Senior Secretary

Summary
Performs a variety of technical, secretarial, and administrative support duties for Dean, comparable administrator of a function having multiple sub-functions, or College-wide service with substantial secretarial needs. Coordinates and performs administrative projects within an instructional division. Coordinates workflow and support activities for the office and related functions.
 
Distinguishing Characteristics
The Senior Secretary is part of a multi-level career path encompassing administrative and secretarial support.  The Senior Secretary typically reports to a Dean or comparable function and requires the ability to organize and coordinate work and information flow, conduct research, provide support to projects that often involve other functional areas, perform workload computations for faculty assignments, assist with curriculum processes, and to schedule and sequence required reports and other time sensitive activities.
  
Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Performs administrative support involving applications of a working understanding of the functions and procedures of the division, with a basic understanding of functions and procedures of other divisions.
• Responds to inquiries and conveys information about programs and services provided by the organizational unit and College. Interprets and conveys policies and procedures, referring difficult or sensitive matters to the appropriate administrator. 
• Organizes work by researching and setting up business and academic calendars and cycles, then establishing and sequencing deadlines and/or timelines for projects, activities, and required submissions. Coordinates and performs administrative support for projects and events, integrating them with ongoing work routines.
• Provides administrative support to special processes including, but not limited to, committees, advisory boards, and special subject group meetings. Prepares forms, revisions, and final documents to support proceedings.
• Takes notes and prepares meeting recollections. Types (keyboards) from rough drafts or instructions a variety of materials such as letters, memoranda, reports and statistical data. Composes original correspondence and forms on routine department matters.
• Maintains committee records and assists in the preparation of departmental/divisional reports by gathering and summarizing information from a variety of sources.
• Receives, handles, and stores private information pertaining to the College or assigned division. Maintains confidentiality of private and sensitive information.
• Receives telephone calls and visitors, screening callers, handling routine matters, providing information, or routing calls to administrators as necessary.
• Schedules appointments and arranges meetings. Prepares schedules and informs participants, confirming dates and times. Makes hotel, conference, and travel reservations.
• Prepares agreements and contracts for services used by and/or provided by the division. Processes and distributes contract documents for approval.
• Creates, verifies, edits, and distributes faculty load records. Monitors, records, and reviews adjunct faculty load records with administrator for approval and compliance with work limits. 
• Enters faculty workload information onto spreadsheet or database models used for accumulating information and decision support. Verifies and calculates faculty overload and forwards information to payroll. Arranges for substitute coverage for classes and/or prepares announcements for cancellation.
• Schedules and types/keyboards faculty member and other staff performance evaluations including peer-level evaluations.
• Records, verifies, codes, and processes faculty, staff, and student or temporary help timesheets, including information for stipends and other compensable elements.
• May assists an administrator with development of organizational unit budget proposals, maintaining communications with work sections on status and information needs.
• Maintains approved budgets, transaction records, and audit trails, including those for capital outlay, special projects, and grant-funded activities.
• Oversees and may reconcile expenditures and initiates budget allocation changes and reassignments of funds to and from various accounts, working with accounting staff to assure compliance with college processes and regulations.
• Oversees and may prepare requisitions and claims for reimbursement. Resolve purchase order and contractual matters with vendors and other service providers.
• Maintains currency of knowledge and skills related to the duties and responsibilities.
• Performs related other duties as assigned.

 
Knowledge, skills, and abilities
Requires in-depth knowledge of office practices, procedures and equipment, including filing systems, receptionist and telephone techniques, and letter and report writing. Requires a basic knowledge of the policies and procedures associated with the curriculum development and maintenance process. Requires a working knowledge of computer-based software programs that support this level of work, including, but not limited to, word processing, spreadsheet, presentation graphics, desktop publishing, special applications used by the organization unit, and data entry onto custom databases. Requires basic skill at facilitating small group problem-solving processes. Requires sufficient math skills to perform financial, numeric, and other record keeping. Requires sufficient knowledge of proper English usage, grammar, spelling, and punctuation to prepare professional correspondence. Requires sufficient human relations skill to work cooperatively with diverse teams, exercise patience when dealing with internal and external customers, and convey technical concepts. 
 
 Requires the ability to independently perform all the duties of the position. Requires the ability to accurately take and transcribe notes and/or meeting minutes/recollections. Requires the ability to learn, interpret, explain, and apply knowledge of College and department organization, operations, programs, functions, special terminology used in the organization unit, and labor agreements to relieve an administrator or program director of a variety of administrative details. Requires the ability to learn and apply techniques for curriculum development processes and recording and monitoring faculty workload information and processing payroll transactions. Requires the ability to prepare spreadsheets, graphs, and charts. Requires the ability to learn and enter, import, and export data to and from databases within a reasonable time frame. Requires the ability to plan, organize and prioritize work to meet schedules and timelines. Requires the ability to maintain confidentiality of private and sensitive information. Requires the ability to communicate with faculty, students, staff, and the public using patience and courtesy, and in a manner that reflects positively on the organization unit. Requires the ability to maintain productive and cooperative working relationships with others.
 
Physical abilities
The position incumbent must be able to function indoors in an office environment engaged in work of primarily a sedentary nature. Requires ambulatory ability to sit for extended periods of time, to utilize microcomputers and peripheral equipment, accomplish other desktop work, and to move to various campus locations. Requires the ability to use near vision to read printed materials. Requires auditory ability to carry on conversations in person and over the phone. Requires the ability to retrieve work materials from overhead, waist, and ground level files. Requires manual and finger dexterity to write, use a pointing device and keyboard at an advanced rate, operate microcomputer, and to operate other standardized office equipment, almost constantly requiring repetitive motions.
 
Working Conditions
Work is performed indoors where minimal safety considerations exist.Education and Experience
The position requires knowledge equivalent to an Associate Degree and two years of progressive administrative assistant/secretarial experience. Alternatively, may require one year of post-secondary education in a business profession and four years of experience. Additional administrative assistant/ secretarial experience may substitute for some higher education.

Licenses and Certificates
Requires a valid driver's license.
 REQUIRED MATERIALS:

1. Completed Online Application
2. Professional resume.
3. Unofficial transcripts verifying course work completed

*It is the candidate's responsibility to make sure that all required materials have been received. Incomplete applications will not be accepted.*

West Hills Community College District is an equal opportunity employer committed to nondiscrimination on the basis of race, creed, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender status, marital status, pregnancy, age, disability, genetic information or covered veteran's status consistent with applicable federal and state laws. Reasonable accommodations will be provided for applicants with disabilities who self-disclose.

Background Check: All of our positions require the ability to pass a background and live scan.

Selection Process: Depending upon the number of applicants who meet the minimum qualifications, the examination process may include a qualifications screening by a committee. Those demonstrating the strongest backgrounds related to the position will be invited to interview.