Christy Lowder
Olympia
Summary
Proven ability to thrive in challenging environments, fostering a culture of humor, honesty, and integrity. Strong collaborator with a deep appreciation for diverse team dynamics. Recognized as a reliable resource for problem-solving and providing answers to colleagues.
Support program operations by applying strong document management and resource coordination skills to day-to-day needs. Conscientiously address any need and resolve concerns to promote efficiency and maximize service outreach. Proven relationship-building and planning abilities.
Highly-motivated employee with desire to take on new challenges. Strong work ethic, adaptability, and exceptional interpersonal skills. Adept at working effectively unsupervised and quickly mastering new skills.
Overview
23
23
years of professional experience
Work History
Program Specialist III
Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
01.2023 - Current
- Provide direct administrative support to the Professional Development team; the GED State Administrator; the Corrections Education team; the I-BEST Policy Associate; and Compliance team. Management and reconciliation of my p-card which is used for staff registrations, meals for events and supplies
- For the Professional Development team, my responsibilities are to gather and post our system training to our website and enter in the PD database; coordinate logistics for training, which include location, room/technology set up and meals; manage training announcements, materials, and logistics; and ensure our materials are accessible. Management of the ABE unit training database and communications. Management and technical support for all Community Based Organizations canvas accounts. Administrative support for the bi-annual Basic Education for Adults Conference for approx. 400+ faculty and staff from our corrections education, basic skills, and English as Second Language programs. Negotiate hotel/conference contracts, ensure materials are formatted and accessible, manage registration, generate invoices for participants & vendors.
- For the GED State Administrator; I manage the helpdesk by providing excellent customer service by ensuring all requests are responded to within 24 hours. I provide guidance on where/how to get your GED and how to obtain copies of your certificate and/or transcripts.
- For the Corrections Education team; I manage out-of-state travel, flights, getting travel authorization, cash advance and process their expense reports.
- For the I-BEST Policy Associate; I provide the initial review of the applications to ensure that all the necessary materials are there to move the application forward; management of the I-BEST Course Listing database and the I-BEST Program Options Web application. I manage the team out-of-state travel, flights, getting travel authorization, cash advance and process their expense reports
- For the Compliance team; I gather training data needed to monitor the sites; am a member of the training team for the new basic skills data collection system. I manage out-of-state travel, flights, getting travel authorization, cash advance and process their expense reports.
Administrative Assistant 4
Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
01.2004 - 01.2023
- Provided direct administrative support to the Basic Education for Adults Director that included: providing confidential administrative support; research and interpret agency policies for various types of inquiries: personnel issues, state travel regulations, and federal and state compliance; was the liaison for the Director with other agencies, legislators, and college presidents; managed the process for obtaining new providers every 5 years; was the website administrator for my unit and ensured materials were accessible; provided technical support for our Online Grants Management System, as well as the teaching platform Canvas; established/managed priorities independently; coordinated out-of-state travel for Director and eight staff; composed, proofread and finalized correspondence; kept Director informed of office operations/projects; helped coordinate and track unit assignments to ensure deadlines were met; provided exemplary customer service for both internal and external customers. I thrive on being the go-to person and pride myself on ensuring that the customer receives a timely response to their inquiry.
- Provided administrative support to two councils that met quarterly. My responsibilities were setting meeting dates, compiling meeting materials, and ensuring they were accessible, and taking meeting minutes.
- Managed the Basic Education for Adults unit, responsibilities were training and supervising the Program Specialist 3; coordinating office operations; establishing office procedures; acting as liaison between Director and staff; providing general program support; arranging out-of-state travel, and keeping staff informed of agency operations.
- Provided administrative support for the bi-annual Basic Education Conference. My responsibilities were finding locations that work within government per diem; negotiating hotel/conference center contract(s) with the vendor and presenters to ensure that terms meet SBCTC needs and state regulations; managing registration & approving vendor invoices for payment.
- Managed logistics for our national training for I-DEA by locating hotel/conference centers that would work with state agency restrictions; provided administrative support prior and during the events; was the on-site logistical liaison, ran registration and managed the technology necessary for our online training; coordinated travel for our team of 13; this project ran from 2017 to 2019 and we had 4 out-of-state events each year.
- Administrative Assistant 4, to the Student Success Center Director for 1-year (2018-19), while being the BEdA full-time Admin. Provided direct administrative support to the Student Success Center Director that included: calendar management; prepared accessible meeting materials; and coordinated the director’s travel. Developed training and trained three of the Director’s Administrative Assistants. Duties for coordinating the Guided Pathways Cohort Retreats and Student Success Institutes included: being the logistical liaison to plenary/keynote speakers and session presenters; developed personal service contracts and monitored activities to ensure services were performed as contracted; ensured agreements to returners were completed for all session presenters; negotiated hotel/conference center contract(s) to ensure that terms met SBCTC needs; prepared meeting materials; managed registrations, reviewed vendor invoices, and coordinated participant travel reimbursements.
Secretary Senior
Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
01.2003 - 01.2004
- Organized and maintained executive calendars, including scheduling meetings, travel arrangements and conference calls.
- Proofread documents before submission; corrected any errors found in grammar or punctuation.
- Maintained filing systems for confidential documents; organized files for easy retrieval of information when requested.
- Responded to customer inquiries via email or telephone in a polite and professional manner.
- Prepared expense reports in accordance with company policies and procedures.
Education
Some College (No Degree) - General Studies
Olympic College
SheltonSome College (No Degree) - General Studies
South Puget Sound Community College
Olympia, WAVolunteer Experience
Thurston County Council on Aging, Secretary position, 2023, Present
Timeline
Program Specialist III
Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
01.2023 - Current
Administrative Assistant 4
Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
01.2004 - 01.2023
Secretary Senior
Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
01.2003 - 01.2004
Some College (No Degree) - General Studies
Olympic College
Some College (No Degree) - General Studies
South Puget Sound Community College
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