Should the successful applicant be a Unifor Unit 1 bargaining unit member, who meets the eligibility conditions of Article 19.02 of the Unifor Unit 1 Collective Agreement, then the Limited Term Assignment will be defined as a Career Growth Opportunity in accordance with Article 19 of the Unifor Local 5555 Unit 1 Collective Agreement.
Community Outreach Officer
(JD1433)
Engineering a Brighter Future
https://www.eng.mcmaster.ca/about-us/strategic-plan/
Unit Description
We welcome applications for the Limited-Term (contract) position of Community Outreach Officer within the Department of Outreach and Engagement. This role delivers high-impact programs designed to foster awareness, interest, and participation in engineering among historically underrepresented youth and communities.
This position supports McMaster Engineering’s commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion in STEM through innovative outreach program initiatives, partnerships, and engagement strategies. The ideal candidate is passionate about community engagement, experienced in program development, and skilled in fostering relationships with internal and external stakeholders to enhance outreach efforts.
The successful candidate will develop and deliver programs for historically excluded communities, working in collaboration with on and off campus community partners and stakeholders and under the guidance of management and leadership. The candidate will oversee student staff, co-ordinate job postings, interviews, hiring process, and payroll. The candidate will also consult key internal and external stakeholders to determine the effectiveness of current outreach and to identify best practices.
Job Summary
The Community Outreach and Engagement Officer is responsible for the planning, implementation and evaluation of outreach programs, events and activities. The role also focuses on external funding, reporting, grant writing, and metrics to increase our capacity and help the team make informed decisions regarding events and programs. This role is instrumental in shaping McMaster Engineering’s outreach initiatives, ensuring that we continue to make engineering education accessible and engaging for all communities.
Purpose & Key Functions
- Develop and present market research strategies to the leadership team to remain current with market trends ensuring the image and reputation of the University is maintained.
- Plan and coordinate various on-campus events in collaboration with your Manager, such as workshops, clubs, camp, one-off sessions, etc.
- Support campus-wide community engagement activities such as open houses, school visits, department and faculty initiatives, etc. in partnership with faculty units.
- Create, monitor, and update website and electronic request forms.
- Write and modify queries to extract data from databases.
- Consult key internal and external stakeholders to determine the effectiveness of current outreach and to identify best practices.
- Document and provide feedback to senior staff.
- Provide information on policies, products, equipment, and make recommendations based on internal and external stakeholder requirements.
- Meet with and respond to inquiries with community, parents and internal partners.
- Escalate inquiries and concerns as needed to your Manager.
- Develop resources to support community needs.
- Write a variety of documents including, but not limited to, materials, workshop plans, general correspondence and reports.
- Support event programming by providing guidance to occasional staff on relevant topics and formats and promoting events to historically excluded communities using communication strategies including newsletters, social media channels and email where appropriate.
- Develop and deliver programs for historically excluded communities, working in collaboration with on and off campus community partners and stakeholders and under the guidance of management and leadership.
- Monitor and reconcile event costs and verify the accuracy of all expenses incurred and complete financial forms such as travel expense reports, electronic cheque requests, purchase orders, and journal entries.
- Write, update, verify and maintain a variety of documents and databases including, but not limited to, materials, workshop plans, general correspondence, spreadsheets, and reports.
- Schedule venues and ensure that venues are set up, cleaned, and that food service, and equipment rentals are provided.
- Prepare estimates of time and resources required for various events.
- Supervise student staff, co-ordinate job postings, interviews, hiring process, and payroll.
- Liaise with facilities personnel and suppliers of contracted services and products to ensure that all services and products agreed to have been provided.
- Ensure the confidentiality and safeguarding of student files; maintain filing systems, both electronic and hard copy.
- Receive customer complaints or reports on any major incidents, such as security issues or health and safety incidents and report to the appropriate area.
- Attend conferences and workshops and be versed in best practices.
- Work with colleagues in faculty development to determine suitable applications and efficient execution of scholarships and programs supported by donors.
- Maintain inventory of equipment and supplies, monitor quality of the equipment, complete ordering of materials, as needed.
Supervision
- Ensures adherence to quality standards and procedures for short-term staff and volunteers.
- Has ongoing responsibility for supervising (may include selecting) up to 9 casual employees at any one time.
Qualifications
Assets
- Experience working with and for Black community and school group is considered an asset.
Experience working with racialized and equity deserving youth is considered an asset.
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