Program Assistant - Writing Beyond the Prison

University of Southern California • Los Angeles, CA

3d • $25 - $27 • Hybrid

About The Position

The University of Southern California (USC) is seeking a Program Assistant for the Dornsife Prison Education Project's Reader's Circle, specifically for the Writing Beyond the Prison (WBP) initiative. WBP is funded by an American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) Digital Justice Grant and aims to build a digital-justice ecosystem by supporting incarcerated writers. The project involves preparing manuscripts for publication, developing digital curricula on trauma-informed writing and cooperative governance, and integrating humanities education with digital access and authorship pathways. This initiative emerged from over two decades of work by Ivan Kilgore, founder of the United Black Family Scholarship Foundation (UBFSF). The Readers’ Circle, housed at USC, is a volunteer-based editing network that pairs volunteers with incarcerated writers for feedback. Together, UBFSF and The Readers’ Circle will oversee workshops focused on compilation, editing, publication, and digital archiving. This is a part-time, fixed-term position for 18 months, supporting grant-funded operations.

Requirements

• Minimum Education: Bachelor's degree, Combined experience/education as substitute for minimum education
• Minimum Experience: 1 year, Combined education/experience as substitute for minimum experience
• Minimum Field of Expertise: Administrative support services

Nice To Haves

• Passionate about the intersection between writing and social justice
• Experience and/or commitment to working with system-impacted communities or individuals
• Organized and detail-oriented, with superior time management skills
• Responsive and reliable, with excellent written communication skills
• Capable of multitasking and prioritizing projects according to a fluctuating workload
• Happy solving problems independently as well as working collaboratively as needed
• Working knowledge of Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Drive etc.)

Responsibilities

• Recruit, vet, and train incoming volunteer editors for each workshop
• Coordinate incoming and outgoing manuscripts and ensure that volunteer editors adhere to a completion timeline
• Oversee and (where necessary) implement systems and databases for processing, storing, reviewing and returning manuscripts
• Communicate regularly with authors (via digital prison communication platforms and the mail) and mediate between editors and authors to ensure manuscripts meet author expectations
• Support volunteer editors by offering weekly working groups, one-on-one meetings, and email Q&A support
• Ensure edited manuscripts are up to publishing standard and meet each author’s requirements
• Perform additional editing and formatting when necessary
• Communicate with the Workshop Assistant and correctional facility staff to ensure manuscripts reach authors and mailing requirements are met
• Coordinate and oversee workshop support provided by the Workshop Assistant
• Report to Readers’ Circle and UBFSF leadership as needed to coordinate the project

Benefits

• The hourly rate range for this position is $ 25.00 - $26.75.
• USC is an equal opportunity employer.
• We provide reasonable accommodations to applicants and employees with disabilities.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Part-time
• Career Level: Entry Level