Executive Assistant & Board Secretary

Academics Without Borders (AWB) is a Canadian nonprofit that works with universities and colleges in the most disadvantaged countries building their capability to educate the professionals and leaders essential to the strong societies they justly desire. We do this by providing professional staff and academics who donate their time to volunteer on projects that originate with our overseas partner institutions, reflecting the most pressing needs of their communities.

Job Description

AWB seeks a highly motivated person who enjoys working independently to join our virtual office as a part-time Executive Assistant in a continuing contract position.

Reporting directly to the Executive Director, the Executive Assistant is key to a wide range of complex office administrative activity in support of the Executive Director, the leadership team, and the Board of Directors. The EA serves as a principal liaison with internal, Board, and external contacts. The EA develops, implements and administers office systems, procedures, and policies and interprets, communicates, and contributes to the development of policies and processes.

The successful candidate:

• Will be a master organizer, detail-oriented, dependable, resourceful, and a good communicator who is able to build amicable and productive relationships
• Will have exceptional verbal and written communication skills
• Will have technical savvy and be at ease with, interested in, and have experience with information technology and a keen willingness to adapt to new applications
• Will be a problem solver and critical thinker and possess the highest level of listening abilities - someone who can think outside the box, but also within the organization’s guidelines to find innovations, solutions, and improvements

Required skills and experience

• Exceptional organizational skills, including multitasking and time-management
• Strong interpersonal skills
• Highly developed attention to detail
• Ability to work independently but also as part of a team
• Comfort, interest and experience in information technology and a keen willingness to adapt to new applications
• Excellent English written and verbal skills; French written and verbal skills will be an advantage
• Excellent computer and Internet skills
• Expertise using Google Workspace - Google Drive, Docs & Sheets and Gmail - is essential
• Expertise using Mailchimp and developing external communications
• Proven work experience in a similar role
• Experience working in a post-secondary academic setting would be an asset

Responsibilities

• General administration and support of ED, leadership team & Board, including:
  • Maintain and support use of Google Workspace
  • Oversight and administration of institutional software
  • Document support, including writing, communication and documentation
  • Human resources
  • Coordinate government reporting
  • Coordinate insurance policy renewals
• Financial administration, including:
  • All banking activity, including bill payment, volunteer travel expense processing and reimbursement
  • Coordinate monthly statements and tax related documents with AWB’s bookkeeper
  • Develop invoices for annual renewal of memberships for AWB Network of Canadian universities and colleges and track payments
  • Donation with accountant for tax receipts
• Communications, including:
  • Quarterly newsletter mailings through Mailchimp
  • Volunteer opportunity postings through Mailchimp
  • Website - in coordination with website contractors, oversee website maintenance; revise and post information required
  • Manage LinkedIn as AWB’s core social media platform
  • Supervise creation of one-off items
• Support to the Board in collaboration with ED and Board Chair:
  • Plan both virtual and in-person Board meetings and look after logistics
  • Coordinate preparation of quarterly Board meeting agendas with the Board Chair and ED
  • Attend 3 board meetings per year (1 in person and 2 virtual) and prepare official Board minutes; track policy changes, action items, and Board decisions
  • Implement and maintain the Board of Directors Portal on Google Drive, including Annual Board Calendar and lists of Directors and terms of appointment
  • Provide administrative support to the Chair and Board by coordinating and preparing Board materials

Educational and other qualifications

• Minimum of a bachelor’s degree
• 5 years of experience in a similar role.
• Particular consideration will be given to those with French written and verbal skills.

Reporting to

Executive Director, Academics Without Borders

Terms and hours of work

• $40 / hour
• 16-20 hours per week, typically distributed over 4 days during the week.
• This is a virtual position and we do not provide computer hardware or software.
• The position is contractual, paid monthly.

Start date and duration

• May 11, 2026 or as soon as possible

Please submit your resume and cover letter as a PDF through the Charity Village portal. Applications received via email will not be considered. We thank all applicants for their interest, however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted. We value diversity and inclusion and are committed to providing a workplace that is accessible to everyone. If you require any accommodations to participate in the application or interview process, please write to lgardiner@awb-usf.org for support.

DEADLINE for applications: Friday, April 10, 2026. Please note that applications without a cover letter will not be considered.