New Start Coordinator
Founded in 1859 as a school for young women, Averett grew to become a fully accredited, co-educational, four-year college that today enrolls more than 1500 students from 26 states and 24 countries. It offers more than 30 undergraduate majors, minors and special programs and three master's programs. Both traditional and adult students make up a diverse student body, including a large international enrollment. With its historic main campus in Danville, VA, the university also has six other campuses and learning centers throughout Virginia, as well as online courses and degree programs to serve our Graduate and Professional Studies students. Averett's network of more than 25,000 alumni spans all 50 states and almost 50 countries.
New Start Coordinator
Position Description
The New Start Coordinator reports to the Executive Director of Student Services and will maintain effective and close working relationships with enrollment, accounting, financial aid and academic affairs. This position is expected to serve as support for new Averett Online students during their first term. They will provide vision, leadership, management, excellent customer service and responsiveness, and hands-on operational oversight of the Averett Online new student start process. The Averett Online new student start process is key to Averett's ability to deliver on our strategic plan in each of the three key areas (Student Success, Brand Excellence, and Strategic Growth) and is specifically referenced in two Strategic Growth projects in progress at this time.
The New Start Coordinator demonstrates competence and effectiveness in:
• Conducts student appointments with the goal of supporting, onboarding, and disseminating course, program and student resource information to new and current students. The position requires advising students with respect to registration, including the transfer and application of current academic credits, as well as providing information on university resources, policy, practices, and rules.
• Maintains the highest level of professionalism and interpersonal communication skills throughout the new student onboarding process and with all University stakeholders.
• Maintains a high level of understanding of the Financial Aid process guiding students and transitioning to the Student Financial Services office when appropriate.
• Excitement for change balanced with need for consistency of process.
• Driven by curiosity.
Primary Responsibilities
• New student onboarding: Conducts new student onboarding from the point of acceptance through the end of their first term. This position helps students complete onboarding checklist items prior to starting the program. Onboarding checklist includes, but is not limited to, the following:
o ensuring new students receive their Averett login credentials, and have accessed their email, and logged into Averett's learning management system, Canvas, for their first course
o providing overview of technology requirements, academic advising process, curriculum for their degree and academic support available
o conducting overview of how to purchase textbooks, navigate learning management system and student information system
o invitations to future sessions about using institution's technology and other engagement activities
• Course registration: This position supports course registration by ensuring new students are enrolled in correct courses.
• At-risk student identification: Position aids in the identification of students who may need additional resources to be successful in the program and helps facilitate access and contact with the appropriate support resources.
• Attendance and Grade Tracking: This position supports and/or acts as back up when identified by Executive Director of Student Services, Averett Online, (vacation, illness, etc.) with attendance and grade reporting and monitoring systems as it relates to compliance for all Averett Online Students
• Student Success Coaching: This position has a small caseload of students and provides a strategic communication plan that spans from students' introductory course through the end of their degree requirements in an effort to increase retention. This may include emails, phone calls, and texts checking on student progress/experience and informing students of important deadlines, announcements, course registration instructions and engagement opportunities in collaboration with the Assistant Director of Averett Online Student Services and the Executive Director of Averett Online Student Services.
Secondary functions
• Stay current on student resources and documents.
• Maintain Target X relating to student readiness paperwork and other action items as required.
• Coordinate with Averett Online Student Services team, financial aid, accounting
• Other duties as assigned.
Qualifications
• Bachelor's degree required.
• Excellent ability to communicate in a highly professional manner.
• Exceptional customer service orientation, with ability to build and develop collaborative relationships
• Experience with building strong professional relationships with students, faculty and staff
• Experience with Microsoft Office (Excel, Word and PowerPoint)
• Ability to implement innovative ideas to proactively solve problems, prioritize workload, work on cross functional teams and use specialized computer applications like Student Information Systems and Customer Relationship Management systems.
• Knowledge of factors that affect student retention and persistence.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills needed.
• Experience in strategic and operational planning and problem solving.
• Excellent leadership and organizational skills including project management and the ability to track details and manage timelines.
• Experience with working adult population seeking degrees in an online program preferred.
ADA/Travel related:
Must be able to perform the following with or without reasonable accommodations.
• Position requires you to walk, stand, sit, reach with hands and arms, balance, stoop, speak with clarity and have appropriate vision and hearing capabilities, or be able to perform these actions with reasonable accommodations provided
• Position requires some irregular work hours including nights and weekends
• Some travel may be required… within Danville area, within Virginia, within region, nationally, internationally, depending on university needs.
Please note:
• As a condition of employment, Averett University requires all employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
• Background checks are required for all positions.
• An applicant must have an unrestricted right to work in the U.S.
Averett University's Annual Security and Fire Safety Report, published in compliance with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, can be found at https://www.averett.edu/wp-content/uploads/9.30.21-ASR-for-2020.pdf.
Averett University is an Equal Opportunity Employer and an Employer of National Service. AmeriCorps, Peace Corps, and other national service alumni are encouraged to apply.
Averett University's policies, programs and activities, including hiring practices, comply with federal and state laws and regulations prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, age, national origin, sex, disability, sexual orientation, and gender identity or expression and veteran status. Inquiries related to the University's compliance with Title IX should be directed to Averett's Title IX Coordinator, Amanda Estabrook, at titleix@averett.edu. Additional contact information, reporting options, and the University's Title IX Sexual Harassment Policy can be found at https://www.averett.edu/about-us/title-ix/. Inquiries may be made externally to the Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights: https://www.ed.gov/ocr.