FLSA STATUS: Exempt

SUMMARY:

American Councils plays a key role in delivering high-stakes tests for students participating in Flagship and Flagship Language Initiative (FLI) Programs. Funded by the National Security Education Program (NSEP) and administered by the Institute of International Education (IIE), these programs are designed to train U.S. undergraduate and graduate students in languages critical to the national interest. Under contract with NSEP/IIE, American Councils develops and administers exams to measure the Reading, Writing, and Listening proficiencies of U.S. language-learners in Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Korean, Persian, Portuguese, Russian, Swahili, and Turkish; it also arranges and proctors Oral Proficiency Interviews to measure the speaking abilities of learners in these and other languages, including French, Indonesian, Thai, and Vietnamese.

As the main point of contact for Flagship Program-Coordinators and Flagship students undergoing language testing, the Assessment Officer plays a key role in the day-to-day operation of this complex process, ensuring that language exams are conducted on time, gathering and verifying test results, preparing test results to be shared with key stakeholders according to strict deadlines, and recording scores into secure databases. The Officer coordinates with the Assessment Division to schedule online assessments for Reading, Writing, and Listening skills and facilitates communication between the Assessment Division and Flagship stakeholders as necessary to ensure accurate scheduling, to help address technical issues or delays, to respond to questions, and to resolve problems. In addition to scheduling and proctoring telephonic Oral Proficiency Interviews (OPIs), the Assessment Officer also arranges for language testers to travel overseas to conduct in-person OPIs at the conclusion of semester programs in Brazil, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Morocco, and Taiwan. The Assessment Officer assists in writing and editing handbooks and power-point presentations explaining the assessment process.

The Position reports to the Senior Program Manager for Flagship Programs and Assessment.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Serve as the primary point of contact for Flagship Program-Coordinators and students who are undergoing language exams to measure language gains on Flagship and FLI programs;
• Coordinate with American Councils Assessment staff to schedule online Reading, Listening, and Writing exams according to the assessment calendar;
• Assist with online exam registration and communication with domestic partners and coordinators during exam-set up or exam administration as needed;
• Coordinate with domestic university staff to collect availability and other information for students, including accommodation requests, in order to schedule telephonic OPIs;
• Proctor telephonic OPIs and assist with technical problems and scheduling issues;
• Respond to students, university partners, funders, and stakeholders to address questions and scheduling complications;
• Coordinate with Language Testing International to identify OPI testers for in-person interviews;
• Arrange flights, per diems, insurance, onsite support, airport pick-up, and daily schedules for OPI testers conducting assessment interviews onsite in Brazil, Kazakhstan, Korea, Morocco, and Taiwan;
• Help troubleshoot technical delays or scheduling conflicts in order to ensure testing proceeds without major disruptions;
• Assist in compilation of test scores and preparation of score-reports for funders;
• Provide score reports to domestic universities for Reading, Listening, Writing, and Speaking results for rounds of qualifying and post-program assessment;
• Provide individual score reports and OPI certificates to students for qualifying and post-program assessments;
• Enter student scores into NSEP database in keeping with established deadlines, with multiple reviews to ensure accuracy;
• Observe, maintain, and update procedures to protect student privacy and data security;
• Assist in preparation and presentation of website materials, test-taker handbooks, and slideshows;
• Assist with a broad range of additional administrative and communication tasks, including the preparation and delivery of student responses to writing prompts;
• Arrange, facilitate, and provide technical help on Zoom calls with a wide range of stakeholders and participants;
• Provide updates for the monthly Incident Log, quarterly reports, and final reports;
• Process finance requests, including per diems and reimbursements to testers;
• Other duties as assigned.

• At least two year's professional experience in database management, data-entry, or equivalent;
• Strong command of Excel and other Microsoft Office programs;
• Outstanding accuracy and attention to detail;
• Proven ability to manage competing deadlines and multiple projects;
• Excellent written and oral communication skills;
• Experience managing confidential records and maintaining data security;
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively with a wide range of stakeholders and program participants;
• Demonstrated ability to work independently, foresee problems, and find viable solutions;
• Familiarity with second language acquisition and methods for measuring proficiency among language learners (preferred);
• BA or equivalent (MA preferred);
• Proficiency in Chinese (preferred).

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

American Councils is committed to taking affirmative steps to enhance employment opportunities for minorities, women, veterans, and people with disabilities, and strives to ensure that meaningful employment and promotional opportunities are maintained for everyone. American Councils' commitment to equal employment opportunity is based not only on federal requirements, but also on a longstanding commitment to maintaining a diverse workforce reflective of the communities in which we operate.

PAY TRANSPARENCY NONDISCRIMINATION PROVISION

The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor's legal duty to furnish information.