Administrative Assistant to the EVP/Chief Programs & Fellowships Officer

Organization Overview

C&S sparks young people to help build a strong and thriving America. Our work is grounded in a simple belief: young people with ideas make our country stronger. We meet young people where they are—on campuses, at work, and in their communities—and give them the tools, support, and space to lead real change. Across all our work, C&S helps young people practice three essential civic skills: having productive conversations; using credible information; and collaborating to create solutions. Learn more at cands.org.

Position Overview

The Administrative Assistant supports the Executive Vice President/Chief Programs and Fellowships Officer (EVP) by providing a wide range of administrative and executive-level tasks for and on behalf of the EVP and her team, with a heavy focus on calendar management and scheduling.

You will have the opportunity to support a team committed to building a national network of programs and leaders across fields. The colleagues you will work with are high-performing and fully engaged in the mission of C&S—we have a dedicated team and a high degree of communication, trust, and mutual respect. Because our work has a national profile, the Executive Vice President engages directly with a number of influential, visible individuals; you will therefore also work with external partners who require high levels of skill, accuracy, flexibility, and discretion.

C&S is a remote workplace with staff across the country. We gather in person 2-3 times each year at our headquarters at the Carnegie Center in Princeton, NJ, for events that build trust and teamwork. Program-specific travel may be required from time to time; however, most time will be spent working remotely from your home base.

Essence of the Position

• Priority and Logistics Management: Anticipates the EVP’s needs to keep a complex calendar, travel schedule, and workload running smoothly and focused on top priorities.
• Problem Solver: Resolves scheduling conflicts, travel issues, and day-to-day challenges with sound judgment, escalating only when necessary.
• Trusted Representative: Builds strong relationships across C&S and with external partners, represents the EVP with warmth, clarity, and professionalism, and handles sensitive information with discretion.

Primary Focus

• Managing the EVP’s calendar, with an understanding of her priorities; in particular, scheduling required meetings and events for the EVP, and providing support on the meetings themselves, including printing materials, sharing presentations, and setting up phone/video conferencing.
• Coordinating travel logistics for the EVP (flights, hotels, meals, reservations, appointments).
• Completing travel and reimbursement/expense reports for the EVP.
• On occasion/request, coordinating travel logistics and corresponding expense reports for the EVP’s four direct reports. Providing support to C&S management on events involving the EVP’s participation, including annual retreats, Board meetings, program workshops and recurring staff meetings.
• Preparing minutes of meetings from time to time.
• Providing the EVP with background information, bios on new contacts, and other prep for upcoming calls and meetings.
• Serving as backup to the Executive Assistant to the President during periods of absence or PTO, ensuring continuity of support to the President.
• Sending email of behalf of the EVP and, from time to time, the President.
• Troubleshooting and solving problems at all levels from travel issues to scheduling problems.
• Performing other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• A minimum of 5+ years supporting senior executives in a high-profile setting. Familiarity with/experience in a higher education senior administrative setting is a plus.
• Strong ability to multitask in order to manage multiple priorities both internally and externally.
• Outstanding written communication skills as well as strong ability to communicate verbally in a clear, concise, and diplomatic manner.
• Demonstrated success in coordination of projects from start to finish.
• The ability to pay accurate attention to detail.
• Technological proficiency in MS Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook) and virtual meeting technologies including Zoom and Microsoft Teams. Experience leveraging AI a plus.
• Occasional travel availability (including some evenings and weekends) to support major C&S events.

Attributes

• Mission-oriented. You are committed to and hold a strong belief in the potential of C&S’ mission.
• Service-driven. You thrive in being part of a highly organized team and supporting their effectiveness. You develop and maintain relationships across all levels of the organization and with a broad spectrum of stakeholders.
• Confident, self-assured, direct, and humble. You are diplomatic, you’re a good listener, and you understand the productive value of candid team discussions.
• Strong task management and execution skills. You are strategic, thoughtful, and resourceful, you’re known for taking the initiative, and you are consistent with follow-through. You share information, coordinate effectively, and execute responsibilities promptly while working seamlessly across teams.
• Flexible. You ask questions, listen, and learn. You are not afraid to try a new approach. You shift gears as appropriate while not being afraid to make a mistake.
• Judgment. You are able to make decisions with the data available; you are also able to understand when it is necessary to have help or insights in advance of making a decision.
• Strong communicator. You possess exceptional written and oral communication skills and communicate effectively at all levels, one-on-one and in groups. You write clearly and succinctly and easily adjust to different communication settings and styles.
• High standards. You appreciate order and know how to achieve it efficiently. Your work product is impeccable. You have command of both the process and the details.
• Hold confidentiality in high regard. You use the utmost discretion, inside the office and out, about the knowledge and information that you hold.

Our Core Values

• We are constantly learning and improving. We test and refine new ideas and learn from our mistakes. We dare to question old solutions. We seek opportunities to collaborate with our diverse team; different backgrounds, skill sets, and thinking styles give us valuable new perspectives. We share knowledge and insights with each other to help us grow as individuals and as an organization.
• We value diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging for all. We believe that we are stronger for our differences, and we acknowledge, respect, and appreciate them. We actively work with and learn from everyone—across all demographics, backgrounds, ideologies, and geographies. We identify areas where we differ and, for the good of the organization and each other, we explore and engage with differing perspectives.
• We are gracious and grateful in all that we do. We invest in our relationships with warmth and a sense of humor. We express gratitude to all our colleagues and stakeholders. While we strive for excellence, we recognize that no one is perfect. We give others the benefit of the doubt and act with kindness and integrity.
• We are attentive and intentional. We are aware of the needs of the world and those around us so that our work has a real impact. Our work is mission-driven and we know the “whys”—both large and small—behind what we do. Recognizing that details matter, we are equally committed to quality.

C&S offers a generous benefits package.