Clarification from the agency

This vacancy announcement will be open from 10/15/2019 to 10/24/2019 or when 200 applications have been received. The vacancy will close on whichever day the first of these conditions are met. If the application limit is reached on the same day the announcement opened, the open and close date will be the same. Candidates are encouraged to read the entire announcement before submitting their application packages.

Hiring Path Clarification: You must have the authorization to work in the United States to apply.

APPLICANTS ARE HIGHLY ENCOURAGE TO READ TO ENTIRE VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT PRIOR TO APPLYING.

Founded in 1977, the Latin American Program is dedicated to bridging the gap between scholarship and public policy. The Program provides non-partisan expertise to a broad community of decision makers in the United States and Latin America concerning critical policy issues facing the Hemisphere. For decades, it has forged strong relationships with institutions, companies, and individuals throughout the Americas in order to deepen mutual understanding and improve policy outcomes.

The incumbent of this position serves as PROGRAM ASSISTANT providing administrative support to the Director of the Latin American Program, including event logistics and travel arrangements in English and Spanish. Major duties and responsibilities of this position include:

• Provides administrative support for the Director on Program management, to include event coordination and fundraising outreach.
• Assists with the development, planning, and execution of Latin American Program public and private events, including making travel and hotel arrangements, sending event invitations, coordinating catering and audiovisual services, updating the Program’s mailing list, and other necessary administrative / logistical support in English and/or Spanish.
• Drafts and prepares a variety of correspondence, reports, forms, and other materials related to program projects, in English and/or Spanish.
• Supports the development and maintenance of program website.
• Assists with the management of program social media accounts.
• Prepares monthly program newsletter in coordination with the Director and other LAP staff.
• Assists other Program staff in tracking expenditures for programs’ accounts and reconciling these accounts with reports provided by the Wilson Center’s Financial Management Office.
• Assists with the production of Program-specific meeting reports, briefing notes, Program newsletters, grant applications and publications.
• Assists the Program Director and other Program staff in performing research related to program activities, including both library and internet research.

Conditions of employment

• You must be authorized to work in the United States.
• You must complete a background investigation.
• You must maintain a bank account for direct deposit
• You must have a valid Social Security Number to apply.
• You may be required to complete a probationary period.

All Qualifications criteria must be met by the closing date of announcement

Qualifications

To minimally qualify for this position, applicants must meet the following:

Specialized Experience: Applicants must have at least one full-time year (12-months) of specialized experience at, or equivalent to, the Grade 5 grade level (relative to federal and market standards) providing administrative support functions including drafting and proofreading correspondence for correct grammar, punctuation and spelling in English and Spanish, arranging travel and hotel accommodations, financial management, managing social media platforms, and conducting research concerning Latin America and/or U.S-Latin America relations.

An academic degree is not a requirement for this position; however, academic credentials, coursework and/or experience in international affairs with a Latin American focus, and knowledge of U.S-Colombia relations and/or Colombian political economics is highly desirable

Note: The “relative market standards” is defined based on the knowledge required to do the work, complexity of the work performed, independence in conducting the work, and regular/recurring contacts.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Selective Factor:

In addition to the qualifications stated above, applicants must meet the following selective factor to minimally qualify for this position. This selective factor is required to successfully perform the essential function of this position:

Advanced level fluency in the Spanish language.

If you do not meet the selective factor, your application will be rated ineligible.

 
In describing your experience, please be clear and specific. We will not make assumptions regarding your experience. If your résumé does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s).

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Applications are evaluated and rated under Category Rating and Selection procedures. Category rating combines the applicant's total experience and/or education/training into a single category. Your application will initially be rated against the criteria outlined in this announcement.

Qualifying applications will be placed into one of the following categories:

1. Gold (Best Qualified)
2. Silver
3. Bronze

Applications in the Best Qualified category will be evaluated to ensure that the Specialized Experience and other eligibility requirements are met and supported/verified by the résumé and supplemental documents submitted.