Science Programs, Engagement Specialist

Science Programs, Engagement Specialist

Who we are:

The American Physical Society (APS) is a nonprofit membership organization working to advance and diffuse the knowledge of physics through its outstanding research journals, scientific meetings, and education, outreach, advocacy, and international activities. APS represents more than 50,000 members, including physicists in academia, national laboratories, and industry in the United States and throughout the world.

Position Summary:

Are you passionate about cultivating relationships between organizations and their stakeholders? Are you an adaptable, collaborative, and enthusiastic professional who thrives at coordinating engagement, service delivery, and resource connection for program participants? Do you want to support high-impact initiatives in the physics community? Then apply today to become the Science Programs Engagement Specialist for the American Physical Society (APS) as a contributing member of the Public Engagement Team in the Programs Department.

At APS, we offer a variety of programs for our members to develop their skills and get them involved in engaging the public with the excitement of physics. We are committed to supporting and empowering the physics community to promote access and inclusivity. The Science Programs Engagement Specialist will play a pivotal role in coordinating and supporting engagement, communications, and operations efforts for the APS Public Engagement Initiatives, including our  WikiScientists, STEP UP, JNIPER, Science Trust, and International Year of Quantum projects. Join us at APS, a 123-year-old non-profit membership organization with a diverse team of professionals who truly enjoy what they do!

Our Science Programs, Engagement Specialist will work out of our College Park, Maryland office and will work in a hybrid schedule both on-site and remote as needed.

The APS has a “remote first” concept that promotes equal treatment and equal access, independent of physical work location, with a majority of staff working primarily from remote work locations. This position could require at times in office work, various geographic events and meeting attendance as instructed by your Supervisor. APS values diversity and welcomes candidates from a variety of backgrounds. APS offers a dynamic work environment with an outstanding total compensation package including salary, outstanding benefits, and excellent paid time off.


Is This You:
 

Community Engagement:

• Creates and maintains strong relationships between APS members and APS Public Engagement programs by:
  • Fostering community among program participants
  • Overseeing regular communications with members – sharing project updates, opportunities, and resources
  • Organizing in-person and online professional development and networking events
  • Serving as a point of contact for program participants

Event Coordination:

• Coordinates logistics, advertisement, applications, and registration for member-facing events, such as wiki edit-a-thons, workshops/webinars, and other events associated with conferences.
• Coordinates meetings involving internal and external stakeholders, preparing and distributing agendas and other meeting materials, reserving and preparing facilities, and recording and transcribing meeting minutes.

Operations:

• Processes invoices and tracks expenses
• Coordinates the procurement, distribution, and storage of program promotional materials
• Anticipates issues
• Makes decisions on how to achieve assigned activities
• Understands and applies project management principles
• Monitors progress on established work plans to ensure deadlines are met
• Maintains a prioritized task list

Education: High School Diploma or Equivalent required. Bachelor’s degree preferred. In lieu of a degree, 4 years of relevant experience may be accepted.

Experience, Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: 
 

• Minimum of 1 years of relevant experience required
• Experience building relationships with program partners and reaching out to new stakeholders who could benefit from program
• Experience in event planning and management, for online and in-person events
• Experience engaging stakeholders with multiple communication formats, including email, print products, presentations, newsletters, websites, and meeting minutes
• Adapts to change and has advanced time management skills
• Demonstrates professional email communication
• Makes presentations within the Department
• Gives and receives feedback well
• Consistently completes responsibilities on time, delivering quality products
• Appreciates and respects Education, Diversity, and Inclusion
• Problem solving and strategic thinking
• Detail-oriented
• Customer service orientation

Preferred:

• Familiarity with Slack & Asana
• Familiarity in editing Wikipedia
• Familiarity with data analysis and project evaluation
• Familiarity with Agile development

Travel: This position could require at times in-office work in College Park, MD, various geographic events and meeting attendance as instructed by your Supervisor. Our Science Programs, Engagement Specialist will work out of our College Park, Maryland office and will work in a hybrid schedule both on-site and remote as needed.

Work Environment:

Our physical offices are located in Long Island, NY, Washington, D.C and College Park, MD. We are operational in most US states. While most duties can be conducted remotely, all positions require periodic in-person work at the assigned physical location and periodic travel to other APS locations, meetings and events as assigned by your Supervisor. The American Physical Society allows flexible work hours, responsiveness is required however during the core 9 am to 5 pm Eastern Standard Time workday. The successful candidate will join a collaborative international organization.

Programs Department:
 

The APS Programs Department, which consists of projects spanning areas of Education, Diversity, Careers, and Public Engagement, is dedicated to creating a thriving physics community that supports the participation and success of all people, with an expansive view of who is a physicist and what it means to do physics.

Core Values:

Core values are essential to shaping the culture of an organization. They provide the structure and guidance for how we conduct ourselves in our day-to-day interactions. Every employee has a responsibility for upholding these values. The behaviors and actions associated with demonstrating competency in these Core Values are described in a separate document.
 

Our Core Values:

• The Scientific Method
• Truth and Integrity
• Diversity, Inclusion, and Respect
• Partnering, Cooperation, and Open Collaboration
• Speaking Out
• Education and Learning


• Amazing 2023 Benefit Offerings:

   

  Flexible schedules and ability to work remotely 8% employer-paid retirement contribution Investment advisement services: 100% employer paid Medical benefits: PPO or HDHP option Employer contribution to FSA or HSA account, eligibility based on medical plan enrollment Lifestyle Spending benefit up to $2000.00 (USD) - 100% employer paid  Dental benefits:  individual coverage 100% employer paid Vision benefits: individual and dependent coverage 100% employer paid Basic Life & Accident insurance: employee coverage 100% employer paid Supplemental Life & Accident insurance, including spouse & dependent child(ren) coverage Disability insurance:  employee coverage 100% employer paid Voluntary Accident & Critical Illness insurance Healthcare, Commuter & Dependent care flexible spending accounts Vacation: 15 days annually Generous holiday leave: 17 paid days of significance; includes one week closure at the end of December Personal leave: 4 days annually Volunteer leave: 1 day annually Sick leave: 10 days annually Bereavement & Compassion leave: 2 -15 days based on loss 12  weeks employer-paid family leave College tuition reimbursement plan Job related seminar & continuing education Professional Certification/Recertification 100% employer paid Training and professional development; access to LinkedIn Learning on-demand courses Employee Assistance Program Mindfulness Meditation: live and on-demand classes APS does not offer relocation assistance/costs

  
  The American Physical Society is an affirmative action and equal opportunity employer. It is the policy of American Physical Society not to discriminate or allow the harassment of employees or applicants on the basis of race, religious creed, alienage or citizenship, religion, color, ethnicity, sex, national origin, age, disability, marital status, familial status, protected veteran status, protected military status, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, predisposing genetic characteristics, ancestry, domestic violence victim status or any other characteristic protected by law with regard to any employment practices, including recruitment, advertising, job application procedures, hiring, upgrading, training, promotion, transfer, compensation, job assignments, benefits and/or other terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, provided the individual is qualified, with or without reasonable accommodations, to perform the essential functions of the job. This policy applies to all jobs at APS. The American Physical Society is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities in employment, its services, programs, and activities. To request a reasonable accommodation, please contact APS Human Resources at hr@aps.org.
  
  All APS Employees must be vaccinated and provide proof of vaccination via our secured vaccination portal upon hire, unless they have an HR approved medical or religious exemption. The APS has a “remote first” concept that promotes equal treatment and equal access, independent of physical work location, with a majority of staff working primarily from remote work locations.