Title: Scholarship and Student Success Manager / Say Yes Syracuse
Reports To: Vice President of Scholarships & Student Success / Executive Director of Say Yes Syracuse
Status: Regular, Full-time, Non-Exempt
Position Description: This position assists in the administration of the Community Foundation’s scholarship program, including scholarship applications/awards and the Say Yes Syracuse (SYS) initiative, as well as engages and cultivates relationships with external stakeholders including families, students, Syracuse City School District (SCSD) and other school districts, partnering colleges and universities, and service providers to develop programs and activities that support college matriculation and the completion of degree programs among students.
Major Responsibilities:
- Community Foundation Scholarship Program. Assists in the management of the Community Foundation’s scholarship program, including:
- ManagesCommunity Foundation scholarship award committees, including award process, committee member engagement and application review meetings, and student award notifications.
- Responds to student and parent/guardian inquiries about scholarship awards and eligibility issues, enrollment status, and application completion; engages with college/university admissions and finance personnel.
- Facilitates scholarship renewals; reviews and assesses requests for exceptions and appeals.
- Say Yes Scholarship Program. Assist in the facilitation of scholarship awards with SUNY colleges/universities and SYS compact colleges/universities:
- Responds to inquiries from students and parents/guardians, SCSD college counsellors and other staff, and others as needed, regarding scholarship application process and eligibility matters.
- Assists in managing appeals processes for students pre- and post-higher education matriculation.
- Assists New York State Financial Aid Administrators Association (NYSFAAA) in FAFSA completion programs and related projects at each of the high schools.
- Manages processes to keep all student status records up to date.
- Supports the work of SYS to engage with local partners to develop programs and activities that foster and support high school to college matriculation and college completion.
- Communications and Outreach. Support external outreach for the SYS initiative and Community Foundation scholarship programs, including organizing and conducting presentations for groups, partners and stakeholders; engages with SCSD internal and external communications and systems; and supports outreach to college and local nonprofit partners and their representatives.
- Data and Information. Supports the process for managing student scholarship data and data reporting:
- Corresponds with colleges/universities and other partners to ensure data from those institutions is correctly entered into the SYS scholarship data platform and Community Foundation software.
- Ensures that student scholarship records are updated on a timely basis, including tracking of scholarship awards and adjustments
- Tracks data and procedures specific to the Community Foundation’s scholarship funds, including award criteria and donor intent, procedures for high school selection committees, and other scholarship-specific information.
- Scholarship Awards Team. Participates as part of an interdepartmental, interdisciplinary team of Community Foundation personnel engaged in the process and management of student scholarship awards.
- Other Duties. Other duties and projects as assigned.
Preferred Qualifications
- Deep interest in and commitment to philanthropy and the work of the Community Foundation, with a demonstrated commitment to the Central New York area, its people and their concerns.
- Minimum of three years of related work experience required. Familiarity and direct experience with college student admissions processes, financial aid and/or scholarship support programs preferred.
- Computer proficiency including knowledge of Microsoft Office and database systems, and a willingness to learn all appropriate Community Foundation software.
- Excellent customer service, analytical, organizational and communication skills.
- Ability to organize and prioritize work and manage multiple priorities simultaneously
- Strong interpersonal, relationship building and networking skills.
- Excellent communication skills, both written and oral. Comfortably interact with diverse audiences including students and parents, SCSD partners, as well as nonprofit and community groups.
Time Requirement: This is a full-time, non-exempt position requiring 37.5 hours per week. Work hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. with some flexibility in a hybrid work schedule; availability to attend occasional evening events. Tuesdays through Thursdays are designated in-office days. Staff that choose to work a hybrid work schedule may choose to do so on Mondays and/or Fridays, dependent on approval.
Benefits: Salary starts at $50,000 – $55,000. Employee benefits include health insurance, annual vacation and sick days, twelve paid holidays, term life insurance, additional disability insurance, parking, 401(k) retirement savings program with employer contribution and match, optional flex spending accounts for medical or dependent care expenses and other benefits as outlined in the employee handbook.
