Associate Director, Operations

Department: SIS - Science in Society
Salary/Grade: EXS/10

Job Summary:

The Science in Society (SiS) Associate Director, Operations and Education provides essential STEM education leadership and K-12 Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) pedagogical expertise for a community-focused science education center at Northwestern.

With a strategic focus on supporting underserved youth and local schools/community partners, the position will provide senior leadership and expertise for the Center's portfolio of in-school and out-of-school STEM initiatives. This includes strategic and operational program management, training cultivating and maintaining authentic partnerships with community groups and education partners, initiating proposals for extramural funding to federal, state, foundation, and philanthropic agencies, authoring manuscripts and reports, and working with the center director to lead the office's strategic planning efforts. The center recently received a 5-year, $1.3M award for NGSS K-5 science teacher leader training. The Associate Director will play a key, leadership role in this exciting project.

This position is for an initial term ending on August 31, 2024. Opportunity for renewal will be based on performance and available funding.

Please Note: Projects may require work on evenings and weekends, as dictated by center priorities, programs, donor prospect availability, and NU/community event schedules.

Specific Responsibilities:

Science in Society (SiS) Center Educational Program Leadership

• Provides senior leadership for and strategically manages the center's portfolio of core initiatives occurring in formal and informal education settings (in-school and out-of-school). These initiatives involve a variety of stakeholders, including federal and extramural agencies, corporations, school districts and teachers, local/regional higher education partners, NU departments and centers, and community groups.
• Using Next Generation Science Standards theory, pedagogy, and educator professional development/training, directs all aspects of programmatic development/design & implementation, including development of inquiry-based curricula and activities and volunteer recruitment/training/support.
• This scope includes research-related components such as evaluation methodologies, data collection/analysis, and IRB/human subjects protocol development and consent-related issues at the university and school/partner levels, and program evaluation.
• In collaboration with the center director, lead the center's mission to train and support Northwestern students, faculty, and staff in best practices for science education, communication, and community engagement.

SiS Center Partnerships

• Develops and maintains internal and external partnerships to advance the center's strategic mission. Acts as a primary point of contact for stakeholders wishing to collaborate or partner with the Center, including NU groups (student organizations, staff and administrative units), school districts (Chicago Public Schools, Evanston/Skokie K-8 and 9-12 districts), and community organizations (Boys & Girls Clubs, YMCAs, Family Focus, etc.).
• Also serves as primary contact for Northwestern faculty interested in developing new or leveraging existing STEM education programs as a component of faculty-led basic research proposals (e.g. NIH/NSF/Dept of Energy research center proposals, Broader Impacts component of NSF proposals, etc.)

Staff Supervision and Office Management

• Directly supervises staff members, providing quarterly Performance Excellence reviews, mentoring, and professional guidance. Serves as primary hiring manager for staff reporting up to Assoc Director.
• Manages day-to-day operation and administration of the SiS Center office, in collaboration with SiS Business Coordinator.

Reports and Grant Writing

• Prepares and authors progress reports and "white paper" summaries of SiS initiatives for internal and external stakeholders including NU units, funders (federal, foundation, philanthropic), and community/K-12/civic partners.
• In collaboration with the Director, conceptualizes, initiates and authors grant or philanthropic funding proposals for extramural funding. Manages pre-award administration, including proposal authoring and/or coordination; proposal budget and justification preparation; sponsor and university proposal form completion; may coordinate IRB protocols; sub-recipient coordination; coordination of facilities and administrative costs, space, and co-investigator agreements.

Budgetary and Fiscal Management

• Proactively oversees budgetary and fiscal management of center projects directly under his/her control. Includes monthly budget review, forecasts, provides information on the financial status of projects, including complex multi-PI, interdisciplinary proposals such as NIH, NSF, or other federal awards in the range of $100-$250K+/yr. direct costs over multiple yrs.
• Ensures that all policies, regulations, rules, and requirements are met per federal, foundation, or other sponsor guidelines.

Communications

• Authors manuscripts, position papers, and reports for publication in journals or for other sources. Generates appropriate data, writes and edits content, and finalizes documents for distribution.

Other Duties as Assigned

Minimum Qualifications:

• A master's degree (teaching certificate) in K-12 science/STEM education, or the basic sciences (chemistry, biology, or related), or the equivalent combination of education and experience from which comparable knowledge and skills can be acquired
• Formal training in Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) theory, pedagogy, and curricular development; evidence of successful transference to classroom/learning spaces
• Five years' experience leading NGSS-aligned training programs for educators (teachers/staff) and/or administrative leaders (e.g. principal, assistant principal, graduate student volunteer mentors, etc.)
• Five or more years' experience in progressively responsible STEM education program development and management, including evaluation.
• Five years' experience as a supervisor for multiple direct reports

Minimum Competencies: (Skills, knowledge, and abilities.)

• Outstanding program/project management skills for multiple education projects across a range of settings, both in and out of school. This includes, including resource allocation for STEM program implementation in K-12 schools and community settings (staffing, budget, supplies)
• Demonstrated knowledge of Next Generation Science Standards pedagogy and educator professional development, including an understanding of the related research literature and evidence-based best practices
• Demonstrated experience forming, cultivating, and growing STEM education partnerships involving universities, K-12 schools, and community partners.
• Ability to use independent judgment to make decisions and guide projects, balancing the center's mission and long-term program/project goals while also attending closely to immediate needs
• Flexibility and adaptability when presented with unexpected changes of course; willingness to fill a need or solve a problem through creative initiative that strategically advances the Center's partnerships, programs, and priorities
• Strategic initiative-taking skills, especially in problem-solving, and anticipating/mitigating risks
• Flexibility in schedule, including work at off-site locations (schools and community sites), as well as some evening/weekend work
• Demonstrated experience organizing, implementing, and rigorously evaluating science education initiatives and events
• Demonstrated experience with projects requiring Institutional Review Board approval for human subjects research.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Doctoral degree in STEM education or STEM-related discipline
• Experience as principal investigator (PI) or co-investigator with extramural grant-funded programs (federal, foundation, or corporate)

Preferred Competencies: (Skills, knowledge, and abilities)

• Software/web-based technology development
• Experience administering deployment and support for laptop/iPad carts (e.g. Apple Configurator or Mobile Device Management software)
• Knowledge of Adobe Design Suite (InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, Acrobat)

Benefits:
At Northwestern, we are proud to provide meaningful, competitive, high-quality health care plans, retirement benefits, tuition discounts and more Visit us at to learn more.

Work-Life and Wellness:
Northwestern offers comprehensive programs and services to help you and your family navigate life's challenges and opportunities, and adopt and maintain healthy lifestyles.
We support flexible work arrangements where possible and programs to help you locate and pay for quality, affordable childcare and senior/adult care. Visit us at to learn more.

Professional Growth & Development:
Northwestern supports employee career development in all circumstances whether your workspace is on campus or at home. If you're interested in developing your professional potential or continuing your formal education, we offer a variety of tools and resources. Visit us at to learn more.

Northwestern requires all staff and faculty to be vaccinated against COVID-19, subject to limited exceptions. For more information, please visit our COVID-19 and Campus Updates website.

The Northwestern campus sits on the traditional homelands of the people of the Council of Three Fires, the Ojibwe, Potawatomi, and Odawa as well as the Menominee, Miami and Ho-Chunk nations. We acknowledge and honor the original people of the land upon which Northwestern University stands, and the Native people who remain on this land today.

Northwestern University is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action Employer of all protected classes, including veterans and individuals with disabilities. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, individuals with disabilities, and veterans are encouraged to apply. Click for information on EEO is the Law.

#LI-EN1