Under direction of the CECS Director of Student Success, the First Year Experience (FYE) Coordinator will be a member of the Center for Student Success (CSS) and will be responsible for overall implementation and coordination of engagement programs for new students at the College of Engineering and Computer Science at UTC. In addition, the FYE coordinator will track the success of initiatives and interventions to continually improve the scope of programming and support for student success focused on freshmen and first-year transfer students. Below are the primary areas of focus:

Residential Learning Community (RLC) support:

• Communicate with Housing and Residence contact to meet roster deadlines, identify RLC peer mentor, and secure funding for special projects and events.
• Manage marketing, recruitment and programming for CECS residential college activities.
• Work with local businesses to establish site visits for RLC members.
• Communicate with RLC members about student needs and provide resources, referrals, and support.
• Support the corresponding one-credit hour course for the CECS RLC program which is focused on promoting student success for like-minded students through a unique, inclusive, residential experience that takes education outside of the classroom and allows learning where students live.
• Track data on the initiative with the support of the institutional research team on measures such as retention, academic success (GPA, degree progress), and levels of engagement in comparison with students who do not elect to participate in the RLC and report findings to the CSS director.

FYE learning community support:

• The FYE Coordinator position will drive communication between FYE instruction team (5-12 instructors) and mentors, as well as communication with the instructor for the paired math course; schedule weekly meeting with 1st year instruction team members; scheduling of supplemental instruction/tutoring for CECS first year students as needed.
• The FYE coordinator will also assist with programming the success skills workshops in concert with emerging student needs each semester. Such topics include overcoming test anxiety, professional development skills, choosing a major, financial literary, etiquette, diversity awareness, and other key student development topics.
• Track data on learning outcomes for FYE course participants in reading, writing, organization, time management, study skills, goal setting and strengths recognition embedded within the FYE courses in comparison with students who do not elect to participate in FYE courses.

CECS Peer Mentorship Program Support:

• The FYE Coordinator position will monitor the mentoring program, send invitations to potential mentors and freshman/transfer mentees, follow-up with any concerns, meet bi-weekly (via zoom, if necessary) with third-party representatives if applicable, and organize CECS mentorship meet and greet meetings.
• Track data on the initiative with the support of the institutional research team on measures such as retention, academic success (GPA, degree progress), and levels of engagement in comparison with students who do not elect to participate in mentoring and report findings to the CSS director.

In addition to these areas, the FYE coordinator will facilitate other initiatives to support the success of first year and transfer students and perform other duties as assigned.

The initiatives and interventions supported by the FYE coordinator will be continually assessed for improvement opportunities. The progress of the main focus areas (Residential Learning Community, First Year Learning Community cohorts, mentorship program) will be tracked throughout the year and the progress communicated to the Dean and Department Heads.

Position Details and Requirements

This part-time, limited time duration employment (July 15 through May 14) will require 29 hours of work per week. The position may, depending on the availability of funds, transition into a full-time position.

The ideal candidate will possess the following:

• Ability to recognize, support, and reinforce individual needs and learning styles using conceptual understanding, reasoning skills, and college-level standards.
• Outstanding verbal and written communication skills; attention to details; problem solving aptitude.
• Ability to understand and abide by federal and university guidelines governing student affairs.
• Advanced proficiency with MS Office suite of products.
• Ability to coordinate and mobilize individuals.
• Ability to collect, compile, and communicate data in collaboration with institutional researchers.
• Ability to support both students and faculty of all cultural backgrounds and experience levels.

Review of applications will begin on June 28, 2021 and continue until the position is filled. Applications received by this date will receive priority consideration.

Minimum Qualifications: Bachelor's degree; experience of supporting students in a higher-education setting; experience in a teaching or teaching assistant role in a higher-education setting; high levels of organizational skills; high level of communication skills; experience in collecting, compiling, and communicating data.

Preferred Qualifications: Master's degree; experience with student data and student information platforms such as BANNER, Canvas, and Navigate.