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Preferred Application deadline: May 18, 2021.
The CI graduate assistant will work together with staff to develop, organize, promote, and execute Taylor’s social venture accelerator program. The GA will plan the institute (review previous year’s evaluation materials, revise curriculum, recruit participants and secure mentors and speakers) and then execute the program in the spring.
ABOUT THE CI SOCIAL VENTURE ACCELERATOR
The Changemaker Institute social venture accelerator program incubates social ventures in the Tulane community by fostering learning and growth, community partnerships, mentorship, and the development of social entrepreneurial skills among upper-level students in the early idea phase of development.
Throughout CI, students develop ideas and build long-term plans for their ventures by interacting with local innovators, mentors, peers, alumni, and community leaders working at the nexus of social change and innovation in the wider community. We support sustainable ideas with strong social missions and offer students:
- Growth in social entrepreneurial skills
- Business model development
- Mentorship from the Tulane and New Orleans social entrepreneurial communities
- Support from an active international Changemaker Institute alumni network
- Preparation for applying to funding opportunities at Tulane and beyond
POSITION SUMMARY
The CI Graduate Assistant will support Taylor staff in running the Institute. To plan, the Graduate Assistant will review programmatic materials from the previous year, promote CI and recruit upper-class students (primarily graduate students) to participate. The GA will help execute the Institute by hosting weekly meetings, organizing speakers, providing weekly mentorship and support to student participants.
The GA must be available for a weekly meeting with participants, which is often scheduled in the evenings to accommodate graduate student schedules. The CI GA is expected to work 15-20 hours per week.
PERFORMANCE STANDARDS/WORK DUTIES
Work Duties (Fall)
- Assess previous year’s program feedback and host a focus group with CI alumni
- Create and execute a CI marketing plan to reach graduate students
- Promote CI via graduate classes and organizations
- Recruit, host interviews, and select a diverse cohort of 3-7 social ventures
- Revise CI curriculum, deliverables, and application as necessary
- Select, finalize, and prepare guest expert speakers for the CI sessions
- Manage the CI budget (~$5,000)
Work Duties (Spring)
- Help facilitate weekly cohort meetings and 4 weekend workshops
- Coordinate social media posts and fact sheets about individual ventures
- Track individual venture progress and provide weekly written feedback to teams
- Provide 1:1 mentorship and support for CI ventures
- Revise program curriculum to best meet the cohort’s needs
- Coordinate all logistics for sessions (preparing speakers, ordering food, preparing internal agendas, etc.) as well as the Student Showcase at the end of the semester
Ongoing Duties
- Assist with special events and opportunities at Taylor and provide administrative support to Taylor staff overseeing CI
- Assist with daily/weekly logistics and support visiting speakers and guests to Taylor
- Cultivate strong relationships with community and campus partners to successfully plan and execute activities, programs, and events
- Support other workshops, programs and events sponsored by Taylor and collaborate with other fellows and staff to run Taylor events and programs.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:
- Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited College or University
- Enrolled in a degree-bearing graduate program at Tulane (at the masters or doctoral level) Applicants can be enrolled in any discipline or department at Tulane
- Passion for nurturing fellow students’ ideas and projects
- Interest in social venture development and organizational management
- Strong networking skills—able to connect resources with CI needs
- Demonstrated ability to be self-motivated and to conduct oneself in a highly professional and ethical manner
CHARACTER TRAITS
- Approachable and friendly demeanor, with a strong customer service orientation
- Flexible and adaptable
- Empathy: have strong people and relationship-nurturing skills
- A can-do, optimistic attitude
- Self-motivated and able to work independently when needed
- A team player: Able to collaborative effectively and generously as part of a team, with diverse students, staff, faculty and community partners
COMPETENCIES
- Strong oral, written communication, and public speaking skills
- Strong relationship building and people skills
- Ability to prioritize, handle multiple tasks, and work independently.
- Ability to balance professional and personal boundaries
- Writing skills for blog posts, email communications, social media and reports.
KNOWLEDGE/SKILLS
- Strong problem solving, organization, presentation, and decision-making skills
- Working knowledge of standard computer programs, specifically Microsoft Office (Word, Excel,
- Publisher, PowerPoint), Google Drive, BOX, desktop publishing, and/or website maintenance
- Comfortable using social media (FB, Twitter, Instagram)
- Good time-management skills: must be punctual, timely, and deadline-oriented
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS that make you more competitive:
- Peer-mentoring experience
- Entrepreneurial or Business experience
- Project management experience
- Prior experience working with social entrepreneurs, start-ups, student-led social ventures, changemakers and/or social intrapreneurs
- Demonstrated commitment to personal development, professionalism, multi-cultural education, creativity, collaboration, and initiative
- Public speaking and group facilitation experience—confident with large groups
REMUNERATION
- Approximately 15 hours/week on average from August to early May (specific hours/week might vary from 10/week to 20 hours/week at times). Pay rate is est. $15/hour, paid in monthly stipends ($7,500 total)
- Students can apply for up to $1,500 in professional development support through the Changemaker Catalyst Award
About Tulane University – Phyllis M. Taylor Center for Social Innovation and Design Thinking
The Phyllis M. Taylor Center for Social Innovation and Design Thinking cultivates a diverse learning community of Changemakers who use their skills, humility, expertise, gifts, and power to affirm the humanity of all people in the pursuit of a more just, sustainable, and equitable society. Our university-wide initiatives are globally-aware, community-oriented, and interdisciplinary. Our programs are grounded in the teaching, research, and practices of design thinking, social entrepreneurship, and social innovation.
For instructions on using Handshake, visit the Tulane Student Employment website.
