Company Description
The Context
Atlanta leads the nation in income inequality and has one of the lowest rates of social mobility in the entire country. In fact, recent research suggests that a child living in poverty in Atlanta has about a four percent chance of moving out of poverty and into a higher income bracket in his or her lifetime.
Despite these odds, Atlanta’s students have dreams for their futures and their families. In 2015, Achieve Atlanta (AATL) was launched by a group of local leaders determined to support these dreams. Coming together initially with the goal of dramatically increasing the number of Atlanta Public School (APS) students who earn a degree. Achieve Atlanta today, inspired by the power of strategic, coordinated action, and using data as the spark for change, has expanded its vision for the future to include eliminating the degree attainment gap in the city, and making Atlanta a place where race and income no longer predict postsecondary success or upward mobility.
The Work
In pursuit of its vision, Achieve Atlanta’s mission is to help APS students access, afford, and earn postsecondary credentials. To do this, Achieve Atlanta:
- partners with college advising providers with proven results to serve APS students while they are in high school;
- establishes strategic formal relationships with postsecondary institutions that can successfully serve APS graduates, especially those who are first generation or come from underrepresented populations;
- is progressing along a plan to mobilize broad community support by leveraging data to accelerate collaborations that further college access, persistence, and completion in Atlanta; and
- provides Achieve Atlanta Scholarships to students to reduce financial barriers to college enrollment and completion.
The Results
It's clear that Achieve Atlanta’s endeavors are yielding significant gains; driving an increase in college enrollment and persistence, creating greater access to financial aid and scholarships, securing meaningful commitments from partners, identifying and removing barriers to college completion, and supporting APS to institutionalize a culture that raises awareness of and encourages the pursuit of postsecondary education, thereby enhancing individual students’ ability to realize their own potential.
Job Description
The Opportunity
Achieve Atlanta is seeking an enthusiastic Program Associate, Scholarship & Affordability, to collaborate closely with the Scholarship & Affordability team supporting college access, affordability, and success, as well as external partners. This key role involves assisting with the recruitment and promotion of the Achieve Atlanta Scholarship, triaging student issues received through program communication channels, and aiding with affordability programming, including administrative and logistical support. Reporting to the Manager, Scholarship & Affordability, the Program Associate will contribute to Achieve Atlanta’s mission of eliminating financial barriers for students pursuing postsecondary education.
Primary Responsibilities
Scholarship Recruitment
- Assist with the recruitment and promotion of the Achieve Atlanta Scholarship, including leading the logistics for events and delivering presentations to stakeholders when needed
- Coordinate the purchase and distribution of Scholarship marketing materials
- Manage the Scholarship marketing material inventory levels in coordination with the operations team
Scholarship Administration
- Maintain a thorough understanding of scholarship policies and processes
- Serve as a backup scholarship application reviewer reviewing applications for eligibility, including evaluating required documents and confirming that student-entered data match the documents
- Conduct triaging of student persistence issues and facilitate referrals to appropriate resources and advisers
- Log all communication with students, partners, and institutions in the Salesforce database
- Provide high-quality customer service and continuously improve processes and the Scholar experience
- Serve as a member of the Scholarship appeal committee and stay up to date on the appeal review rubric
- Collaborate with program partners to obtain information needed for Scholar inquiries and payment statuses
- Escalate issues internally and with external partners as necessary
Affordability Programming
- Assist the Scholarship & Affordability team with developing program content and materials
- Assist with delivering college affordability and related training and programming
- Track, synthesize, and disseminate information to relevant stakeholders, such as federal financial aid policies
Program and Team Support
- Serve as a member of the Scholarship & Affordability team by contributing to programming ideas and providing administrative and logistical support
- Support organizational events for parents, students, and partners
Qualifications
The Profile
The ideal candidate for the Program Associate candidate will be a positive, energetic team player who brings professional maturity to this role and exhibits a strong commitment to Achieve Atlanta’s mission, vision, and values. They will have the utmost integrity and a reputation for doing things the right way. They will be a self-sufficient professional with strong problem-solving and organizational skills, demonstrating exceptional attention to detail and a commitment to follow-up and follow-through. The candidate will be a strong collaborator with effective communication and teamwork skills.
Education, Experience & Knowledge
- Bachelor’s degree in a related field
- Minimum of one year of work experience related to the responsibilities of this role
- Experience with spreadsheet software, data dashboards, and databases (ideally Salesforce)
- Knowledge of and experience with college access, K-12 preparation, or college guidance efforts with under-represented youth
- Knowledge of higher education financial aid (preferred)
Skills & Abilities:
Organization and Prioritization
- Demonstrates exceptional attention to detail and strong organizational skills
- Maintains accuracy and precision in all tasks while efficiently managing and prioritizing multiple responsibilities
- Manages and prioritizes multiple tasks, acting with a sense of urgency when needed
Customer Focus and Relationship Management
- Focuses on doing what’s right for stakeholders and colleagues
- Demonstrates a natural ability to maintain a customer service mindset and advocate for students
Communication
- Exhibits excellent communication skills, both verbal and written
- Demonstrates active listening skills to understand and address colleagues' needs and concerns
- Demonstrates an empathetic nature, acknowledging and honoring all people's humanity
- Approaches working and learning with humility
Adaptability and Autonomy
- Demonstrates adaptability and flexibility in various tasks and situations
- Willingness to learn new skills and technologies
Analytical and Problem-Solving
- Applies problem-solving, analytical, and abstract reasoning skills to overcome challenges
- Displays exceptional attention to detail, ensuring accuracy and reliability in data analysis and reporting
Technical
- Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite, Excel
- Proficient with Salesforce (preferred)
Additional Information
Organizational Competencies
- Mission and Values Driven: Understands how job contributes to the greater mission of AATL; operates within the core values; supports and performs responsibilities with Mission and Vision in mind.
- Emotional Intelligence: Demonstrates awareness of one’s own and others’ emotions, attitudes, biases, belief systems, strengths, and limitations to adjust behavior and thus manage interactions successfully and create a psychologically safe workplace.
- Strategic Approach: Understands and processes complex information for use in long-term planning and execution.
- Partnership: Works collaboratively across internal and external boundaries to build relationships and achieve common goals.
- Growth and Development: Actively seeks to improve skills and knowledge to meet the organization’s vision and commitments, to fulfill current job responsibilities and prepare for future career goals and opportunities.
- Leading: Takes personal accountability for the organization’s success.
Organizational Culture
Achieve Atlanta is a values-driven organization and we ground our work in the following core values:
- Unwavering Belief: A steadfast confidence in our students is the inspiration and fuel for everything we do. Their dreams are the foundation for our work.
- Champion for Students: We back our belief in students by acknowledging historical inequities, breaking down systemic barriers, earning students’ trust, and building their agency to become their own champions.
- Expectation of Excellence: We foster a culture of excellence through consistent effort, tenacity, and integrity, resulting in work we can stand behind. It is the standard we set for ourselves and the example we model for our students and community.
- Intentional Collaboration: We cannot achieve our vision alone. We deliberately work together internally and build strategic partnerships externally to identify and accomplish shared goals in changing environments.
- Continuous Improvement: We are constantly learning, remaining curious, and reflecting on our systems, processes, and outcomes to meet our mission. We encourage critical analysis of our work to make thoughtful adjustments, innovate, and take risks to create solutions.
Salary and Benefits
This is a full-time position with an expected salary range of $50,000 to $60,000, commensurate with experience. Achieve Atlanta provides flexible PTO, a wellness reimbursement program, professional development opportunities, and competitive health and retirement benefits.
Location
Achieve Atlanta currently operates a hybrid model for all staff. Team members work
in the office at our downtown Atlanta location for at least two days each week to
allow for collaboration and in-person connections. Team members have the
flexibility to work the remaining three days from the office, home, or another
location.
To Apply: Please submit your resume and cover letter.
Achieve Atlanta is an equal opportunity employer and makes employment decisions on the basis of qualifications. Achieve Atlanta policy prohibits unlawful discrimination in any employment decision based on pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, race, religious creed, color, national origin or ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, marital status, age, sexual orientation or any other basis protected by federal, state or local law or ordinance or regulation.
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