The Graduate School of Social Work (GSSW) is a vibrant community of scholars and teachers committed to having an inclusive and engaged faculty and student body. The School’s curriculum, research, and community partnerships emphasize social and economic justice. GSSW provides an intellectual, collegial, and supportive environment that fosters interdisciplinary and international educational opportunities. GSSW engages in collaborative projects locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally.

Position Summary

Reporting to the Dean of the Graduate School of Social Work (GSSW), the Strategic Initiatives Manager is closely aligned with the GSSW Dean’s Office in planning, facilitation and research on strategic initiatives identified by the Dean. This position will interact closely other parts of the school and university, external organizations and partners, professional affiliation or other groups to pull together data and manage projects related to ensuring the success of the most visible and critical GSSW initiatives to advance the School’s reputation, revenue and recruitment efforts. The Strategic Initiatives Manager may also manage projects with third-party contractors and or act as project manager with other GSSW departments for implementation of priority projects.

Essential Functions

• Serve as project manager for key initiatives determined by the Dean. While not directly responsible for the implementation, provide support and coordination in the planning, development, and execution phases of strategic projects.
• Work with the Dean, team leads, and other GSSW staff or faculty administrators to ensure that project plans, tasks and timelines are accurately detailed and understood and provide clear benchmarks and project plans. This includes development of a master schedule and tracking project/initiative progress throughout the lifecycle to ensure timely completion.
• Partner with the Dean to strategically build and steward relationships with community organizations, key stakeholders, and donors that enhance GSSW’s visibility, impact, and external engagement.
• Cultivate and maintain collaborative relationships with community partners to identify opportunities where GSSW’s programs, spaces, and resources can be leveraged to advance shared goals and extend the School’s mission into the broader community.
• Work closely with GSSW leaders, teams, and systems to help coordinate and strategize community partner projects and initiatives (events, partnerships, programs, etc.).
• Manage project updates and communications among key stakeholders and project teams when needed to keep all parties informed and aligned. This may include sharing expertise and findings with peers based on observations, analytics and survey results as well as creating, disseminating and executing internal briefing documents or assessment reports.
• Interact with senior management and administrators within the School and, as appropriate, within the discipline and academia to represent and promote the development of strategic projects.
• Attending meetings and working with committees.
• Manage project or initiative budgets as allotted
• Dive into other special assignments and requests to efficiently and effectively advance key efforts and work.
• Support market research efforts
• Support the development of relationships, throughout the School and with campus, academic, and community partners.
• Hire, train and supervise student project coordinators or temporary employees assigned to strategic initiatives.
• Other duties as assigned.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• A self-starter and initiator with the ability to quickly and independently determine and initiate next steps for self, teams, and projects.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with a focus on providing friendly customer service.
• Extraordinarily strong relationship-building skills with the ability to help assess, create, develop, and support external relationships with outside groups, organizations, and partners.
• Demonstrated commitment to working collaboratively with individuals from all backgrounds, ability to communicate effectively with all audiences 
• Strong organizational and prioritization skills to efficiently perform a wide array of tasks with a high level of quality.
• Proven attention to detail and ability to adhere to deadlines, achieve high-performance goals, and remain calm in a fast-paced and demanding environment.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate at all levels of the organization including staff, faculty, and leadership.
• Able to work effectively independently or as part of a collaborative team.
• High ethical standards that reflect honesty, integrity, cooperation, and reliability.
• Proficient skills with MS Office Suite.
• Ability to demonstrate proactive approaches to problem-solving with strong reasoning, adaptability to changing circumstances, and decision-making capabilities.
• Proven ability to handle confidential information with discretion.
• Ability to plan tasks, assignments, dependencies, workflows, and timelines efficiently and tactically.
• Experience creating reports, presentations, and communications on behalf of others.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited program
• Knowledge of the field of Social Work
• At least five years of experience managing projects or conducting research – industry or academic
• At least five years of experience providing progressively responsible administrative support
• Experience developing community relationships and/or partnerships

Preferred Qualifications

• MSW degree from an accredited program
• Social Work experience
• Experience working in Higher Education

Working Environment

Standard office environment

Physical Activities

• Ability to work in front of a computer for extended periods of time.
• Occasionally required to move about the office/campus.

Work Schedule

Monday - Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. flexible hours and hybrid work options may be considered.

Application Deadline

For consideration, please submit your application materials by 4:00 p.m. (MST) September 1, 2025.

Special Instructions

Candidates must apply online through jobs.du.edu to be considered. Only applications submitted online will be accepted.

Salary Grade Number

The salary grade for the position is 11.

Salary Range

The salary range for this position is $70,000-$80,000.

The University of Denver has provided a compensation range that represents its good faith estimate of what the University may pay for the position at the time of posting. The University may ultimately pay more or less than the posted compensation range. The salary offered to the selected candidate will be determined based on factors such as the qualifications of the selected candidate, departmental budget availability, internal salary equity considerations, and available market information, but not based on a candidate’s sex or any other protected status.

Benefits

The University of Denver offers excellent benefits, including medical, dental, retirement, paid time off, tuition benefit and ECO pass. The University of Denver is a private institution that empowers students who want to make a difference. Learn more about the University of Denver.

Please include the following documents with your application:

1. Resume
2. Cover Letter

The University of Denver is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression), marital, family, or parental status, pregnancy or related conditions, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran. The University of Denver does not discriminate and prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, ancestry, age, religion, creed, disability, sex (including sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression), marital family, and parental status, pregnancy, genetic information, military enlistment, or veteran status, and any other class of individuals protected from discrimination under federal, state, or local law, regulation, or ordinance in any of the University’s educational programs and activities, and in the employment (including application for employment) and admissions (including application for admission) context, as required by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; the Americans with Disabilities Act; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; the Age Discrimination Act of 1975; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967; the Equal Pay Act; the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act; the Colorado Protecting Opportunities and Worker's Rights ("POWR") Act; and any other federal, state, and local laws, regulations, or ordinances that prohibit discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation. For more information, please see the University of Denver's Non‑Discrimination‑Statement.

All offers of employment are contingent upon satisfactory completion of a criminal history background check.