Project Coordinator

Principal Duties and Responsibilities

This is a temporary position, ending 12 months after the date of hire.

Seeking a detail oriented project coordinator to join the multi-faceted U-Spatial team.  With offices on both the Twin Cities and Duluth campuses, U-Spatial collaborates with a variety of departments and centers, creating new opportunities and synergies around spatial research, teaching, and service as well as supporting projects with application development and spatial analysis.

This position will primarily (75%) work on projects funded by the MN State Homeland Security and Emergency Management to update Hazard Mitigation Plans. Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan (MHMP) update efforts include conducting research to develop text and maps that will clearly describe a county’s community profile, land use, disaster history, hazard analysis, and risk assessment. This includes designing and implementing strategies for input by county departments and the public on risk assessment and mitigation strategies, and providing outreach materials to gather input on hazard mitigation strategies and priorities from residents and stakeholders.

Secondary responsibilities (25%) include coordination of U-Spatial marketing, communication, and proposal writing tasks. This includes maintaining and writing content for websites and email bulletins, as well as providing support for writing grant proposal and development materials of submission to a wide range of funding opportunities (i.e. NSF, State agencies, foundations, etc.).

Specific duties will be tailored to the applicant’s strengths, and will vary based on the stage of projects being worked on. Duties may include tasks such as:

• Creating project tracking systems and organizing project documents using platforms such as Google Drive, Box, etc.
• Compiling large reports from multiple files using Microsoft Word tools, formatting styles and preparing citations and tables.
• Conducting research and verifying facts for hazard mitigation plan drafts.
• Reviewing maps for consistency and accuracy
• Preparing meeting materials and feedback surveys
• Editing maps in Esri ArcGIS Pro
• Participating in U-Spatial staff initiatives and outreach activities
• Tracking and analyzing outreach and education initiatives
• Obtaining data and corresponding with many county clients

The Project coordinator will work virtually with project staff based in Duluth and the Twin Cities during the COVID pandemic. Successful applicants will be detail-oriented and organized, flexible, and self-aware. They should be able to communicate respectfully with county and state officials. Requires independent, self-motivated work and problem solving.

Required Qualifications

• BS/BA and one year of related experience or equivalent combination of education and work experience to equal five years.
• Strong writing skills with experience writing technical reports
• Strong attention to details

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with project management and/or event coordination
• Experience using platforms such as MailChimp, and/or Google Drive for communication and coordination
• Experience within the University of Minnesota system
• Experience coordinating projects that involve GIS
• Experience with copy editing and formatting in MS Word
• Experience with GIS and Esri products
• Experience in planning or developing local planning documents
• Experience with grant writing and budgets
• Skilled with spreadsheets and databases