Program Assistant - Full-time - Student Financial Services

About Dutchess Community College:

Located in the heart of New York's beautiful and historic mid-Hudson Valley, just 90 minutes north of New York City, Dutchess Community College (DCC) is one of 64 colleges within the State University of New York, the largest comprehensive public higher education system in the country.

DCC's strategic direction is guided by four lenses through which we view our work: Students. Learning. Community. Growth. We are committed to respecting individuality, embracing diversity, being "student-ready," partnering with and serving our community inclusively. The College welcomes and seeks to grow pools of prospective employees who share and are anxious to support the institution's core values: Excellence. Collaboration. Engagement. Equity. Innovation.

Job Description:

This position is responsible for the performance of support functions for a program or service funded by government. The position is found across a variety of offices and departments and requires the performance of various clerical functions. Within each office, employees will learn specific clerical and regulatory requirements and processes involved in maintaining the functional programs of the unit or office. This position would be expected to perform the following functions depending upon unit needs: collecting, confirming and transcribing data from a variety of sources; entering information into a terminal and extracting this information in a variety of formats; answering inquiries from the public regarding eligibility and the provision of services; maintaining manual and automated logs and records; overseeing a centralized function such as mail distribution, fleet management or inventory. This position differs from the position of Office Assistant in that the Program Assistant position involves duties with focus on procedures and guidelines and is primarily functioning as a direct part of a program or service. The position of Office Assistant provides more clerical related duties including keyboarding, reception, scheduling, filing and other related activities for an individual or group of individuals to support the services they are providing. Initially, employees' work will be directly reviewed and supervised to be sure the employee is learning and applying rules and procedures of the office. As job familiarity increases, the employee will have leeway for completing work assignments independently under the prescribed procedures. This position does not supervise other employees but may direct the work of aides, interns, temporary employees and other lower level employees.

Typical Work Activities:

The following is indicative of the level and types of activities performed by incumbents in this title. It is not meant to be all inclusive and does not preclude a supervisor from assigning activities not listed which could reasonably be expected to be performed by an employee in this title.

• Works with members of the public to gather or provide information concerning a program; prepares and processes records relating to such transactions, including applications, routine correspondence and database administration;
• Gather, collates, and summarizes information concerning a unit's programs or activities;
• Prepares, receives, reviews, and verifies documents;
• Performs data entry to open and close files;
• Contacts other agencies and departments to gather routine information or to explain routine requirements for unit programs;
• Screens and assembles specifically identified records and files for storage or disposal in accordance with established records control schedules;
• Maintain property and equipment records, conducts physical inventories;
• Prepares vouchers and reviews information for correctness and to ensure that funds are available for payment;
• Assists in organizing program functions such as registration by gathering information, making arrangements and reservations, assembling informational packages, etc.;
• May specialize in centralized support service functions such as mail distribution, fleet management, ordering/distribution of supplies, equipment and expendables;
• Maintains databases and produces lists or compiles information in accordance with program requirements;
• Monitors files or cases for receipt of necessary forms/documentation and takes follow-up action including making phone calls and sending standardized letters.

Requirements:

Full Performance Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Knowledge of the rules and procedures of programs necessary to process work independently and assist the public;
• Knowledge of office practices necessary for interacting with staff and the public, processing work flow, and filing and retrieving information;
• Knowledge of software packages for word processing to produce memos and letters, and database management and spreadsheets to compile and produce lists;
• Knowledge of computational skills to process and reconcile vouchers, perform cashiering duties, maintain inventories and keep records of program activities;
• Skill in operating office equipment to produce work accurately and efficiently;
• Ability to interact with a variety of people for the purpose of exchanging information concerning programs;
• Ability to organize, maintain and extrapolate information from records;
• Personal characteristics necessary to perform the duties of the position;
• Physical condition commensurate with the demands of the position (in some positions, may be required to transport objects/equipment weighing up to 45 pounds).

Minimum Qualifications:

Graduation from high school or possession of a high school equivalency diploma AND:

EITHER: (A) Completion of two years (60 standard credit hours) from a regionally accredited or New York State registered college or business or secretarial school;

OR: (B) Two years of full-time general office work experience which involved public contract and keyboarding;

OR: (C) An equivalent combination of training and experience as defined by the limits of (A) and (B) above.

Special Requirement:

Candidates must indicate keyboarding ability, i.e., courses in keyboarding or keyboarding work experience.

Additional Information:

The Program Assistant position is a Civil Service competitive title, Grade 8, Step 1, with the starting salary of $47,658. This is a full-time, 35 hours per week, 12-month position from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Appointment will be Provisional pending the results of a civil service examination. This opening is in our Student Financial Services Office.

Application Instructions:

To be considered please submit an online application, resume and cover letter electronically by clicking on the APPLY NOW button below.

All required documents must be uploaded in order for your application to be reviewed and considered. Please click here to login to check/edit your profile or to upload additional documents.

Please click CONTACT US if you need assistance applying through this website.

In order to be considered for this position your will also need to complete the Examination or Employment Application. This application is used to apply for a civil service examination or job opening that has been announced. The candidate should read the examination or recruitment announcement prior to completing this application to determine the required minimum qualifications for the position. Please read the instructions carefully. Further information can be found under "General Exam Info" and "Important Exam Info" under Dutchess County Department of Human Resources.

Dutchess Community College is an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status. Applications from minorities, veterans, the disabled and all others are encouraged (AA/EOE).