• Job Type: Officer of Administration
• Regular/Temporary: Regular
• Hours Per Week: 35
• Salary Range: $62,400 - $66,000

Position Summary

Columbia's Legal Writing and Moot Court programs introduce law students to foundational skills in legal writing, legal research, negotiation, and oral advocacy. Every student passes through the writing program through an introductory skills course taken during their first year of law school. Many students continue to be involved in the programs through upper-level course offerings, extracurricular moot court events, and/or by attending workshops with the Columbia Law School Writing Center. The Coordinator works within these programs, primarily in the areas of events, moot court travel, and expenses. The Coordinator reports to the Director of Legal Writing and Moot Court Programs.

Responsibilities

Events (30%):

1. Oversee the arrangements for departmental programs and events.
2. Serve as the primary point of contact for third-party events vendors, including caterers.
3. Serve as the primary point of contact for events-related matters with other Columbia Law School teams and departments such as AV/IT support, Facilities, Room Reservations, and Communications.
4. Implement Columbia University and Columbia Law School policies with regard to events, including with regard to the process for hiring outside vendors and securing competitive bids where necessary.
5. Work with the Business Office to prepare purchase orders, letters of credit, and process event-related payments.
6. Work with multiple systems including Concur Expense, EMS, ARC, LawCal, and other payment-related systems.
7. The Legal Writing and Moot Court Programs employ up to 20 law students each year in paid, year-long, part-time roles for the Writing Center and on the Moot Court Executive Board. The Coordinator supervises and guides these students in their work on administrative matters, especially with respect to Writing Center and Moot Court events.

Student Travel (40%):

1. Oversee travel arrangements for the students on Columbia's nine competitive moot court teams.
2. Review student travel proposals in consultation with the Director and Associate Director of the programs to ensure that proposed student travel complies with University, Law School, and Moot Court program policies.
3. Serve as the primary point of contact with Columbia's travel agency.
4. Serve as the primary point of contact for student travelers with travel-related concerns or questions, including travelers who need emergency assistance after hours or on weekends. 5. Work with the Columbia Law School Business Office to track and reconcile travel-related expenses and process student travel reimbursements and per diem payments.
6. Update student travel handbooks, forms, and policies as needed, in consultation with the Director and Associate Director of the Legal Writing and Moot Court Programs.
7. Maintain all necessary records, including through Concur Expense, Concur Travel, and other internal systems.

Other Duties (30%):

1. Oversee the summer and fall application and enrollment processes for moot court courses, including communicating with student applicants, overseeing the online application system, checking references for approximately 70 students for teaching fellow roles, and serving as a liaison to Registration Services.
2. Assist in the summer on-boarding process for new members of the adjunct legal writing and moot court faculty and for new student workers.
3. Assist in the summer on-boarding process for Academic Fellows, including ensuring access to all necessary databases, ordering books and supplies, and setting up training sessions for the Fellows to learn about Columbia's various technical/electronic systems.
4. Update the Legal Writing and Moot Court website each semester.
5. Provide administrative support to the Director and Associate Director of Legal Writing and Moot Court Programs, the Writing Specialist and Writing Fellows who staff the Columbia Law School Writing Center, and the legal writing and moot court faculty.
6. Additional responsibilities as assigned or requested.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and/or its equivalent required.
• Applicant must have meaningful experience with office work, preferably as a program coordinator, administrative assistant, or office manager.
• Strong data management, administrative, organizational, and interpersonal skills required. Applicant must be able to help students navigate travel and other logistical challenges in time-sensitive and high-stress situations.
• Excellent computer skills and experience required, including word processing, PowerPoint, Excel and computer database management. Must be willing to learn and implement new technologies. Experience with Concur is a plus.
• Excellent English oral and written communication skills required.
• Must have the ability to track deadlines, pay close attention to detail, adapt to changing priorities, seek help when needed, and work collegially within a small team.
• Must have good judgment and be able to maintain confidentiality.
• Availability for some evening and weekend work required. Please note that the moot court program typically holds in-person evening events in November, February, and April each year, though these dates are subject to change. The coordinator must be available to attend these scheduled events as needed. The coordinator must also be available as a point of contact for students experiencing travel-related emergencies.
• Travel experience (either personal or professional) preferred.
• Must be able to work collaboratively with diverse constituencies.

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.