Program Assistant, Civitas Institute

Job Posting Title:

Program Assistant, Civitas Institute

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Hiring Department:

School of Civic Leadership

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Position Open To:

All Applicants

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Weekly Scheduled Hours:

40

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FLSA Status:

Exempt

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Earliest Start Date:

Immediately

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Position Duration:

Expected to Continue

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Location:

AUSTIN, TX

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Job Details:

General Notes

Established in 2023 as UT Austin’s newest college, the School of Civic Leadership is a community of scholars and students dedicated to studying the foundational ideas and institutions of a free society, with the goal of advancing human flourishing. We value independent thought, civil discourse, reasoned deliberation, and intellectual curiosity as we prepare to meet the challenges of the present and sustain the blessings of liberty for future generations.

SCL is home to the Civitas Institute, a national and international hub for excellence in scholarship, commentary and public outreach on economic dynamism, individual flourishing, civic virtue, and constitutionalism. Upholding the University’s motto—Disciplina Praesidium Civitatis, “Education is the guardian genius of democracy”—we advance The University of Texas at Austin’s mission to achieve excellence in education, research, and public service. 

The University of Texas at Austin provides an outstanding benefits package to staff, including: 

• Competitive health benefits (Employee premiums covered at 100%; family premiums at 50%) 
• Vision, dental, life, and disability insurance options 
• Paid vacation, sick leave, and holidays 
• Teachers Retirement System of Texas (a defined benefit retirement plan) 
• Additional voluntary retirement programs: tax sheltered annuity 403(b) and a deferred compensation program 457(b) 
• Flexible spending account options for medical and childcare expenses 
• Training and conference opportunities 
• Tuition assistance 
• Athletic ticket discounts 
• Access to UT Austin's libraries and museums 
• Free rides on all UT Shuttle and Capital Metro buses with staff ID card 

For more details, please see: https://hr.utexas.edu/prospective/benefits and https://hr.utexas.edu/current/services/my-total-rewards 

Purpose

The Program Assistant will play a key role in supporting the operations, programming, and research of the Civitas Institute at the School of Civic Leadership. This position provides vital logistical, communications, and administrative support, with a strong emphasis on assisting the events manager to coordinate a calendar of public and private gatherings. The ideal candidate is detail-oriented, a self-starter, and willing to jump into new projects as needed. 

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with events manager to coordinate and host Civitas Institute events. Serve as point of contact to speakers and vendors, set up catering, greet guests, and facilitate events. Draft event descriptions, manage public postings on Institute website, and through RSVP systems. Transcribe event videos with Otter.ai.
• Create and arrange speaker itineraries and communicate event details. Arrange travel and lodging, collaborate with business affairs team to process reimbursements and honoraria payments. Stay abreast of travel policies and procedures. Field questions on airfaire, lodging, mileage, and rental cars, etc.
• Contribute to SCL’s quarterly publication of the Forum, including but not limited to writing, production, compilation, and editing of edited volumes compiled by the Civitas Institute. 
• Assist communications team with maintenance of the Civitas Institute’s website and social media postings as appropriate.  Manage Institute subscriptions.
• Work with the business affairs team to process contractor payments for Civitas Institute fellows. Serve as the point person for fellows with regard to travel, purchasing, and reimbursement needs. Submit all required forms for purchasing RTAs, Travel, NETA, entertainment, and Reimbursement forms for all Civitas staff, fellows, and affiliates.
• Act as Institute Procard holder. Facilitate amazon and book purchases. Stay up to date on and follow procard policies and procedures. Reconcile receipts and provide backup documentation.
• Assist with special projects, including faculty seminars, student engagement, and research support as needed

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in political science, public policy, history, communications, or a related field
• Experience planning and executing events preferred, especially in an academic or nonprofit setting
• Excellent communication, writing, and organizational skills
• Strong interpersonal skills and a service-oriented attitude
• Ability to multitask, meet deadlines, and adapt in a fast-paced environment

Relevant education and experience may be substituted as appropriate.

Salary Range

$55,000+ depending on qualifications

Required Materials

• Resume/CV
• 3 work references with their contact information; at least one reference should be from a supervisor
• Letter of interest

Important for applicants who are NOT current university employees or contingent workers: You will be prompted to submit your resume the first time you apply, then you will be provided an option to upload a new Resume for subsequent applications. Any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) will be uploaded in the Application Questions section; you will be able to multi-select additional files. Before submitting your online job application, ensure that ALL Required Materials have been uploaded.  Once your job application has been submitted, you cannot make changes.

Important for Current university employees and contingent workers: As a current university employee or contingent worker, you MUST apply within Workday by searching for Find UT Jobs. If you are a current University employee, log-in to Workday, navigate to your Worker Profile, click the Career link in the left hand navigation menu and then update the sections in your Professional Profile before you apply. This information will be pulled in to your application. The application is one page and you will be prompted to upload your resume. In addition, you must respond to the application questions presented to upload any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) that were noted above.

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Employment Eligibility:

Regular staff who have been employed in their current position for the last six continuous months are eligible for openings being recruited for through University-Wide or Open Recruiting, to include both promotional opportunities and lateral transfers. Staff who are promotion/transfer eligible may apply for positions without supervisor approval.

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Retirement Plan Eligibility:

The retirement plan for this position is Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length.

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Background Checks:

A criminal history background check will be required for finalist(s) under consideration for this position.

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Equal Opportunity Employer:

The University of Texas at Austin, as an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. The University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, religion, or veteran status in employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions.

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Pay Transparency:

The University of Texas at Austin will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information.

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Employment Eligibility Verification:

If hired, you will be required to complete the federal Employment Eligibility Verification I-9 form.  You will be required to present acceptable and original documents to prove your identity and authorization to work in the United States.  Documents need to be presented no later than the third day of employment.  Failure to do so will result in loss of employment at the university.

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E-Verify:

The University of Texas at Austin use E-Verify to check the work authorization of all new hires effective May 2015. The university’s company ID number for purposes of E-Verify is 854197. For more information about E-Verify, please see the following:

• E-Verify Poster (English and Spanish) [PDF]
• Right to Work Poster (English) [PDF]
• Right to Work Poster (Spanish) [PDF]

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Compliance:

Employees may be required to report violations of law under Title IX and the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act). If this position is identified a Campus Security Authority (Clery Act), you will be notified and provided resources for reporting. Responsible employees under Title IX are defined and outlined in HOP-3031.

The Clery Act requires all prospective employees be notified of the availability of the Annual Security and Fire Safety report. You may access the most recent report here or obtain a copy at University Compliance Services, 1616 Guadalupe Street, UTA 2.206, Austin, Texas 78701.