Education Mentoring Specialist

American Astronomical Society (AAS), a prestigious scientific association in DC whose mission is “to enhance and share humanity’s scientific understanding of the universe as a diverse and inclusive astronomical community”, has an immediate opening for an Education and Mentoring Specialist to join our team.

From promoting AAS education efforts to mentoring with partner organizations, this position will be a vital member of the AAS team.  We seek a dynamic professional with a passion for astronomy to promote our vision of creating a world where all people value and benefit from a scientific understanding of our universe and further our core values:

• Curiosity:  We conduct research driven by our curiosity about the Universe.
• Integrity:  We act with integrity, ethical behavior, and transparency as we perform our investigations and share our results.
• Inclusivity:  We use fair and accessible practices to create a diverse and welcoming scientific community.
• Empowerment:  We mentor and support our early career members, using our resources to create a positive environment for them and for our astronomical community.
• Sustainability:  We accomplish our work using environmentally sensitive actions rooted in scientific understanding.

This position will optimally be filled in our Washington, DC office with a full-time employee, but flexibility may possible for the right candidate for remote work or part-time work. Vaccination is required.  This is a great opportunity to work with a progressive organization with fantastic benefits and culture.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

EDUCATION SPECIALIST [50% for two years, increasing to 80%]

• • Promote and support the development, implementation and reach of AAS Education Committee programs consistent with the AAS Strategic Plan.
  • Administer, with assistance from other AAS staff members and volunteers, various existing and possible future education-related programs, including the AAS education mini-grants program, Shapley Lectureship Program and others as needed.
  • In partnership with volunteers, other AAS staff and partner organizations, assist with the implementation of the recommendations of various recent Task Force reports including the AAS Education Task Force and Diversity and Equity and Inclusion in Graduate Education Task Force, among others as needed.
  • Administer education-related content on the AAS web pages with support as necessary.

MENTORING SPECIALIST [50% for two years, decreasing to 20%]

• Lead AAS participation in a two-year mentoring project with AGU and other partner organizations funded by a NASA grant.
• Assist with and expanding extant mentoring programs in collaboration with the Employment Committee and Director of Membership Services (e.g., the Career Webinar Program).
• Promote and support mentoring activities at AAS Conferences.

WHAT YOU’LL BRING

• PhD in astronomy or closely related science preferred.
• Minimum 5 years’ experience in education, outreach or mentoring activities.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate successfully with others to accomplish complex, long-term goals.
• Excellent presentation skills with the ability to deliver oral reports effectively and passionately to groups of educators or astronomers.
• Excellent time-management and organizational skills.
• Ability to execute responsibilities with minimal supervision and oversight.

WHY YOU’LL LOVE US

We offer a competitive salary plus an exceptional benefits package, including generous sick and vacation time (13 days initially, increasing to 24 days after five years of service), 14 paid holidays, comprehensive medical with a choice of three plans, dental, vision, life insurance, short-term disability and long-term disability, retirement contribution after one year of 10% of base salary, parking and commuter benefits, tuition reimbursement, and professional development opportunities.

For consideration for this role, please submit your resume to Chrisanne Bowden, contract recruiter for AAS, at [email protected].