Program Administrator , African American Studies

Program Administrator (4722C), African American Studies - #83142

University of California, Berkeley

Posted 2 days ago

At the University of California, Berkeley, we are dedicated to fostering a community where everyone feels welcome and can thrive. Our culture of openness, freedom and belonging makes it a special place for students, faculty and staff. As a world‑leading institution, Berkeley is known for its academic and research excellence, public mission, diverse student body, and commitment to equity and social justice.

The Department of African American Studies is the critical interdisciplinary study of race, ethnicity, and indigeneity with a focus on the experiences and perspectives of people of color within and beyond the United States. The department offers undergraduate majors and minors in African American Studies, as well as a Ph.D. in African Diaspora Studies.

Conducts administrative functions for the African American Studies Department, which is administratively clustered with the Departments of Ethnic Studies and Gender & Women’s Studies. Under the direction of the Director of Administration, oversees daily administrative operations, provides front‑line customer service, supervises student assistants, coordinates departmental events, and maintains the department website.

The First Review Date for this job is: 12/31/2025. For full consideration, please apply by 01/05/2026.

Administrative Support & Department Operations

• Conducts and ensures daily administrative operations in the African American Studies Department.
• Provides front‑line support and accurate information to visitors, students, faculty, and staff.
• Acts as a gate‑keeper, understanding departmental processes to respond to issues by priority.
• Provides administrative support to the Chair and Director of Administration in communications, strategic planning, logistics.
• Assists Chair in preparing agenda, documents, and calendar invitations for faculty meetings.
• Leads work‑study assistants and trains them in key departmental functions.
• Prepares correspondence and other written materials for department management and/or faculty requiring specialized knowledge of the subject matter.
• Edits and proofreads written materials for content consistency.
• Sets up mailboxes for faculty and graduate students and assists with onboarding.
• Provides copy codes and copy machine assistance and maintenance as necessary.
• Works with department management to update/review/revise websites to better communicate the organization’s mission.
• Participates in professional development and inclusive activities, as appropriate.

Financial & Procurement Support

• Provides travel and entertainment reimbursement coordination for department faculty, students, and guests.
• Provides African American Studies department specific and AGES Cluster backup for assigned bluCard and EPC Card.
• Coordinates reconciliation to ensure timely posting of credit card expenses to appropriate chart strings.
• Determines need for event and general office equipment and supplies, procurement/supplies, key access/security & safety, and contingency planning.
• Maintains physical key cabinet and building access data.
• May participate in contract negotiation and the preparation of RFPs requiring some subject matter knowledge of the materials/services.

Event Coordination

• Serves as Event Coordinator for the Department.
• Choreographs events to include facilities, catering, vendors, technical support, communication, and on‑site set‑up/breakdown.
• Develops all appropriate communications.

Projects

• Project Management support for the Director of Administration, Graduate Student Affairs Officer (GSAO) and Administrative Supervisor.
• Compiles an array of spreadsheets using subject‑matter knowledge to ensure data results are consistent with the nature of the data.
• Applies somewhat complex spreadsheet formulas, Google Forms and similar functions.

Scheduling and Space Coordination

• Coordinate calendar and room access for shared spaces (conference room usage for special events and department classes).
• Coordinate and post Office Hours for GSIs and Readers in AAS/GWS.
• Or…