| Anonymous | Graduate Assistant for First Year Experience (2 positions)
Persistence & Retention
Fort Hays State University – Hays, KS
2013-2014 Academic Year
Overview
The First Year Experience is designed to help student excel in the classroom & adjust to life as a Tiger. FYE empowers students to develop holistically by building a foundation for their success through comprehensive programming. FYE enhances students’ & families’ transition to, connection with, understanding of, & engagement within the FHSU community. FYE offers a variety of programs, including the following:
· Tiger Pre-Enrollment – one-day & half-day summer orientation programs
· TigerConnect & ParentConnect – social media platforms for new students & parents/families
· Golden Beginnings – summer extended orientation programs
· Tiger Send-off Events – summer geographic family send-off events with the Alumni Association
· Tiger Impact – four-day fall orientation program
· AugustFest – welcome weeks program
· IDS101 Freshman Seminar – two-credit hour required course for all new first-year students
· Fusion Events – events held throughout the year for new first year & transfer students
· Spring New Student Orientation
Staff members work with a number of student leaders including the Orientation Assistants (OAs), Parent & Family OAs, Senior OAs, Golden Beginnings Director Staff, Golden Beginnings Guides, Fusion Squad, & Tau Sigma National Transfer Honor Society Executive Board.
FYE is a component of Persistence & Retention, which aims to promote first year student engagement & persistence to the sophomore year. Persistence & Retention is housed within the Office of Student Affairs in the Division of Student Affairs and seeks to enhance the division’s vision to create an unparalleled student experience supporting & helping each member of our global community succeed.
Position Description
The Graduate Assistant for First Year Experience is an integral member of the Persistence & Retention staff & reports directly to the Director of Persistence & Retention. This position supports the Director in planning, implementing, & assessing the university’s first year experience, orientation, transition, & retention programs & services. The Graduate Assistant works closely on the execution of major programs such as Tiger Pre-Enrollment (Freshman, Transfer, & Parent/Family), Golden Beginnings, Tiger Impact, and IDS101 Freshman Seminar.
The Graduate Assistant is expected to be student-centered, administratively sound, task-oriented, relationship-oriented, have the ability to problem solve, work autonomously as well as with a team, & be proficient with computers & technology. Small & large group facilitation skills, strong customer service skills, appreciation for diversity & the ability to work successfully with a variety of constituents are also highly desired.
Key duties of the Graduate Assistant include the following:
· Assist the Director of Persistence & Retention and FYE Student Leadership Team in the development, implementation, staffing, & assessment of FYE events including Tiger Pre-Enrollment, Golden Beginnings, Tiger Send-off Events, Tiger Impact, AugustFest, Fusion Events, & Spring New Student Orientation.
· Develop a weekly e-newsletter blast for Freshman Seminar instructors regarding campus events, important dates, new research, & innovative trends.
· Assist Freshman Seminar instructors as needed including regarding scheduling multi-class presentations, securing resources, gathering ENGAGE data scores, etc.
· Work in conjunction with the Director of Persistence & Retention in advising the Golden Beginnings Director Staff & advising one of the Directors specifically.
· Serve as the primary advisor for the FHSU chapter of Tau Sigma National Transfer Student Honor Society.
· Coordinate an annual Getting to Year 2 @ FHSU Summit, a one-day program held during the spring semester to prepare first year students to transition to their second year.
· Conduct outreach to at-risk students identified through the early alert warning system to assess needs & make appropriate referrals.
· Assist in the development & implementation of FYE and Persistence & Retention marketing efforts, including creating, producing, & editing publications & social media.
· Assist in the recruitment, selection, training, mentoring, & supervision of FYE Executive & Student Leadership Teams.
· Research cutting-edge, high-impact programs focused on first year student orientation, transition, & retention & make recommendations for implementation & enhancements of current programming.
· Attend National Orientation Directors Association (NODA) Region IV Conference in the spring with the FYE Executive Team.
Required Qualifications
· Completion of a bachelor’s degree.
· Admission to the FHSU Graduate School & enrollment in a graduate course of study.
Preferred Qualifications
· Enrollment in the higher education student affairs master’s program.
· Previous experience with new student orientation, first year experience, freshman seminar, student transition, retention, family engagement, and/or related higher education/student affairs programs.
· Previous experience with coordinating & executing student programs.
· Previous experience advising, supervising, or working with student staff.
· Demonstrated verbal & written communication skills.
· Demonstrated ability to work autonomously & as a team member.
· Desire to utilize research, best practices, & assessment to create student-focused programs & events.
Compensation
$7000 annual stipend
$500 semester in Flexi Cash dollars (used in various dining locations on-campus) (anticipated)
The assistantship is a 20 hour/week appointment. The Graduate Assistant will generally work a standard weekly schedule but must be flexible when orientation, training, retreats, & meetings are in session. Some evening and/or weekend work is required.
About the University & Community
Fort Hays State University is the leading forward-thinking, entrepreneurial university of the Midwest. FHSU has an enrollment of more than 13,000 students & offers hundreds of degree programs & certificates at the associate’s, bachelor’s, & master’s levels through 28 academic departments. The institution was recently selected to the 2012 NASPA Lead Initiative on Civic Learning & Democratic Engagement, being named as one of 50 institutions nationally committed to civic learning & democratic engagement activities.
Located halfway between Denver & Kansas City, FHSU is a welcoming community in the heart of historic Hays, a community that celebrates its frontier roots & modern sensibility – coffee shops, one-of-a-kind restaurants, shopping, & a vibrant arts scene.
Contact Information
Brett Bruner
Director of Persistence & Retention
600 Park St., Sheridan Hall 208
Hays, KS 67601
(785) 628-5824
blbruner@fhsu.edu |
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