JOB: UChicago Associate Director, Center for Latin American Studies

The University of Chicago Center for Latin American Studies seeks applications for the position of Associate Director. To apply, visit https://jobopportunities.uchicago.edu and search by requisition number (below).

Requisition Number: 091211
Job Title: Associate Director
Type of Position: Staff
Division: Social Sciences
Department: 23318-SSD-Center for Latin American Studies

Standard Summary
Manages the day-to-day activities of the Center. Supervises the staff, coordinates the workflow, and ensures efficient operation of the Center. Assists in setting Center goals and planning educational programs and initiatives. Works with the Director and working committees to evaluate programs and/or research proposals and identifies and implements new Center priorities. Develops, coordinates, and supervises events and programs, including seminars, conferences, workshops, public lectures, visiting scholars programs, and outreach activities. Manages the Center’s budget and exercises financial oversight on all endowed funds and grants from private foundations and individual donors. May assist with fundraising efforts. Seeks other new funding opportunities. Writes grant proposals in collaboration with the Center’s director. May develop short and long term programmatic and administrative goals. Writes and edits communication materials. May conduct research in accordance with scholarly interests. Serves as a liaison with other Centers on campus and with related professional associations and community groups. Typically manages Center facilities. Recruits and supervises student volunteers as necessary.

About the Unit
The Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS) is an inter-disciplinary and integrative site for faculty and student research and teaching on Latin America. Currently, CLAS supports approximately fifty affiliated faculty from the Divisions of Social Sciences and Humanities and a smaller number from the Harris School for Public Policy Studies, Booth School of Business, and the School for Social Service Administration, with significant faculty concentrations in history, anthropology, romance languages, political science, and art history. The Center directly administers degree programs, including an undergraduate B.A. Major and Minor in Latin American Studies and an inter-Divisional M.A. in Latin American Studies. CLAS also engages a large cohort of doctoral students, approximately 10% of the total doctoral student population in the Divisions of Social Sciences and Humanities, through active grants, fellowships, and professionalization opportunities. The Center directly administers language programs in Haitian Creole and several Amerindian languages, and coordinates non-language teaching on Latin America, including the on-campus Introduction to Latin American Civilizations course sequence. CLAS also hosts numerous Visiting Professors from Latin America who spend brief one or two quarter residencies teaching and researching at the University of Chicago.

The Katz Center for Mexican Studies was founded in 2004 and named in honor of Friedrich Katz, one of the world’s leading scholars of Mexican history. The Katz Center sponsors academic conferences and public lectures, hosts visiting scholars, and coordinates academic exchange programs with Mexican institutions.

Unit Job Summary
Associate Director: Responsible for ensuring the effective and efficient operation of the Center for Latin American Studies and Katz Center for Mexican Studies, including working closely with the faculty directors to develop programmatic and strategic goals. Charged with program planning and implementation, policy-making, supervision of administrative staff, and development and oversight of the budget and communications. The Associate Director also serves as the principal liaison to administrative units of the University, including offices of the Deans of Students, Alumni Relations & Development, and the Business Center, among others. The Associate Director must maintain familiarity with the teaching and research projects of affiliated faculty in order to design informed programming, function as an experienced manager capable of simultaneously managing multiple projects, exercise excellent interpersonal skills and the capacity to work closely with a diverse faculty and student population, and confidentially handle sensitive information.

Center Operations (25%)

• Provide leadership in developing short- and long-term programmatic goals for the Centers in conjunction with Directors; present quarterly reports to the Steering Committee.
• Develop and manage Center budgets
• Develop and implement procedures for efficient administration of Center operations.
• Manage Center staff and coordinate workflow.
• Hire, evaluate, promote, discipline, and discharge Center administrative staff in consultation with the Directors of CLAS and the Katz Center.

Academic Programs (25%)

• Serve as Center liaison with Deans of Students in the Social Science Division, Humanities Division, and Social Science Collegiate Division related to BA and MA curriculum, MA admissions/aid, and FLAS Fellowship and Tinker Field Research Grant programs; serve as Center liaison with the College Study Abroad Office for the Mexico in Latin American Civilizations program.
• Manage the CLAS indigenous language programming to ensure alignment with University regulations and targeted national programs. Indigenous language programming includes academic year and summer teaching programs and instructional materials development.

Sponsored Projects, Professional and Community Linkages  (50%)

• In consultation with Directors, develop programming to meet grant and Center priorities, and supervise Program Coordinator in implementation of events. Current grant and fellowship programs include the Title VI/National Resource Center (NRC), Tinker Visiting Professorship, Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships, and Tinker Field Research Grants; other programs of opportunity may arise.
• Seek new funding opportunities informed by the teaching and research projects of lead faculty affiliated with the Center; develop new funding proposals in collaboration with Directors, lead faculty members, and staff.
• Establish post-award grants management and internal financial tracking procedures with Center’s financial administrator in the SSD Local Business Center in order to ensure compliance with University and funding agency requirements.
• Ensure systems for tracking and measuring program outcomes for performance evaluation.
• Prepare grant reports by specified deadlines.
• Serve as primary liaison with Program Officers at funding agencies, and with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (consortium partner for the Center’s Title VI/NRC grant)
• Serve as liaison with other related university units (e.g. Alumni Relations & Development, Office of International Affairs, Deans of Students, Study Abroad).
• Foster linkages with other institutions including professional associations, cultural institutions, community groups, and universities.
• Prepare annual reports in consultation with the Directors.

**Occasional evening and weekend work**

Application review will begin November 12, 2012 and continue until the position is filled.

Education
Bachelor’s degree required.
Master’s degree strongly preferred.
Strong academic background and demonstrated interest in Latin America preferred.

Experience
Minimum of three years of experience in a position of comparable responsibility and initiative required.
Minimum of one year experience working with grants initiatives required.
Minimum of one year of experience working with finances and/or budgets required.
Minimum of one year of supervisory experience required.

Competencies
Capacity to implement major initiatives such as conferences, grant proposals, exchange programs, and public engagement activities required.
Ability to collaborate well in a small staff environment and to lead in a manner conducive to positive staff morale required.
Ability to prioritize and execute multiple tasks simultaneously required.
Capacity to cultivate strong relationships with a large and varied set of constituencies required.
Familiarity with the process and content of undergraduate and graduate training required.
Proficiency in a major Latin American language required, preferably Spanish.
Proficiency in word processing, spreadsheet and database programs required, preferably in MS software required.
Superior organizational and human relations skills required.
Familiarity with simple graphic design and desktop publishing programs preferred.
Willingness to continue professional training expected.

Required Job Seeker Documents
Resume
Cover Letter
Writing Sample

Work Location
Campus – Hyde Park

Work Schedule
Full-Time
Hours/Week: 37.5
M-F, 8:30am-5:00pm
Benefits Eligible
Pay Range: Depends on Qualifications

Josh Beck
Associate Director
Center for Latin American Studies
The University of Chicago
5848 South University Avenue
Chicago, IL 60637
tel: 773-702-9741
fax: 773-702-1755
web: http://clas.uchicago.edu