Science Resource Technician

Title: Science Resource Technician





Position Purpose:

The Science Resource Technician plays a critical role in the training, maintenance, and repair of a suite of microscopes. This hands-on position provides direct support for an increasingly diverse Bates College community utilizing excellent customer service skills. The Science Resource Technician provides support for faculty and student research utilizing scanning electron, confocal, and widefield microscopes.

The Science Resource Technician is responsible for the care of all plants, ranging from cacti to tropical, for the Sciences and is committed to programs of excellence in laboratory plant management practices used in Bates College research endeavors. The Technician also serves as a back-up to the Vivarium Coordinator, maintaining the physical environment of the research animal care facility and performing tasks related to the health and care of all vertebrate animals.

This position oversees student workers to ensure proper care of all plants used in research.

APPLY NOW



Job Duties:

Microscopy Responsibilities

• Works closely with Associate Professor for Physics and Astronomy to gain knowledge of and increase responsibility for training, maintenance, and repair of three widefield microscopes, one scanning electron microscope (SEM), and one confocal microscope.
• Provides training to new users (students, faculty, and staff) to carry out routine widefield, SEM, and confocal experiments. Writes up basic instructions for the safe start up, operation, maintenance, and shut down of the unit.
• Provides instructional support and responds to requests for assistance to users as needed to contribute to the successful daily operation of the microscopes.
• Performs preventative maintenance through daily, weekly, and monthly control checks on all microscopes, including monthly alignment checks with calibration samples and wiping data from hard drives to prevent overfill problems.
• Maintains microscopes in good working order so that they are available for use as needed. Evaluates, tests, diagnoses and troubleshoots problems, provides repairs, or arranges for on-site and off-site repair to keep microscopes in working order.
• Disassembles, cleans, lubricates, reassembles, and makes mechanical adjustments and optical alignments on microscopes.
• Orders and stocks imaging supplies.
• Cleans and organizes microscopes as well as the room (e.g. sweeps floor, cleans benches, etc.).
• Coordinates and oversees vendor service visits for routine, preventative, and non-routine maintenance.
• Performs administrative responsibilities such as emailing users, answering questions, paperwork, contacting Helpdesk for computer issues, contacting Facility Services to place work orders to resolve problems, etc.
• Provides support for academic courses making use of the confocal and SEM.

Greenhouse Responsibilities

• Manages the cultivation of plants in a controlled environment to be used for teaching and research.
• Oversees the husbandry, plant nutrition, pest, and disease control for the greenhouse.
• Responsible for the planning, management, and troubleshooting associated with temperature and humidity control.
• Hires, trains, and supervises 4-5 student workers and staff for the greenhouse during the academic year and summer months.
• Supports faculty use of greenhouse for research and teaching.
• Ensures quality standards and maintains a healthy environment during lab experimentation for chemistry, biology, and environmental studies departments.
• Works closely with the Admission Office to hold open houses for prospective students and visiting parents.
• Holds greenhouse tours for local schools and community groups.
• Oversees open houses for plant sales to students, faculty, and staff of Bates College.
• Works closely with departments hosting an annual Enrichment day for Lewiston High School biology students.

Vivarium Responsibilities

• Provides back-up support when the Vivarium Coordinator is out by overseeing the full maintenance of the physical environment of the research animal care facility, including supervising student workers.
• Performs weekly tasks related to the health and care of all vertebrate animals for the Sciences.

Other Responsibilities

• Assures equity, inclusion, access, and anti-racism as central to their work and the delivery of services to faculty, staff, and students.
• Maintains current expertise on regulatory requirements and guidelines, as well as all current professional standards.
• Participates in various department initiatives, meetings and projects with both internal and external colleagues.
• Ensures consistency, communication, and collaboration in a small, yet complex environment.
• Participates in departmental and professional training programs to increase expertise in the profession when appropriate.
• Other duties and responsibilities as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications:

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in biology or relevant field.
• Equivalent combination of education and experience considered.

Experience

• Previous hands-on imaging/confocal experience with routine and advanced experiments helpful.
• Experience working within a microscopy-related research laboratory preferred.
• Previous experience maintaining and growing plants in a research or commercial greenhouse preferred.
• Previous experience working with lab animals or vet tech experience helpful.

Skills and Knowledge

• Demonstrated intercultural competence, commitment, and experience working with diverse populations.
• Knowledge of plant and soil biology relevant to the effective plant culture, nutrition, propagation, and pest management, and treatment of disease or willingness to obtain knowledge through appropriate training and education upon hire.
• Basic knowledge and understanding of microscopes and willingness to obtain increased knowledge through appropriate training and education upon hire.
• Excellent communication (written, verbal, listening, and presentation) skills.
• Excellent customer service skills with the ability to remain composed, friendly, and demonstrate poise under stress while working in a deadline-driven environment.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills; high level of accuracy; ability to synthesize complex or diverse information.
• Ability to work independently and handle multiple priorities with minimal supervision. Demonstrates initiative.
• Impeccable organizational (time, task, project management) skills.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to develop and maintain collegial relationships.
• Proficiency in data management systems and commonly used applications (e.g. Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe, Google Suite).
• Willingness and ability to learn additional applications as needed.
• Ability and willingness to work weekends, evenings, and other non-traditional schedules on occasion as needed.
• Personal commitment to excellence and the mission of a top-tier small liberal arts college.
• Demonstrated commitment to practices in equity, inclusion, access, and anti-racism and to serving the needs of a culturally and educationally diverse and inclusive community with diplomacy and tact.




Benefits:

Bates College offers competitive salaries, excellent benefits (health, dental, sick leave, 24 days of vacation, 2 personal days, 12 paid holidays, dependent care subsidy, free parking, access to library and athletic facilities & more) and a supportive, collegial environment in a drug- and smoke-free workplace.



Equal Employment Opportunity Statement:

Bates College is committed to the principle of equal opportunity and providing an educational and work environment free from discrimination. The college prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, age, disability, genetic information or veteran status and other legally protected statuses in the recruitment and admission of its students, in the administration of its education policies and programs, or in the recruitment of its faculty and staff. Bates College adheres to all applicable state and federal equal opportunity laws and regulations. All college faculty, staff, students, contractors, visitors, and volunteers are responsible for understanding and complying with the Non-Discrimination Policy.

Inquiries concerning the college’s policies, compliance with applicable laws, statutes, and regulations (such as Title VII, Title IX, and ADA/Section 504), and complaints may be directed to Gwen Lexow, Title IX Officer, 207-786-6445 or via email at glexow@bates.edu .

Description:

Bates is internationally recognized as a leading liberal arts college, attracting 2,000 students from across the U.S. and around the world.

Since 1855, Bates has been dedicated to educating the whole person through creative and rigorous scholarship in a collaborative residential community. Committed to opportunity and excellence, Bates has always admitted students without regard to gender, race, religion, or national origin.

Cultivating intellectual discovery and informed civic action, Bates prepares leaders sustained by a love of learning and zeal for responsible stewardship of the wider world. Bates engages the forces — intellectual trends, demographic changes, and technology — that are transforming higher education and the world into which our students graduate.

Bates has highly competitive admissions, graduates over 90 percent of its entering students, and more than half of its alumni earn graduate degrees. Bates employs 200 faculty members and 550 staff.

The college is proud of deep roots in the Lewiston/Auburn community, Maine’s second-largest urban area with a population of approximately 65,000. Bates is located on a beautiful, 133-acre, traditional New England campus in Lewiston, an emerging city with an entrepreneurial climate, a lively arts scene, and a dynamic business community. Bates is 35 miles north of Portland, 140 miles north of Boston, and 350 miles north of New York City.

APPLY NOW

Advertised: May 25 2021 Eastern Daylight Time
Applications close: