Associate Director (HEA)

About the role

The CUNY Dominican Studies Institute (CUNY DSI) is an interdisciplinary research unit at The City College of New York. CUNY DSI’s mission is to gather, produce, and disseminate academic knowledge on the human experience of people residing in the United States who trace their ancestry to the Dominican Republic and to advance research and teaching at the City University of New York (CUNY), focusing on the Dominican people in the United States, the Dominican Republic, and globally.

Responsibilities

• Manage donor engagement and stewardship efforts, including cultivating relationships with private donors, foundations, and institutional partners, ensuring a donor-first approach across Institute initiatives
• Identify, pursue, and manage external funding opportunities for ongoing and new research projects, including grant prospecting, proposal development, compliance, reporting, and funder relations, in collaboration with the Director
• Manage the administrative operations of CUNY DSI research projects, ensuring alignment with the Institute’s mission, timelines, budgets, and deliverables; collaborate with the Director of Special Projects as appropriate
• Manage institutional reporting for grants and donors, including managing, drafting, and compiling performance reports, evaluations, and required documentation in coordination with funders and internal stakeholders
• Provide strategic and operational leadership for Institute programs, including program planning, implementation, evaluation, and assessment to support institutional performance analysis
• Manage established institutional collaborations, both national and international, ensuring effective coordination, compliance with CUNY guidelines, and follow-through on formal partnerships
• Supervise and manage full-time, part-time, and project-based staff, including assigning responsibilities, overseeing workflows, and preparing personnel evaluations for the Director
• Oversee internal and external administrative operations of CUNY DSI in collaboration with the Director and senior management, ensuring efficient day-to-day functioning of the Institute
• Oversee communications, calendars, and agendas related to meetings of the Advisory Board and Executive Board, including preparation of materials and follow-up on action items
• Lead communications and visibility initiatives for CUNY DSI, including the development of public relations materials, success stories, digital and media content that advance the Institute’s mission and programmatic goals
• Maintain an active research agenda within their area of expertise, contributing scholarly output that advances the Institute’s research mission and academic standing
• Manage a flexible work schedule, including evenings and weekends, as required to support CUNY DSI programs, academic events, panels, conferences, donor functions, and institutional initiatives

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree and six years' relevant experience required
• A doctorate in a complementary field of study is preferred
• Expertise can be in the humanities, social sciences, or natural sciences
• Knowledge about Dominican/Latino/a/x people preferred
• Experience in writing and securing grants; ability to work with various stakeholders outside of academia (i.e. the Dominican/Latino community; elected officials) is essential
• Ability to work comfortably in a fast-paced, constantly changing environment that depends on precision, accuracy, and flexibility
• Fluency in Spanish (speaking, reading, writing) is highly desired
• Demonstrated experience supervising professional staff and managing multi-functional teams
• Experience managing complex budgets, grants, or externally funded projects
• Experience working with donors, foundations, or community-based partners
• Demonstrated ability to exercise sound judgment and make operational decisions within established institutional guidelines
• Ability to collaborate effectively with faculty, administrators, and external partners