience working in a non-profit environment with government grants, with scientists and engineers, fellowships or alumni relations and an interest in science and policy are beneficial

Application Instructions

Please visit our website http://www.aaas.org/careercenter/employmentataaas/ to get more information and to apply to AAAS online.

AAAS is an Equal Opportunity Employer.