Outreach and Engagement Specialist

National Center for Supercomputing Applications

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN

 

NCSA is seeking a talented, highly motivated individual to serve as Outreach and Engagement Specialist. A successful candidate will work with the Midwest Big Data Hub’s (MBDH) Executive Director to develop and maintain an outreach and engagement plan to strengthen MBDH’s data science community.

 

The National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign provides supercomputing and advanced digital resources for the nation's scientific enterprise. At NCSA, University of Illinois faculty, staff, students, and collaborators from around the globe use advanced digital resources to address and research grand challenges for the benefit of science and society. NCSA has been advancing one third of Fortune 50 companies for more than 30 years by bringing industry, researchers and students together to solve grand challenges at rapid speed and scale.

NCSA is committed to increasing the diversity of the campus community. Candidates who have experience working with a diverse range of faculty, staff, and students, and who can contribute to the climate of inclusivity are encouraged to apply.

 

The University of Illinois is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action employer that recruits and hires qualified candidates without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, disability or veteran status. For more information, visit http://go.illinois.edu/EEO.

 

 

Primary Position Function/Summary:

Collaborate with internal and external NCSA stakeholders to improve outreach and engagement to encourage a more diverse scientific community.

 

Major Duties and Responsibilities:

Relationship Management:

• Collaborate with the Midwest Big Data Hub (MBDH) Executive Director to develop and maintain an outreach and engagement plan towards building a diverse and inclusive data science community.
• Maintain existing MBDH partner and collaborator relationships through regular progress meetings and personal communications.
• Develop and cultivate relationships with individuals in academia, industry, government, nonprofits / civic organizations around MBDH program goals.
• Articulate and communicate the value of the MBDH and NSF Big Data (BD) Hubs’ national network to people and organizations unfamiliar with the program.

Community Development:

• Identify opportunities for development of communities of interest / communities of practice in areas in alignment with MBDH strategic priorities.
• Conduct targeted outreach campaigns to grow the MBDH community, with specific focus on students, early-career researchers, predominantly undergraduate institutions
• (PUIs), minority-serving institutions (MSIs), and individuals and groups in industry, government, and nonprofit organizations.
• Assist with implementation of a series of community data needs assessment activities (surveys, focus groups, community meetings, etc.).
• Develop and maintain contact data and relationship history on data science-related contacts at Midwest institutions and organizations (academia, industry, government,nonprofits / civic organizations).
• Coordinate student group activities, with support from student interns.
• Support the development of and outreach for existing MBDH communities and programmatic activities.

Communications Operations:

• Lead the development and maintenance of the MBDH content calendar.
• Research, write, and edit newsletters, stakeholder emails, social media and blog posts, news stories, media releases, reports, and other public-facing documents, in collaboration with MBDH leadership, staff, other Project Team and MBDH Coordinator members, and UIUC/NCSA communications staff.
• Co-mentor the MBDH science communications interns, helping them identify and develop timely and relevant written and video content.
• Solicit and project-manage content development from the MBDH stakeholder community.
• Contribute to MBDH website, Twitter account, LinkedIn account, and YouTube channel content development and maintenance.
• Contribute to the all-Hubs website (BigDataHubs.org) and to cross-Hub communications operations with the other three regional Big Data Hubs.
• Support MBDH-sponsored events with web page development, social media presence, photographs/images, and public reports.
• Assist in developing graphics, photos, stock images, and other visual content.

Event Management and Other Responsibilities:

• Collaborate on the development and coordination of one-time and recurring in-person and online events, such as webinars, workshops, working group meetings, regional community meetings, national BD Hub events, and community needs-assessment activities.
• Develop and maintain Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) on outreach and engagement to track performance and provide impact and outcomes assessment for project sponsors and the MBDH external evaluation team.

 

Position Requirements and Qualifications:

Education:

Required: 

• Bachelor’s degree in a STEM or business-related field required. Alternative degree fields may be considered/accepted if accompanied by equivalent experience (depending on nature and depth of experience as it relates to current NCSA projects).

Preferred:

• Advanced degree in a STEM or business-related field required. Alternative degree fields may be considered/accepted if accompanied by equivalent experience (depending on nature and depth of experience as it relates to current NCSA projects).

Experience:

Required: 

• One year experience with outreach, community engagement, relationship management, community building, and/or other client-facing engagement with diverse populations, academic disciplines, and sectors.
• Experience with Google Docs suite and/or Microsoft Office Suite.
• Experience writing and editing in research, science, and/or technology environments.

Preferred:

• Experience working in interdisciplinary academic research environments and/or nonprofit organizations. Knowledge of data science concepts, trends, and organizations.
• Knowledge of research data management challenges and practices.
• Experience interviewing scientists, researchers, technology professionals, and others.
• Experience translating and summarizing technical information into non-technical language.
• Experience with planning, developing, and managing communications strategies, campaigns, and operations.
• Experience maintaining content for websites (WordPress preferred).
• Experience with software tools including Photoshop, Illustrator, Google Docs, WordPress, Mailchimp, TweetDeck, Microsoft Office, YouTube, Zoom, audio/video editing tools.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Organization and time-management skills.
• Project coordination / management skills and tools.
• Awareness of, and sensitivity to, cultural and linguistic differences.
• Ability to work in a collaborative team environment.
• Understanding of the roles of cyberinfrastructure and high-performance computing (HPC) in academia and industry.
• Knowledge of graphic design fundamentals.

 

About the Midwest Big Data Innovation Hub

The Midwest Big Data Innovation Hub (MBDH) is a project funded by the National Science Foundation and part of the national network of four NSF Big Data Hubs. The project is based at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications at the University of Illinois with partner sites at other universities in the Midwest. The MBDH is focused on bringing together data scientists and researchers from other disciplines, along with people from industry, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations to solve data-related challenges in health, agriculture, the environment, and related areas. Learn more at: https://midwestbigdatahub.org/

 

Salary and Appointment Information

This is a full-time Civil Service Program Coordinator position appointed on a 12-month service basis. The expected start date is as soon as possible after the closing date. Salary is commensurate with experience and qualifications.

 

Application Procedures and Deadline Information

Applications must be received by May 31, 2022. Apply for this position using the “Apply for Position” button below. If you have not applied before, you must create your candidate profile at http://jobs.illinois.edu. If you already have a profile, you will be redirected to that existing profile via email notification. To complete the application process:

Step 1) Submit the Staff Vacancy Application.

Step 2) Submit the Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability forms.

Step 3) Upload your cover letter, resume (months and years of employment must be included), and academic credentials including bachelor's degree (required) and master's degree or higher (unofficial transcripts or diploma may be acceptable) and names/contact information for three references.  Academic credentials will be verified before hire.

In order to be considered as a transfer candidate, you must apply for this position using the “Apply for Position” button below. Applications not submitted through this website will not be considered. For further information about this specific position, please contact Devin Scheidemantel at wds@illinois.edu.  For questions regarding the application process, please contact 217-333-2137.

 

The University of Illinois conducts criminal background checks on all job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent offer.  Convictions are not a bar to employment.  

 

As a qualifying federal contractor, the University of Illinois System uses E-Verify to verify employment eligibility.

 

The University of Illinois System requires candidates selected for hire to disclose any documented finding of sexual misconduct or sexual harassment and to authorize inquiries to current and former employers regarding findings of sexual misconduct or sexual harassment. For more information, visit Policy on Consideration of Sexual Misconduct in Prior Employment.  

 

University of Illinois faculty, staff and students are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. If you are not able to receive the vaccine for medical or religious reasons, you may seek approval for an exemption in accordance with applicable University processes.