Program Associate, Higher Education

Position Title: Program Associate, Higher Education
Status: Full Time
FLSA: Exempt
Location: Flexible/Remote

JOB SUMMARY & KEY PRIORITIES

The Youth Leadership Team equips and mobilizes youth and young adults to strengthen their leadership, advocate for mental health, and create change in their schools and communities through accessible, high-quality, equity-centered leadership programs and opportunities. The team works directly with students and campus stakeholders to support student-led initiatives that advance mental health change.

The Program Associate, Higher Education supports the Youth Leadership Team by carrying out assigned programs and projects for college students. Reporting to the Senior Manager, Higher Education, this role serves as a core student-facing team member who supports the day-to‑day implementation of Active Minds’ higher education programming, with a primary focus on the Mental Health Advocacy Institute (MHAI).

The Program Associate helps deliver well‑run programs and positive participant experiences. The role combines project coordination, student coaching and facilitation, program operations, content creation, and collaboration across teams. The Associate flags barriers to participation and implementation and works with the Senior Manager to address them.

The position works closely with the Youth Leadership Team and colleagues across Measurement, Chapters, Marketing & Communications, Operations and other relevant departments. The role also works directly with youth and young adults, campus staff and faculty, facilitators, interns, and external partners.

ABOUT ACTIVE MINDS

Active Minds is the largest nonprofit in the United States mobilizing youth and young adults to transform mental health norms across society. For more than 20 years, we have equipped the next generation of peer mental health advocates through a variety of programs, including the Active Minds Chapter Network, A.S.K., and Send Silence Packing. Our advocacy, initiatives, and campaigns foster lasting change in how youth view and discuss mental health, encouraging them to use their voices to influence broader conversations and inform mental health supports within their communities. Together, we are building a diverse movement of champions committed to improving mental health for all.

KEY RESULTS

• Coordinate day‑to‑day implementation of the Mental Health Advocacy Institute, including program calendars, participant onboarding, learning management system support, session preparation, and milestone tracking.
• Support MHAI recruitment and applications, including outreach to colleges, universities, higher education associations, and campus networks, with a focus on reaching BIPOC and LGBTQ+ students and students at varied institution types, including community colleges and HBCUs.
• Coordinate MHAI alumni engagement, including student panels, project spotlights, and connections to additional Active Minds leadership opportunities (e.g. Chapters, the Youth Mental Health Innovation Fund, policy advocacy).
• Connect MHAI participants and collegiate advocates to the Youth Mental Health Innovation Fund through outreach, informational sessions, and application support, in coordination with the Senior Manager, Youth Grants and Educator Engagement
• Support the delivery of higher education resources, webinars, training, and campus partnership initiatives as assigned.
• Make routine logistical and participant‑support decisions within established program guidelines, referring complex participation concerns, policy decisions, and strategic questions to the Senior Manager.

Execution of Functional/Tactical Tasks

• Serve as a primary contact for routine participant questions about program requirements, deadlines, materials, and support.
• Monitor participant progress and follow‑up promptly when students miss sessions or milestones.
• Coach college students and give timely feedback on their milestones, using established program criteria and guidance from the Senior Manager, as they develop campus mental health advocacy action plans, identify administrative allies, and implement campus and systemic changes.
• Facilitate and co‑facilitate virtual sessions, office hours, make‑up sessions, and small groups across assigned Youth Leadership programs, using interactive activities, discussions, and reflections that strengthen students’ leadership and advocacy skills.
• Carry out assigned projects from planning through completion, maintaining timelines, coordinating deliverables, and keeping the Senior Manager informed of progress, barriers, and support needs.
• Use ClickUp and Google Workspace to track project milestones, tasks, session communications, and facilitator and speaker logistics.

Logistical and Tactical Support

• Maintain the MHAI’s online learning platform, including posting materials and assignments, organizing resources, and supporting participant access.
• Coordinate logistics for MHAI facilitators, guest speakers, and virtual sessions, including scheduling, onboarding materials, attendance, breakout rooms, interactive tools, and participant access needs.
• Handle administrative tasks across assigned Youth Leadership programs, including mass communications, participant records , required forms, and submitted work.
• Under the Senior Manager's guidance, process participant stipends, speaker honoraria, facilitator payments, including collecting forms and receipts, submitting payment requests, tracking payment status, and flagging discrepancies.

Content, Document, and Resource Creation

• Create and update supplemental materials for higher education and other Youth Leadership programs, including videos, worksheets, interactive activities, reflection prompts, action plan templates, and facilitator guides, using established templates and in collaboration with the Senior Manager and relevant colleagues.
• Prepare facilitator training materials, communications, and implementation guidance.

Individual & Team Collaboration

• Collaborate across the Youth Leadership Team and other departments to coordinate programming, share resources, and connect participants with additional engagement opportunities.
• Assist with training and technical assistance for campus partners to support student leadership and mental health advocacy.
• When assigned an intern, establish expectations, provide guidance and feedback, and monitor progress toward deliverables.

Data Management & Reporting

• With the Senior Manager and Measurement Team, collect and maintain standardized MHAI data on participation, completion, participant experience (including Net Promoter Score), and intended leadership outcomes.
• Maintain accurate records of recruitment, participant engagement, campus stakeholder communications, and student project implementation
• Gather participant feedback, especially from BIPOC and LGBTQ+ students. Share themes with the Senior Manager, suggest improvements, and help carry out approved changes.
• Support preparation of program summaries, presentations, and reports for internal teams and funders, as assigned.

Organization‑Wide Competencies

• Apply an equity‑centered, community‑ and strengths‑based approach to student programming and engagement.
• Contribute to team and organizational strategic goals by completing assigned deliverables on time.
• Represent Active Minds at conferences, meetings, trainings, and other events as assigned.
• Share student engagement learnings, resources, and practices with colleagues.
• Participate in organization‑wide initiatives and other responsibilities as needed.

QUALIFICATIONS

• At least one year of relevant experience supporting higher education programs, student leadership, mental health promotion, advocacy, student affairs or related nonprofit initiatives. Relevant experience may include employment, internships, graduate assistantships, service roles, or substantial student leadership responsibilities.
• Experience engaging college students and collaborating with campus staff, faculty, or community partners.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including experience facilitating presentations, trainings, or student‑facing programming.
• Ability to work both independently and as part of a team, knowing when to check in with a supervisor for guidance.
• Strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and consistent follow‑through, with the ability to manage multiple tasks and deadlines.
• Experience creating documents, presentations, or educational materials.
• Experience entering, organizing, and maintaining data accurately (e.g., spreadsheets, forms, surveys).
• Ability to provide supportive, constructive guidance while maintaining clear program expectations and exercising sound judgment.
• Proficiency with Google products and project management platforms (e.g., ClickUp).
• Commitment to equity and inclusion and applying an equity‑centered lens to student programming and engagement.
• Belief in college students' ability to lead meaningful change in mental health and their campus communities.
• Willingness and ability to travel within the United States to conferences, on‑site Active Minds events, and staff gatherings, and support evening programming during the academic year.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience using Google Classroom or another learning management system.
• Experience with Salesforce or another customer relationship management system.
• Familiarity with campus mental health advocacy, peer education, student leadership development, or collaborative campus change efforts.
• Experience engaging students across varied institution types, including community colleges, historically Black colleges and universities, and other institutions serving historically underserved students.

OUR CULTURE

Active Minds is a place where every employee matters. We value diverse perspectives, radical authenticity, and a community‑driven approach. We dream big, offering flexibility to staff while we work to achieve our mission. As such, we are proud to offer competitive salaries and benefits and an environment that is friendly to remote working and life/work balance.

Active Minds is an equal‑opportunity employer that works to advance racial equity and social justice in an increasingly multicultural and globally connected world. We value diverse experiences, including educational background, intersectional identities, and lived experiences. We make a particular effort to recruit people of color, LGBTQ individuals, people with disabilities, and people with other marginalized identities. Active Minds encourages all to apply for our open positions as we depend on a diverse staff to carry out our mission.

COMPENSATION

This position offers an initial salary range of $52,500-$57,750 along with robust benefits. The starting pay for this position is equal to others at the same level throughout the organization. The role sits within Active Minds Level 1 salary band, and as such, has the potential to grow to $68,250 over time. FLSA Status: Exempt.

Active Minds has an industry‑leading and competitive benefits package that includes Health, Vision and Dental Insurance, Paid Vacation and Sick Leave, Paid Holidays, Company Wide Mental Health Days, 401(k) Matching, HSA and FSA Options, Life Insurance, Short Term, and Long Term Disability, Fully Paid Parental Leave, Wellness Reimbursement Program, and Professional Development Stipends.

Active Minds recruits, hires, trains, compensates, and promotes our staff regardless of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, disability, age, veteran status, and other protected status as required by applicable law.

ACTIVE MINDS RECRUITING PROTOCOLS

• Active Minds will never ask an applicant to send – and Active Minds will never send an applicant – a check or any payment or item of value (such as a gift card) in connection with the interview process or job onboarding process.
• Active Minds will never ask for personal information about an applicant (such as their Social Security number or banking information) until the job onboarding process;
• Active Minds will never extend a job offer without first conducting multiple rounds of video interviews. The Active Minds interview/hiring process will always include at least 3 virtual interviews.
• All legitimate Active Minds job offers are extended verbally by the HR/People & Culture Team. • If you are expecting an email from Active Minds, please always verify that the sending domain in the email is activeminds.org and NOT any variation of it.

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