Disability Culture Graduate Student Staff Assistant

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How to Apply

To apply, please include the following information: 

• A cover letter is required for consideration for this position and must be attached as the first page of your resume/CV. The letter should address your specific interest in and fit with this Disability Culture GSSA position. Please include your University affiliation (i.e. your graduate program) and year in graduate studies in the cover letter. Applications must be submitted to [email protected]. 
• For the selected candidate only, we will ask for a letter or email from your academic advisor confirming that you are in good academic standing, not on fellowship support for the term of the appointment, are approved for a 50% appointment and that this position is academically relevant to your degree program. 

Please contact [email protected] if any accommodations are needed to make the application submission process accessible to you.

Course Description

Job Summary

The College of Literature, Science & the Arts (LSA) is hiring a Disability Culture Graduate Student Staff Assistant (DC GSSA) at a 50% appointment (20 hours/week) for the Winter 2024 term to support the Faculty & Staff Disability Navigator program. The deadline to apply is February 6, 2024.

Appointment Period:  Winter 2024 (This position is for one term)

Estimated FTE: 50% (20 hours per week)

Compensation: This appointment provides tuition, required fees, stipend (at the GEO negotiated GSSA monthly rate), GradCare health insurance, and dental insurance (Option 1).

Program Overview

The LSA Faculty & Staff Disability Navigator model is part of a 3-year pilot program established to identify and address workplace issues impacting employees with disabilities. As it nears the end of Year 2, the program has delivered: 

• a streamlined employee disability accommodation process,
• centralized funding for employee accommodations and accessibility services at College events,
• education and consultation services to address key culture and accessibility issues, and
• policy and practice changes to ensure equitable and timely support for disabled employees.

Year 3 will be focused on 1) continued delivery of services, 2) development of new educational materials focused on event accessibility, and 3) reporting on program outcomes. The DC GSSA hired for this position will directly support objectives 2 and 3, which are linked to goals in LSA?s broader DEI 2.0 Plan.

The DC GSSA will work as a member of the LSA DEI Office team under the direct supervision of Karla Renee Williams, LSA Chief People Officer, and Jessica McCuaig, Senior LSA Faculty & Staff Disability Navigator.

Professional Development Opportunities:

The selected GSSA will be able to select two professional development opportunities to engage in over the course of the term, based on personal learning objectives in the realm of disability inclusion, disability justice, and accessibility and in consultation with the designated supervisors. These opportunities may include conferences, webinars, or certificate programs. 

The GSSA will also have the opportunity to attend training modules and access resources offered through field-specific associations, such as the Association on Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD), that will assist with the completion of assigned responsibilities. Further, the GSSA will be invited to participate in meetings with U-M and peer institution subject matter experts to bolster learning and generate networking opportunities.

Responsibilities*

The following responsibilities focus on the implementation of graduate student programming for the LSA Faculty and Staff Disability Navigators pilot program, drawn from LSA?s DEI strategic plan.  

The Disability Culture Graduate Student Staff Assistant (DC GSSA) will:

• Be available to work the following schedule: 
  • Monday through Friday, excluding seasonal days, break days and university closure dates
  • LSA working hours of 8am-5pm
    • GSSA will have the ability to collaboratively create a schedule within these working hours, with support from the assigned supervisors
  • 20 hours per week
• Develop multimedia educational resources (written guides and short video modules) on event accessibility in LSA
  • Document best practices for event accessibility on topics including venue considerations, working with external service providers, facilitating accommodations, hosting hybrid events, etc.
  • Incorporate resources available to support LSA event planners
• Partner with U-M subject matter experts to generate accessibility overviews for key LSA event spaces
• Format digital education materials to be accessible to assistive technology, with training and guidance from the Disability Navigators
• Learn to structure and post educational content to the LSA website
• Present to diverse audiences on accessibility best practices and promote new educational materials
• Create a feedback survey and lead interviews and/or focus groups for faculty and staff who have engaged with key Disability Navigator services: workplace accommodations and accessibility consultations
• Collate data from service tracking logs and analyze key trends to include in the pilot program?s final report to LSA College leadership, which will capture service utilization data, notable outcomes, and recommendations for sustaining and scaling the program in the future
• Other projects may be possible depending on the student?s strengths, interests, and learning objectives as well as the evolving needs of the Disability Navigator team.

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work to be performed and are not an exhaustive list of all associated responsibilities.

Required Qualifications*

• Applicants must be a student in good standing in a University of Michigan graduate degree program.
• The work described above for this position must be considered academically relevant by the department or degree program in which the student is enrolled.
• Demonstrated commitment to disability culture through scholarship, teaching, service, and community involvement.
• Ability to maintain complete confidentiality when working with sensitive information
• Experience in data collection and analysis
• Interest in providing education about disabilities and access planning, program development, and diversity issues in higher education.
• Demonstrated competency with modern computer productivity tools including word processing, spreadsheets, databases, and presentation programs.
• Commitment to learning about and embracing disability culture within the University of Michigan campus and beyond

Desired Qualifications*

In addition to the required qualifications listed above, successful candidates will have:

• The ability to work, problem solve, and make decisions with limited supervision.
• Excellent organizational skills with demonstrated ability to prioritize, work under pressure to meet deadlines, pay attention to detail, and reliably follow through on tasks. 
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Ability to handle multiple projects.
• Ability to collaborate in a team.
• Previous experience developing resource materials and analyzing quantitative data.
• Strong interpersonal skills, including the ability to work and communicate effectively and professionally with the University community as well as external constituents.
• Ability to work collaboratively or independently, as the task requires.
• Project management experience.
• Familiarity with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Contact Information

Questions regarding this position may be emailed to Karla Renee Williams at [email protected].  Applicants may request the status of their application from the appointing unit.

Decision Making Process

The hiring decision makers will be Karla Renee Williams and the Disability Navigators team.  Every effort will be made to have a hiring decision by Feb 20, 2024.

Selection Process

Applications will be reviewed following the posting deadline and selected candidates will be contacted for an interview. Selected candidates may be asked to submit a writing assignment. References will be contacted for finalists.  

GEO Contract Information

The University will not discriminate against any applicant for employment because of race, creed, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, genetic information, marital status, familial status, parental status or pregnancy status, sex, gender identity or expression (whether actual or perceived), sexual orientation, age, height, weight, disability, citizenship status, veteran status, HIV antibody status, political belief, membership in any social or political organization, participation in a grievance or complaint whether formal or informal, medical conditions including those related to pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding, arrest record, or any other factor where the item in question will not interfere with job performance and where the employee is otherwise qualified. The University of Michigan agrees to abide by the protections afforded employees with disabilities as outlined in the rules and regulations which implement Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Information for the Office for Institutional Equity may be found at https://oie.umich.edu/ and for the University Ombuds at https://ombuds.umich.edu/

Unsuccessful applications will be retained for consideration in the event that there are last minute openings for available positions. In the event that an employee does not receive their preferred assignment, they can request a written explanation or an in-person interview with the hiring agents(s) to be scheduled at a mutually agreed upon time.

This position, as posted, is subject to a collective bargaining agreement between the Regents of the University of Michigan and the Graduate Employees' Organization, American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO 3550.

Standard Practice Guide 601.38, Required Disclosure of Felony Charges and/or Felony Convictions applies to all Graduate Student Assistants (GSAs). SPG 601.38 may be accessed online at https://spg.umich.edu/policy/601.38 , and its relation to your employment can be found in MOU 10 of your employment contract.

U-M EEO/AA Statement

The University of Michigan is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.