Committee on U.S.-Latin American Relations (CUSLAR)
Office location: 316 Anabel Taylor Hall, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.
Temporary mailing address: 770 Elm St. Ext., Apt 1, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA.

A project of the Center for Transformative Action (CTA)

Seeking part-time Coordinator

Mission: The Committee on U.S.-Latin American Relations (CUSLAR) seeks to promote peace, justice and mutual understanding among the people of the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean. The members of CUSLAR are a diverse group of people united in our concern about the role of the United States in the social, political and economic affairs of the region. CUSLAR supports the right of the people of Latin America and the Caribbean to self-determination and control over decisions that affect their lives and communities. CUSLAR is a project of the Center for Transformative Action (CTA).

Job title: Coordinator.

Reports to: The CUSLAR Advisory Board and Anke Wessels, Executive Director of the Center for Transformative Action (CTA). 

Summary of responsibility: The Coordinator will receive initial training and then have overall operational responsibility for CUSLAR’s programs and execution of its mission. The Coordinator is responsible for following all CTA fiscal sponsorship policies and procedures, and will receive supervision and guidance from the Advisory Board.

Responsibilities

Programming and Organizing

• Plan and oversee educational programming, including guest speakers, events, and films, etc., to support social change and human rights in Latin America.
• Oversee CUSLAR’s communications presence online and through print media.
• Guide students and community volunteers on independent and collaborative projects (such as the production and distribution of a newsletter or blog) and CUSLAR events.

Fundraising and Administrative

• Identify and apply for specific community-based and university grants to support CUSLAR programming.
• Cultivate and maintain relationships with university faculty and departments to enable financial support of the organization and programs.
• Receive supervision and guidance from the CUSLAR Advisory Board and CTA staff.
• Ensure that procedures for affiliation with CTA and university entities are maintained.
• Coordinate with Spanish language instructors for CUSLAR language-learning programs. 

Hours and compensation: Fifteen hours a week. Compensation commensurate with experience, $22-25/hr. CTA is a living-wage employer.

Qualifications: The CUSLAR Coordinator will demonstrate their commitment to CUSLAR’s mission of contributing to peace, justice and mutual understanding in the hemisphere and have strong working knowledge of Latin America and U.S.-Latin American historical, political, and social relations. Candidates should have leadership, mentoring, communications, and cultural competency skills. Spanish language proficiency is preferred. 

Benefits: Vacation time, sick and safe time, floating holidays, and a 403b retirement plan.

Specific requirements include:

• Ability to develop and manage multiple high-quality projects and initiatives while maintaining strong relationships with university, local, and international partners
• Ability to collaborate effectively with diverse groups of people
• Experience and interest in supervising and mentoring undergraduate students
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in English and Spanish and/or Portuguese
• Passionate, committed to social change, optimistic, and self-directed
• Strong attention to detail in bookkeeping and finance
• Fundraising and grant writing experience preferred

Direct Reports: Work-study students, 5-8 hours a week during fall and spring semesters. Coordinator works with Cornell Community Work-Study Program to approve student hours.

Equal Opportunity:  CTA is an equal opportunity employer. Employees are hired based on their merit, ability, experience, and training without regard to race, color, national origin, ancestry, gender, gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, familial status, marital status, age, mental or physical disability, size, religious affiliation, genetic make-up, military/veteran status, domestic violence victim/survivor status, sexual and other reproductive health decisions, or past participation in the discrimination complaint process. We are committed to being an inclusive organization and encourage people from diverse communities to apply.

The Project Director (CUSLAR Coordinator, in this case) is responsible for working with CTA to ensure all CTA policies and procedures are followed across 4 general categories:

1. Governance: Maintains a project Advisory Board (AB) of at least five members that meet at least quarterly.  Submits AB meeting minutes to CTA, notifies CTA of changes in AB composition.  Ensures project’s organizational documents are up to date and submitted to CTA.  Signs a new Affiliation Agreement when there is a change in AB leadership.
2. Operations: In concert with the AB, ensures that project staff and volunteers are following all CTA policies and procedures, including those outlined in the Affiliation Agreement, the Fiscal Sponsorship Policies and Procedures document, and the Employee Handbook and Personnel Procedures.  Submits an annual report of project activities to CTA.  Submits online, email, and print fundraising campaigns to CTA for approval.  Notifies CTA of upcoming special events.  Reads and responds to CTA communications in a timely manner.
3. Financial: In concert with AB, monitors project’s financial health.  Works with AB and CTA to submit an annual budget.  Tracks project expenses.  Reviews monthly financial statements provided by CTA.  Approves all project expenses and deposits.  Submits grant applications to CTA for review 15 days in advance of due date.
4. Staff: Ensure all staff and volunteers have completed mandatory training.  If project has paid staff, Project Director approves employee time records and paid time off requests.  Completes annual performance reviews for all paid staff.

For more information about CUSLAR, please visit cuslar.org. 

How to apply

Please send the following to cuslar@cornell.edu with the subject line “CUSLAR Coordinator Applicant – (YOUR NAME)”:

1. a 2-page cover letter detailing why you want to work at CUSLAR, your qualifications for this position, and what you consider to be major issues facing Latin America today
2. a resume
3. contact information (email, phone, relationship to applicant) for three references 

Deadline: May 15, 2023. Applications will be reviewed as they are received.

Interviews will happen in June and the position will start in time for the Fall 2023 semester.

No phone calls, please — questions can be sent to cuslar@cornell.edu.