
Odyssey Junior Coordinator
UW–Madison Division of Continuing Studies, Madison, WI, United States
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Job Category
Academic Staff
Employment Type
Regular
Job Profile
Academic Program Specialist
Job Summary
The award-winning, multi-generational UW Odyssey Project is a UW-Madison program housed within the Division of Continuing Studies. Through free access to education, Odyssey takes a whole family approach to breaking cycles of generational poverty while focusing on giving adult and youth learners a voice, increasing participants’ confidence in reading, writing, and speaking, and creating a supportive community for students as they continue on their educational journeys. About to complete its 23rd year, this inspirational project has empowered low-income adults to overcome adversity and achieve their dreams by getting a jump start at earning college degrees they never thought possible. Some graduates of the program have journeyed from homelessness to UW-Madison degrees, or from incarceration to meaningful work in the community. Odyssey consists of five programs serving adults and their children, held at the UW South Madison Partnership Space and in several correctional facilities across the state.
About Odyssey Junior
While their parents are in class, over 50 children of Odyssey students, ages newborn-18, participate in one of our five Odyssey Junior classrooms: Baby Badgers (newborn - 2), Scouts (2-4k), Explorers (K-3rd), Voyagers (4th-7th), and Teens (8th-12th). Recognizing that breaking the cycle of generational poverty involves whole families, we support children in self-expression and literacy through a variety of forms, including visual arts, reading, writing, speaking, music, and movement.
Job Duties
Program coordination for Odyssey Junior:
Support Monday and Wednesday evening programming, including greeting families, providing classroom support, program set up and clean up, and classroom photography
Provide administrative support for Odyssey Junior’s director, including maintaining program enrollment documents, organizing digital materials, and assisting with publication of the Odyssey Junior Oracle
Manage Odyssey Junior’s volunteer process, including tracking interest forms, interviewing prospective volunteers, onboarding new volunteers, and maintaining required training documentation in accordance with UW policy
Plan quarterly family events, including serving as the primary liaison between program staff and external organizations, scheduling events, creating promotional content, securing necessary materials, set up, and clean up
Communicate with community partners to schedule guest visits and coordinate logistics
Coordinate purchasing, distribution, organization, and receipt documentation of program materials
Create promotional content for Odyssey’s social media and update Odyssey’s website
Engage in continued learning opportunities related to Odyssey Junior’s mission
Other activities supporting the UW Odyssey Project:
Assist Odyssey’s adult program coordinator with food logistics for weekly programming, including planning orders, coordinating with vendors, receiving deliveries, maintaining supplies, and distributing meals
Research and compile community resources and opportunities that would benefit Odyssey families
Participate in regularly scheduled meetings with supervisor, program staff, and DCS staff
Key Job Responsibilities
Utilizes independent judgement regarding development, implementation, promotion, and evaluation for one or more academic programs, initiatives, or events
Identifies program, needs, contributes to the development of unit workflows, schedules logistics and secures resources for meetings, events, and interviews
Coordinates program components and evaluates program effectiveness and provides recommendations for improvement
May supervise the day to day activities of one or more academic programs and resolves issues exercising discretion to meet unit goals.
Department
Continuing Studies, Liberal Arts and Applied Studies
Compensation
Minimum $45,000 ANNUAL
Required Qualifications
Ability to work Mondays and Wednesdays from 12-8pm during the academic year
Experience working in youth programming or a relevant degree
Experience working with racially diverse and low income groups
Demonstrated cultural humility
Strong interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills
Demonstrated ability to quickly adapt to changing circumstances
Strong skills in Microsoft (Word, Excel, Outlook) and Google (Docs, Sheets, Slides)
Strong organizational skills and attention to detail
Valid driver’s license and access to a vehicle
Ability to lift 30 lbs
Preferred Qualifications
Lived experience related to Odyssey’s mission
Experience with event planning
Experience with volunteer coordination
Experience with youth curriculum development
Excellent problem solving and independent decision-making skills
Knowledge of simple design software (Canva, Wordpress) to create promotional materials, social media content, and website updates
Education
Bachelor's Degree Preferred
Institutional Statement on Diversity
Diversity is a source of strength, creativity, and innovation for UW-Madison. We value the contributions of each person and respect the profound ways our identities, cultures, backgrounds, experiences, statuses, abilities, and opinions enrich the university community. We commit ourselves to the pursuit of excellence in teaching, research, outreach, and diversity as inextricably linked goals.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison fulfills its public mission by creating a welcoming and inclusive community for people from every background – people who as students, faculty, and staff serve Wisconsin and the world.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison is an Equal Opportunity Employer
Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to, including but not limited to, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, pregnancy, disability, or status as a protected veteran and other bases as defined by federal regulations and UW System policies. We promote excellence by acknowledging skills and expertise from all backgrounds and encourage all qualified individuals to apply. For more information regarding applicant and employee rights and to view federal and state required postings, visit the Human Resources Workplace Poster website. To request a disability or pregnancy-related accommodation for any step in the hiring process (e.g., application, interview, pre-employment testing, etc.), please contact the Divisional Disability Representative (DDR) in the division you are applying to. Employment may require a criminal background check. It may also require your references to answer questions regarding misconduct, including sexual violence and sexual harassment. The University of Wisconsin System will not reveal the identities of applicants who request confidentiality in writing, except that the identity of the successful candidate will be released. See Wis. Stat. sec. 19.36(7). The Annual Security and Fire Safety Report contains current campus safety and disciplinary policies, crime statistics for the previous 3 calendar years, and on-campus student housing fire safety policies and fire statistics for the previous 3 calendar years. UW-Madison will provide a paper copy upon request; please contact the University of Wisconsin Police Department.
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Job Category
Academic Staff
Employment Type
Regular
Job Profile
Academic Program Specialist
Job Summary
The award-winning, multi-generational UW Odyssey Project is a UW-Madison program housed within the Division of Continuing Studies. Through free access to education, Odyssey takes a whole family approach to breaking cycles of generational poverty while focusing on giving adult and youth learners a voice, increasing participants’ confidence in reading, writing, and speaking, and creating a supportive community for students as they continue on their educational journeys. About to complete its 23rd year, this inspirational project has empowered low-income adults to overcome adversity and achieve their dreams by getting a jump start at earning college degrees they never thought possible. Some graduates of the program have journeyed from homelessness to UW-Madison degrees, or from incarceration to meaningful work in the community. Odyssey consists of five programs serving adults and their children, held at the UW South Madison Partnership Space and in several correctional facilities across the state.
About Odyssey Junior
While their parents are in class, over 50 children of Odyssey students, ages newborn-18, participate in one of our five Odyssey Junior classrooms: Baby Badgers (newborn - 2), Scouts (2-4k), Explorers (K-3rd), Voyagers (4th-7th), and Teens (8th-12th). Recognizing that breaking the cycle of generational poverty involves whole families, we support children in self-expression and literacy through a variety of forms, including visual arts, reading, writing, speaking, music, and movement.
Job Duties
Program coordination for Odyssey Junior:
Support Monday and Wednesday evening programming, including greeting families, providing classroom support, program set up and clean up, and classroom photography
Provide administrative support for Odyssey Junior’s director, including maintaining program enrollment documents, organizing digital materials, and assisting with publication of the Odyssey Junior Oracle
Manage Odyssey Junior’s volunteer process, including tracking interest forms, interviewing prospective volunteers, onboarding new volunteers, and maintaining required training documentation in accordance with UW policy
Plan quarterly family events, including serving as the primary liaison between program staff and external organizations, scheduling events, creating promotional content, securing necessary materials, set up, and clean up
Communicate with community partners to schedule guest visits and coordinate logistics
Coordinate purchasing, distribution, organization, and receipt documentation of program materials
Create promotional content for Odyssey’s social media and update Odyssey’s website
Engage in continued learning opportunities related to Odyssey Junior’s mission
Other activities supporting the UW Odyssey Project:
Assist Odyssey’s adult program coordinator with food logistics for weekly programming, including planning orders, coordinating with vendors, receiving deliveries, maintaining supplies, and distributing meals
Research and compile community resources and opportunities that would benefit Odyssey families
Participate in regularly scheduled meetings with supervisor, program staff, and DCS staff
Key Job Responsibilities
Utilizes independent judgement regarding development, implementation, promotion, and evaluation for one or more academic programs, initiatives, or events
Identifies program, needs, contributes to the development of unit workflows, schedules logistics and secures resources for meetings, events, and interviews
Coordinates program components and evaluates program effectiveness and provides recommendations for improvement
May supervise the day to day activities of one or more academic programs and resolves issues exercising discretion to meet unit goals.
Department
Continuing Studies, Liberal Arts and Applied Studies
Compensation
Minimum $45,000 ANNUAL
Required Qualifications
Ability to work Mondays and Wednesdays from 12-8pm during the academic year
Experience working in youth programming or a relevant degree
Experience working with racially diverse and low income groups
Demonstrated cultural humility
Strong interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills
Demonstrated ability to quickly adapt to changing circumstances
Strong skills in Microsoft (Word, Excel, Outlook) and Google (Docs, Sheets, Slides)
Strong organizational skills and attention to detail
Valid driver’s license and access to a vehicle
Ability to lift 30 lbs
Preferred Qualifications
Lived experience related to Odyssey’s mission
Experience with event planning
Experience with volunteer coordination
Experience with youth curriculum development
Excellent problem solving and independent decision-making skills
Knowledge of simple design software (Canva, Wordpress) to create promotional materials, social media content, and website updates
Education
Bachelor's Degree Preferred
Institutional Statement on Diversity
Diversity is a source of strength, creativity, and innovation for UW-Madison. We value the contributions of each person and respect the profound ways our identities, cultures, backgrounds, experiences, statuses, abilities, and opinions enrich the university community. We commit ourselves to the pursuit of excellence in teaching, research, outreach, and diversity as inextricably linked goals.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison fulfills its public mission by creating a welcoming and inclusive community for people from every background – people who as students, faculty, and staff serve Wisconsin and the world.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison is an Equal Opportunity Employer
Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to, including but not limited to, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, pregnancy, disability, or status as a protected veteran and other bases as defined by federal regulations and UW System policies. We promote excellence by acknowledging skills and expertise from all backgrounds and encourage all qualified individuals to apply. For more information regarding applicant and employee rights and to view federal and state required postings, visit the Human Resources Workplace Poster website. To request a disability or pregnancy-related accommodation for any step in the hiring process (e.g., application, interview, pre-employment testing, etc.), please contact the Divisional Disability Representative (DDR) in the division you are applying to. Employment may require a criminal background check. It may also require your references to answer questions regarding misconduct, including sexual violence and sexual harassment. The University of Wisconsin System will not reveal the identities of applicants who request confidentiality in writing, except that the identity of the successful candidate will be released. See Wis. Stat. sec. 19.36(7). The Annual Security and Fire Safety Report contains current campus safety and disciplinary policies, crime statistics for the previous 3 calendar years, and on-campus student housing fire safety policies and fire statistics for the previous 3 calendar years. UW-Madison will provide a paper copy upon request; please contact the University of Wisconsin Police Department.
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