Senior Administrative Specialist

Position Title: Senior Administrative Specialist

Department: Family and Human Services

Advertised Pay: Base $16.85/hour with potential for a higher entry rate commensurate with experience

Campus Location: Washburn University

Application review will begin as applications are received and will continue until the position is filled. 

Position Summary: This position provides administrative support for the chair, faculty, and staff within the Department of Family and Human Services.

About Washburn University: Washburn University is a teaching-focused, student-centered, public institution located in the metropolitan setting of Topeka that has earned national recognition for its high-impact programs for first-generation students. Washburn has a student body of just over 7,000 students, a significant and growing number of whom are first-generation and Pell-Grant eligible. The University has created educational pathways for all students to be successful and achieve their educational goals.

Washburn is dedicated to recruiting and retaining a dynamic faculty, staff, and student body and cultivating a robust learning and working environment and curriculum. We employ more than one thousand faculty and staff on our campuses throughout Topeka and strive to offer competitive wages, an excellent benefits program, and a supportive culture and a healthy work/life balance. Washburn seeks to create an environment that reflects our core values for creating positive IMPACT: inclusion, modernization, partnership, achievement, community and transformation. In 2024, Washburn was recognized as one of the best colleges in the nation to work for, according to Great Colleges to Work For® program.

Essential Functions:
• Greet, assist, and direct walk-in traffic. Answer telephone calls and emails. Direct/relay calls/messages to facilitate communication among faculty, students, staff, affiliated agencies, and the public. Send targeted announcements as needed to promote good communication and to inform students and other stakeholders of important deadlines, job opportunities, and more.
• Serve as liaison among faculty, the Chair, and students. Provide or obtain information in response to inquiries and other issues that arise. Respond promptly to student/agency/stakeholder inquiries and disseminate requested information.
• Create and maintain electronic and hard copy office files, including student electronic files. Ensure the location of the electronic files is organized and updated. Maintain the confidentiality of sensitive information in these files. Prepare correspondence as requested. Prepare outgoing and process incoming mail. Copy/scan/image documents as needed.
• Maintain office supply inventory and order supplies as needed. Oversee the use and maintenance of office equipment. Initiate repair or maintenance as needed. Complete payment paperwork for Department expenditures, recording information required for processing invoices and using P-Card. Monitor the Department budget and communicate with the Chair about account balances.
• Assist with ordering textbooks and desk copies as requested by instructors, following Bookstore procedures to facilitate the availability of textbooks for each semester. Facilitate distribution of textbooks to adjunct instructors and otherwise support adjuncts as needed.
• Create and update documents and reports as requested. Update the website as requested.
• Organize Department meetings, retreats, advisory board meetings, student coalition meetings/events, honors ceremonies, and other Department gatherings/functions (e.g., NSOs, TSOs, fairs, invited speakers, etc.) by reserving rooms or tables, ordering food, sending invitations and agendas, distributing handouts, taking minutes, filing documents, and otherwise providing support. Assist with ordering and distribution of honor cords, pins, and awards to students, and thank you cards, certificates, and other acknowledgments to advisory board members and other stakeholders as needed.
• Support marketing/recruitment activities as needed. Maintain Department display, tablecloth, and marketing materials/handouts.
• Assist in creating and entering course schedules into appropriate software programs as directed. Assist in creating and entering the Course Information Document for crosslisting courses, requesting classrooms, and requesting other items. Prepare and submit adjunct information sheets and related adjunct paperwork. Create schedule change forms as needed
• Complete student declaration paperwork and advisor assignments as requested by appropriate staff. Connect students with faculty members for advising. Communicate advising schedules to students for advanced enrollment. Provide overrides for students as requested. Track the faculty’s student office hours and post-student office hours each semester.
• Oversee the internship/practicum application process, including reviewing and filing applications and reference forms, sorting students into sections, tracking placement and enrollment, and updating applications as needed. Manage documentation to comply with requirements of external approval bodies (e.g., BSRB, NAADAC, NCFR), such as ensuring hours logs and performance evaluations are completed, signed, and filed. Assist students with obtaining signatures on licensing/certification paperwork.
• Oversee affiliation agreements and MOUs with agencies, ensuring contracts are signed, forwarded, and filed. Forward proof of insurance to affiliated agencies. Maintain database of affiliations, track expiration dates, and renew contracts as needed.
• Assist with MA application process, overseeing paperwork and communication with applicants as requested.
• Interview, select, train, supervise, and evaluate student workers as needed. Approve student employee time sheets.
• Participate in committees and in other events as requested by appropriate staff.
• Attend workshops/classes to learn how to use computer software for completing job functions (e.g., Banner, Argos, Navigate, etc.).
• Mentor other administrative assistants with schedule entry and related duties when doing so does not conflict with fulfilling other duties.
• Assist instructors as needed (e.g., with special needs related to weekend workshops, class cancellations, make-up exams, etc.).
• Perform additional job-related duties as assigned or as appropriate.

Required Qualifications:
• High school diploma, GED, or equivalent.
• One year of full-time equivalent work experience or relevant education or a combination
of relevant education and experience equal to one year of full-time work experience.
• Demonstrated proficiency using Microsoft Outlook, Word, and Excel.
• Demonstrated effective communication, organizational, and time management skills, along with the ability to manage multiple projects and tasks almost concurrently, with attention to detail and the ability to meet deadlines.
• Proven ability to provide effective customer service.

Preferred Qualifications:
• Experience with Learning Management Systems (e.g., D2L, Canvas, Blackboard).
• Experience with Jotform.

Hourly, full-time, Mon-Fri, 8am-4:30pm   
Background Check Required