Retention Specialist for TRIO Student Support Services

Retention Specialist for TRIO Student Support Services

About Susquehanna:
As a living, learning and working community, Susquehanna University affirms its commitment to being an engaged, culturally inclusive campus. As we seek to embody the rich diversity of the human community, we commit ourselves to the full participation of persons who represent the breadth of human difference. The university encourages candidates from historically underrepresented groups to apply. Susquehanna University is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Susquehanna University is a national liberal arts college committed to excellence in educating students for productive, creative and reflective lives of achievement, leadership and service in a diverse, dynamic and interdependent world. Its more than 2,300 undergraduates come from 35 states and 22 countries, and all students study away through Susquehanna’s unique Global Opportunities program. Susquehanna University’s 325 acre campus, noted for its beauty, is located in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania, 50 miles north of Harrisburg in the scenic Susquehanna River Valley, about a three hour drive from Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and New York City. For more information, please visit https://www.susqu.edu.


Position Summary:
Job Summary
The Retention Specialist will support the academic success of approximately 160 students enrolled in the TRIO Student Support Services program. This person will lead programs and activities designed to cultivate academic self-confidence, community engagement, 21st-century life skills, and self-advocacy amongst TRIO students and will work to foster a community of support through culturally relevant programming. This person will actively monitor the academic performance of each of these students throughout the academic year, working with the Office of the Registrar to gather all relevant data. This person will meet with any TRIO SSS student who is struggling at SU and develop a plan of action to help that student succeed. This person will collaborate with the Office of Financial Services and/or the Office of Student Life to support any student who encounters financial or social issues. The Retention Specialist will also support students and support the Director of TRIO Student Support Services as needed. This position may need to work some nights and weekends to accommodate student schedules.

Specific Responsibilities

• Meeting regularly with and advising individual students in the TRIO SSS program
  
• Monitoring the academic success of students in the TRIO SSS program
  
• Supervising the work of TRIO tutors
  
• Collaborating with SU faculty and staff to develop strategies and action programs to assist TRIO SSS students with academic, financial, and/or social difficulties
  
• Developing academic and social programs for TRIO SSS students
  
• Supporting the Director of the Office of TRIO SSS as needed
  
• Helping to recruit and support alumni mentors
  
• Attending programs and trips planned for TRIO students
  
• Supporting students in applying to graduate and professional degree programs
  
  
  Required Qualifications:
  Knowledge, Skills, Abilities
  The Retention Specialist should be able to work interpersonally with students and staff at SU and to effectively communicate with a large and varied audience. This person should have knowledge of best practices for supporting low-income and first-generation students and students living with disabilities. This person should have logistical and organizational skills involved in developing programming for students.
  
  Education
  A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university.
  
  Experience
  A minimum of two years of prior experience working in academic support services or student support services at an accredited college or university. Experience working with a TRIO program or another federally funded program designed to support student retention; prior success in improving the retention and graduation rates of college students; and a similar socio-economic background to SSS participants is preferred.
  
  Physical Demand
  Position requires the ability to stand or sit for extended periods of time. Position requires the ability to move about the campus. Position requires the ability to talk and to hear instruction. Position requires occasional manual dexterity and the ability to use fingers, hands, and arms to feel, handle, and reach. Position requires occasional stooping, crouching and bending. Position requires the ability to occasionally lift up to 10 pounds. Working conditions are indoor.
  
  
  Preferred Qualifications:
  
  
  Special Instructions to the Applicant:
  *Please note that the application review process will begin on February 17, 2021.
  
  
  Benefits Eligible: Yes
  Number of Months: 12 months
  Other Number of Months:
  Full-Time/Part-Time:
  Work Schedule/Hours per Week:
  Posting Date: 01/29/2021
  Closing Date:
  Open Until Filled: Yes
  Anticipated Start Date:
  Posting Number: AH00707
  
  To apply, visit https://jobs.susqu.edu/postings/2188