Overview and Responsibilities

Saint Mary's University is looking for an Access Services Specialist at the Winona Campus who is eager to contribute to its Lasallian Catholic mission of awakening, nurturing, and empowering learners to ethical lives of service and leadership. We invite individuals to help transform lives through education, inspired by the Catholic Intellectual Tradition’s quest to understand the human experience through faith and reason and its embrace of all who are dedicated to learning from one another through authentic conversations in search of the truth. We are especially interested in and give preference to candidates who demonstrate a vision to create and nurture initiatives that will advance our mission within the scope of their duties and who will foster a culture of dialogue that, with respect for all people, supports the search for meaning and purpose in pursuit of excellence.

This position reports directly to the Director of Access Services and serves all Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota Students.

Job responsibilities include:

• Knowledge of assistive technologies for varying disabilities and needs with extensive experience in the creation of accessible solutions for individuals with disabilities, preferably in higher education.
• Ability to match necessary academic accommodation with students’ disability(ies). Remediate online courses to ensure all content is accessible to student(s) based on their learning needs.
• Conduct individual meetings with each student with a disability to interpret confidential assessment or medical documentation to implement accommodations and educate students on policies and procedures as they relate to the university and Access Services.
• Educate students on self-advocacy skills and communication with faculty regarding accommodations.
• Collaborate with the Instructional Technology department to best serve students’ needs.
• Assist the Director of Access Services in creating, administering, and implementing assessment and evaluation for Access Services on an annual basis and implement continuous improvements based on the data provided and best practice for disability services. 
• Assist with developing and managing the Access Services budget by determining current expenses, management of the expenditures, and prioritizing needs of the office.
• Serve as lead to facilitate collaboration across accessibility resources personnel to ensure consistency in forms, documentation, record keeping, and delivery of accommodations and serve as a lead across accessibility resources personnel to training opportunities, and updates in process. 
• Facilitate the production of and produce Alternate Format materials (e.g.e-text, MP3, large print formats, utilizing Access Text Network, Learning Ally, Bookshare, CourseSmart, Publisher sites, etc.).
• Provide training and ongoing support to students with assistive technology needs on a variety of devices and software (e.g. smartpens, Google Read and Write).
• In collaboration with Marketing and Communications, maintain Access Services, Universal Design websites.
• Assist with implementing policies and procedures as they relate to ADA compliance and Universal Design Learning (UDL). Determine and communicate with faculty students’ disability accommodations.
• Engage in retention services and best practices. 
• Be the point of contact for the AIM platform which houses all accommodations and correspondences.
• Perform other duties as assigned. 

Qualifications

Education and experience:

• Bachelor’s degree required, Master’s degree preferred in education, instructional technology, psychology, counseling, learning disabilities, or a closely related field.
• Recent experience required providing academic support services to students with disabilities, preferably in higher education. May consider other acceptable equivalent combinations of training and experience.

Essential skills and functions:

• Able to build and maintain collaborative, impactful relationships with a diverse group of internal and external stakeholders.
• Critical thinking, analysis, problem solving, and data interpretation skills. Exceptional written, verbal, and social communication and training skills working within a higher education institution.
• Multicultural literacy regarding a diverse student population. 
• Excellent organizational and coordination skills along with multi-tasking capabilities to get things done in a fast-paced environment. 
• Develops and maintains good working relationships and communications at all levels of the organization.
• Observes safety guidelines and follows safety procedures established by the university.
• Self-motivated with the ability to work effectively alone and within a team environment.
• Ability to interpret pyscho-educational diagnostic reports. 
• Strong knowledge of ADA and its amendments, Section 504, and Section 508 legislation; accessibility guidelines, including WCAG, WAI-ARIA; and UDL principles.
• Current knowledge of law, policy, practice, and literature on a variety of disability services in higher education. Knowledge of FERPA and legislation in higher education.

Application Requirements

Apply online at https://www.smumn.edu/about/offices-services/human-resources/employment-opportunities/ and include a cover letter, resume, and contact information for three professional references.

Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota believes inclusion and human dignity contributes to a robust academic and work environment and is critical to achieving the University's mission in an increasingly diverse society. Individuals with expertise and diverse skills from underrepresented groups are especially encouraged to apply. Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. The successful candidate must support, respect, and advance the mission of Saint Mary's University as a Lasallian Catholic institution.

Saint Mary’s offers a comprehensive benefit package including health, dental, vision, life and disability insurance, flexible spending, retirement pension plan, and both undergraduate and graduate tuition remission plans.

All offers of employment are contingent upon the successful completion of a criminal background check.