[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The Futures Initiative is seeking applications from Graduate Center doctoral students in any field for a 2021-2022 fellowships. Our Doctoral Fellows are at the heart of the Futures Initiative, and the work we do is designed to support our mission and the professional goals of every Fellow. Our past fellows have gone on to do meaningful, inspiring work, both in the academy and beyond. Applications are due November 15, 2021.

There are four new openings:

• Web Developer & Content Manager (Effective Immediately, Fall 2021)
• Communications Director (Spring 2022)
• HASTAC Scholars Co-Director (Spring 2022)
• Director of Public Events & Alumni Outreach (Spring 2022) 

These are one-year positions, and may possibly be renewed for one additional year (two additional years for students who have not received five-year GC fellowships). Graduate Center doctoral students may apply for more than one position. Doctoral students who have backgrounds underrepresented in the academy are especially encouraged to apply. As of October 7, 2021, Futures Initiative Fellowships offer a minimum total compensation of approximately $28,861. The FI Fellowship has two components: a graduate assistant B appointment and a financial aid fellowship. The graduate assistant appointment carries eligibility to purchase low-cost NYSHIP health insurance and offers in-state tuition remission for Fellows who are within their first 10 registered semesters of study. Fellows are required to work 450 hours for the academic year (225 hours per semester). This translates into 15 hours of work per week during each 15-week semester. Determinations of re-appointments are made on an annual basis depending on individual eligibility, GC needs, and available funding. Note: For the Web Developer opening, since the position is starting in the middle of the Fall 2021 semester, the Fall payment will be pro-rated accordingly depending on the start date.

If you’re interested in applying, please review the descriptions below and apply using the link below by November 15, 2021. Applicants who have previously applied to FI without an accepted offer, are welcome to re-apply. A CV is also required and should be emailed to futuresinitiative@gc.cuny.edu.

APPLY HERE

For questions about the application process, please contact Adashima Oyo, Interim Associate Director, Futures Initiative at aoyo@gradcenter.cuny.edu.

About the Futures Initiative

The Futures Initiative is an incubator that designs and implements a wide range of initiatives supporting equity, innovation, engaged pedagogy, leadership for change, support of public higher education, and the use and development of technologies that enable these goals within the CUNY community and beyond.

Our current collaborations include the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation-sponsored Humanities Alliance (in partnership with the GC’s Teaching and Learning Center, BMCC, Guttman Community College, Hostos Community College, and LaGuardia Community College) and the Leadership Fellows program (a CUNY-wide undergraduate leadership and peer mentoring program, initially funded by the Teagle Foundation and currently partnering with the Promise and Perils of Democracy Project supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York). Other key partners within CUNY include the Teaching and Learning Center (TLC), the GC Digital Fellows Program, the PublicsLab, the Office of Educational Opportunity and Diversity, the Office of Career Planning and Professional Development and Transformative Learning in the Humanities (TLH), also funded by the Mellon Foundation and extending to all twenty-five CUNY campuses.

We amplify our mission beyond CUNY through co-leadership with Dartmouth College of the international open online network HASTAC (“haystack”): Humanities, Arts, Science and Technology Alliance and Collaboratory). HASTAC is dedicated to “Changing the Way We Teach and Learn” with commitment to a second social and technology mission: “Difference is not our deficit. It’s our operating system.” A free and open community, HASTAC is a platform that allows any of its 17,500+ members to have a voice, to contribute, and to emerge as a leader.

Goals and Contributions of All Futures Initiative Fellows

– Be a valued member of a supportive team that prizes mentorship, growth, and leadership with a core mission of innovation founded on equity and a commitment to meaningful social and institutional change

– Have a key voice in a visionary organization that is working toward meaningful institutional and cultural change in higher education

– Gain skills in project management, events planning, leadership, communications, grant development, social media and web support, and programmatic support that will serve you in whatever career goals you aspire to

– Connect meaningfully with the CUNY and HASTAC communities

– Contribute to the program’s engagement with the public, including by regularly sharing and communicating relevant research, events, and opportunities via our various communications networks and platforms

– Build an ongoing portfolio of your contribution as a graduate student and an FI Fellow through monthly blog post communicating your research, teaching, and community experiences

– Participate in and co-lead weekly team meetings and assist with the designing and building of the program

– Assume leadership roles for running the program, including events and weekly meetings

– Share skills with one another and with others at the Graduate Center

Web Developer & Content Manager

(Effective Immediately, Fall 2021)

In addition to the responsibilities of all fellows described above, this person will take lead on the following:

• Support website development, administration, and maintenance on futuresinitiative.org (built using CBOX – WordPress/BuddyPress) and hastac.org (a Drupal site)
• Post events, news, reflections, and other updates on futuresinitiative.org and hastac.org, and ensure content featured on both sites is up-to-date
• Collaborate with other FI Fellows on graphic materials for print and online distribution
• Review and update relevant Wikipedia entries related to the organization
• Work with other team members to ensure events, news, and achievements are communicated to constituents and publicized adequately in traditional and social media
• Offer guidance and ideas on design for futuresinitiative.org and hastac.org
• Evaluate site analytics and other markers of traffic and engagement, and make suggestions for improvements to the website and communications
• Present on areas of digital expertise, including the Futures Initiative’s use of technology, in public venues such as blog posts, conferences, and journals
• Provide technical support, documentation and digital guidance for site users
• Cultivate outreach and connection with individuals and communities beyond the Graduate Center
• Recognize, encourage, and support knowledge production from both within and beyond the academy
• Highlight and celebrate the voices of individuals in historically marginalized groups
• Note: the position requires some fluency in Adobe Creative Suite; a background that includes visual design work is desirable

Communications Director (Spring 2022) 

In addition to the responsibilities of all fellows described above, this person will take lead on the following:

• Manage social media posts (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube)  with appropriate content, events and announcements from the Futures Initiative
• Lead robust social media strategy (including a metrics strategy) to maximize the Futures Initiative’s reach beyond CUNY
• Collaboratively curate content and serve as lead editor of the monthly Futures Initiative Newsletter. Content may include announcements and blog posts from FI fellows, faculty, peer mentors, and staff as well as announcements, events, and more from affiliated groups at CUNY and beyond
• Assist with contributing a carefully curated selection of material to the quarterly HASTAC Newsletter for national distribution
• Support and lead doctoral fellows with public-facing blogging and social media posts emphasize equity, education, and active pedagogy. 
• Manage the development of visual materials and attractive graphics for communication needs related to the Futures Initiative’s events, annual report, newsletter, etc. 
• Some knowledge of Adobe, Photoshop, and other digital editing tools highly desirable
• Highlight and celebrate the voices of individuals in historically marginalized groups

HASTAC Scholars Co-Director (Spring 2022)

In addition to the responsibilities of all fellows described above, this person will take lead on the following:

• Lead the international network of graduate and undergraduate students in the HASTAC Scholars network
• Assist with HASTAC conference planning needs
• Prepare the quarterly HASTAC Newsletter and ensure that HASTAC Scholars have a significant representation in the Newsletter
• Help recruit new HASTAC Scholars, especially from members of HASTAC’s leadership, as well as institutions that have been involved in past years
• Communicate regularly with HASTAC Scholars through various communication channels
• Help Scholars to cultivate project ideas from inception to fruition
• Develop ways that Scholars can connect more deeply with the Futures Initiative’s work and vice versa
• Share announcements with the Scholars community and encourage Scholars to do the same
• Update the HASTAC website and social media with new Scholars content as appropriate–Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube and other relevant social media
• Develop new modes of connecting with and tracking outcomes for alumni
• Participate in biweekly HASTAC staff meetings

Director of Public Events & Alumni Outreach (Spring 2022)

In addition to the responsibilities of all fellows described above, this person will take lead on the following:

• Manage internal and external logistics for web-based and in-person events from start to finish, including the management of marketing and outreach plans for events
• Serve as a liaison to the university’s communications department to share important materials and announcements
• Write post-event blog posts for marketing purposes that emphasize equity, education, and active pedagogy. 
• Monitor and evaluate the event process, concepts and results. Generate feedback and metrics, creative solutions and new ideas to add value to future event planning and outreach
• Gather alumni information and success stories to support effective research and the celebration of alumni accomplishments
• Analyze, synthesize, and produce key insights that can easily inform multiple audiences and tells the story of the Futures Initiative’s impact via storytelling (qualitative data) and quantitative data, including by filling out information on the Futures Initiative mapping project. Analysis of impact may include the use of surveys, focus groups, and interviews.
• Work closely with the Communications Director to manage the development of visual materials and attractive graphics 
• Assist with CUNY mapping project

Applications are due November 15th, 2021. 

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