Administrative Fellows Program

Facilities Operations (FO) is not just maintenance; it is the engine driving the physical evolution of Vassar’s iconic campus while maintaining the stunning architecture and vibrant grounds that define the Vassar experience. An Administrative Fellow is sought who is ready to step into a dynamic environment and directly impact the strategic growth and daily vitality of the College.

The Administrative Fellow will work alongside a team of architects, project managers, engineers, and skilled tradespeople. This role is not limited to assistance; it involves solving real-world challenges, exploring sustainable solutions, and putting strategic ideas into action to shape the spaces where the Vassar community thrives.

This fellowship is designed for mutual growth. In addition to providing critical support to operations, the successful candidate will be empowered to define and pursue high-impact work within specific areas of interest. Time will be dedicated to mentorship that accelerates the fellow’s professional trajectory.

Key Responsibilities and Opportunities

• Project Leadership Support: Actively assist Project Managers through the full development cycle of diverse projects, contributing to design review and construction oversight.
• Strategic Planning and Data Mastery: Engage directly in the strategic planning process for upcoming capital projects.
• Digital Asset Management: Organize, catalog, and maintain critical building information, assets, and project databases, creating a comprehensive digital repository.
• Impact Storyteller: Find new ways to promote the work of FO through efforts in sustainability, major construction, and key FO initiatives.
• Sustainability Champion: Contribute to the enhancement of Energy Management Reporting, providing data insights to drive Vassar’s environmental commitments.

Qualifications

• Exceptional organizational abilities and a proven track record of managing competing deadlines.
• High-level proficiency in quickly mastering new technologies and computer programs.
• Adaptability, flexibility, and a proactive approach to tackling complex issues.
• A minimum of a bachelor’s degree from Vassar is required.
• A deep appreciation and passion for preserving and enhancing Vassar’s unparalleled campus environment.
• Preferred: Experience with ArcGIS and/or AutoCAD is a plus.

Contact

Facilities Operations; Maxine Coleman coleman@vassar.edu

About Restorative Practices for Engaged Pluralism

The Office of Restorative Practices (RP) promotes a culture of engaged pluralism by empowering Vassar community members to constructively navigate conflict through education, facilitation, and collaborative partnership development.

To this end, representing Vassar Engaged Pluralism (EP) within the Dean of the College area, RP partners with student-facing offices across the College (such as Athletics, Campus Activities, Student Living and Wellness, etc.) to build community, engage in dialogue, develop communication skills, and steward repair and healing processes among students on campus.

As a core member of the Engaged Pluralism Collaborative Team, RP is specifically responsible for leading EP’s efforts to develop a culture of restorative justice on and beyond campus, creating spaces for Vassar people to practice EP’s four core tools: Storytelling, Intergroup Dialogue, Inclusive Pedagogy, and Restorative Justice.

The 2026–2027 school year begins RP’s fourth year at Vassar as a campus resource and marks a crucial juncture in the growth of a restorative campus culture. RP’s vision is that Vassar College becomes a community in which a culture of engaged pluralism flourishes: a place where different ideas, values, and beliefs are explored, practiced, and discussed in a context of respect, mutual understanding, collective sustainability, and, when needed, healing and repair. If resourced adequately, a restorative culture at Vassar has the potential to expand both in scale and in depth this year, especially among the College’s student population. The Administrative Fellow will play a pivotal role in this expansion.

Role Description

The Administrative Fellow in Restorative Practices is responsible for improving the accessibility of the RP office to Vassar’s student population, increasing the number of low-barrier opportunities for anyone at Vassar to contribute to a more restorative campus culture, and providing administrative and logistical support for restorative processes and events on Vassar’s campus with a particular focus on serving students.

Responsibilities

Communications and Administration

• Creatively direct the promotion of restorative practices on campus by envisioning and designing accessible and dynamic digital and in-person student engagement strategies, for example, short videos on key RP ideas.
• Support the planning and execution of RP workshops, events, and RP partnership in the EP Speaker Series.
• Administratively support the organization of restorative justice conferences on campus, maintaining a high level of discretion and confidentiality.
• Support RP’s cross-campus and community (off-campus) partnerships.

Facilitation and Training

• Collaborate with the Director of Restorative Practices in creating and delivering Circle Keeper training and skills-sharpening workshops open to all Vassar community members in fall and spring 2026–2027. Take responsibility for all organizational, promotional, and event management details.
• To the extent interested, shadow the staff leads of the Engaged Pluralism Student Facilitator Training program, participating in facilitator development workshops with guest experts.
• Serve in a leadership role in the EP Restorative Justice Learning Group, and/or another Learning Group of your interest.

Student Mentorship

• Convene and help supervise a cohort of advanced student facilitators who meet weekly and are responsible for the facilitation of peer-to-peer community-building circles and circles of support and accountability. Help them to prepare to facilitate circles and workshops.
• Collaborate with members of House Teams across campus interested in developing community-building and harm-reduction restorative practices to offer educational programming and co-facilitate circles.
• Serve as a point of contact with the Administrative Fellow in Athletics on developing communication skills workshops for the RISE program.
• Work with student leaders in other places across the College (e.g., Religious and Spiritual Life and Contemplative Practices, Student Growth and Engagement) to develop restorative and engaged pluralism programming in alignment with expressed interest and needs.

Learning Outcomes

Over the course of the 2026–2027 academic year, the Administrative Fellow will:

• Become familiar with the core tenets of Restorative Justice, including inclusive community building, active accountability, democratic decision-making, repairing harm, and rebuilding trust.
• Explore and experiment with a variety of restorative practices that foster those Restorative Justice tenets, such as active and empathic listening, community circle design, consent and consensus-based decision-making strategies, and restorative conference facilitation.
• Understand and model how restorative justice works in relationship to EP’s three other core tools: storytelling, intergroup dialogue, and inclusive pedagogy.
• Experience full-time work in a student-facing role in higher education.
• Create, iterate, and deliver visual educational and process models to make a student-serving office more accessible to a wider variety of students.
• To the extent desired, attend trainings with Engaged Pluralism team members in Inclusive Pedagogy and Human Resources to develop leadership and facilitation skills.
• To the extent desired, learn about the sustainable development of university-community partnerships and place-based education.
• Practice and improve administrative skills in time management, scheduling, event planning, project management and monitoring, evaluation, and learning.
• Experience and learn from regular goal-setting, including giving and receiving feedback with a supervisor and on a team.
• Act in a near-peer mentoring role to current students practicing restorative justice.
• Hone facilitation skills, specifically in the context of community-building, reflection, and support circles, as both an individual and co-facilitator.

Preferred Qualifications

• Strong organizational and planning skills, with the ability to both imagine projects and bring them to completion.
• Fluency in digital media and a willingness to creatively design and iterate educational materials for a student audience.
• Active listening skills and an active interest in understanding a broad range of perspectives.
• Flexibility and a desire to initiate a role and program that is new to the College.
• Excellent written and verbal communicator who is open to both giving and receiving feedback, asking for and offering help to others.

Contact

Restorative Practices: Amanda Munroe, at amunroe@vassar.edu

Position Overview and Scope of Work

The Department of Athletics & Physical Education is seeking a one-year, post-baccalaureate fellowship focused on student-athlete welfare and athletics regulatory compliance for Vassar’s 29 varsity teams and 550 student-athletes. The Administrative Fellow for Compliance and Student-Athlete Welfare is an entry-level administrative position that reports to the Deputy Director of Athletics & Director of Student-Athlete Welfare.

The selected candidate will assist with the implementation of a comprehensive student-athlete welfare strategic plan and contribute to the operations of the department. The successful candidate will support programming focused on the holistic development of student-athletes and help oversee NCAA rules compliance, student-athlete welfare, and diversity and inclusion initiatives.

This position provides an opportunity to create and manage education and leadership programs, campus events, and sustained learning experiences that transform the Vassar student-athlete experience. The Administrative Fellow will interact with cross-campus colleagues daily and positively impact the collegiate experience for more than 20% of the student body.

Position Responsibilities

• Assist with the implementation of the department’s comprehensive student-athlete welfare plan, including (but not limited to):
  • Development and logistics of RISE, the department’s student-athlete development program.
  • Marketing and promoting student-athlete welfare initiatives and events via social media, email, and messaging.
  • Collaborating with key campus stakeholders, external facilitators, and student-athlete working groups, and representing the department on campus committees.
  • Implementing a four-year curriculum plan for department inclusion initiatives.
  • Implementing and co-facilitating support, advocacy, and violence prevention programming.
  • Serving as co-advisor to the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).
• Assist with coordination of preseason and intersession housing, meals, and orientation scheduling for student-athletes.
• Assist with the management and oversight of all aspects of NCAA, Liberty League, and other applicable governing body rules compliance.
• Assist with maintaining accurate student-athlete data and preparing NCAA, conference, and College reports.

Required Skills and Experience

• A minimum of a Vassar bachelor’s degree is required.
• Strong appreciation for the value and role of intercollegiate athletics in the Vassar higher education experience.
• Excellent communication skills.
• Experience with social media and marketing platforms.
• Proven ability to work collaboratively with department personnel, campus colleagues, and external partners.
• Weekend, holiday, early morning, and/or late evening hours are required.

Learning Outcomes

• The successful candidate will learn leadership and team-building skills by working collaboratively with campus partners, current students, and external facilitators.
• This experience will provide professional networking opportunities.
• This experience will support the candidate’s pathway to pursue a career in higher education, including student affairs or collegiate athletics.
• The position will enhance facilitation, event planning, social media and marketing skills, and understanding of regulatory compliance.

Contact

Athletics: Kaitlin Leach, at kleach@vassar.edu

Proposal for an Administrative Fellow

Please accept the following proposal detailing the scope of work for an Administrative Fellow to support planning undertaken by the DoSPAR office. Kelli Duncan will serve as the fellow’s supervisor and mentor.

The Administrative Fellow will support and contribute to campus planning efforts and strategic initiatives, including, but not limited to, priorities and planning, accessibility planning, space planning, and classroom and office improvements.

The Fellow will gain experience in strategic planning, prioritizing needs with limited resources and within other constraints, gathering and managing data to be used in strategic decision-making, communicating planning outcomes and progress, and working with a broad cross-section of the organization. The specific projects that the Fellow will work on will depend on their interests and experiences, as well as the goals of the Office.

Scope of Work

Key Goals

• Develop and implement communication strategies related to the Priorities and Planning process, Accessibility Plan, Climate Action Plan, Campus Master Planning, and/or other planning efforts.
• Update websites related to the key focus areas and plans above, track accomplishments, and create dashboards, apps, or equivalent tools.
• Create a database needed for space planning.
• Develop mechanisms for engaging students in planning efforts.

Key Activities

• Generate content and support the design of web and other communication strategies for planning efforts (accessibility, climate action, and campus planning).
• Track and document action steps for the accessibility, climate action, and other plans; develop dissemination strategies for these achievements.
• Generate and maintain a database of spaces on campus, including, but not limited to, size, user, condition, and location, with a focus on offices and classrooms.
• Support the development of strategies for classroom and office improvements, especially by incorporating the results of the building accessibility audit.
• Collaborate with student leaders, house teams, administrative offices/centers, and other campus groups to engage students in planning efforts.
• Serve as support to the Accessibility Committee, CMPC, and Classroom Committees, schedule meetings, assist with agendas, document discussions, and complete action items.

Qualifications

• Experience developing social media and web content.
• Skilled in data collection and management.
• Interest in campus planning and accessibility.
• Ability to work independently and take initiative.
• Willingness to ask questions.
• Strategic thinker with the ability to execute solutions.
• Interested in developing an understanding of planning efforts in higher education.

Contact

DoSPAR: Marianne Begemann, at begemann@vassar.edu; and Kelli Duncan, at keduncan@vassar.edu