Program Officer, CBYX

Cultural Vistas•Washington, DC

30d

About The Position

Under the supervision of the CBYX Senior Program Officer, the Program Officer implements and administers day-to-day CBYX programming for American and German participants. The role provides participant support throughout the exchange cycle and coordinates housing, college placements, applications, internships, seminars, travel, and related program activities. It also administers participant records, payment and insurance processes, travel approvals, the application platform, surveys, recruitment support, and program documentation. The Program Officer serves as a designated Alternate Responsible Officer under 22 CFR Part 62, preparing and signing participant DS-2019 forms and maintaining records in SEVIS under Senior Program Officer oversight. The role coordinates with partner organizations, vendors, Cultural Vistas staff, participants, host families, colleges, and companies, and represents Cultural Vistas and CBYX at events. Depending on business needs and budget, the position may supervise interns and temporary support. The position also includes professional development and ongoing work to improve departmental workflow. Candidates based in the Washington, D.C., area are preferred; remote candidates within the U.S. who can work with significant overlap with East Coast hours will be considered. This is a full-time exempt role eligible for benefits and dependent upon the availability of grant funds.

Requirements

U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent residency, as required for designation as an Alternate Responsible Officer under 22 CFR Part 62.
Advanced intermediate proficiency in German, including the ability to translate academic transcripts and certificates.
Ability to manage multiple assignments and projects simultaneously, prioritize and organize workload, and make decisions in a deadline-driven environment.
Exceptional attention to detail, particularly with records, documents, and payments.
Demonstrated ability to anticipate outcomes and solve problems.
Proactive, flexible, and inventive approach.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills and ability to collaborate professionally with varied stakeholders across borders, time zones, and cultures.
Strong analytical skills, good judgment, and critical thinking skills.
Comfort with event and travel logistics, including management of multiple vendors and deadlines.
Ability to handle confidential and sensitive information with discretion.
Ability to provide excellent internal and external customer service.
Collegial attitude and ability to excel in a collaborative work environment.
Commitment to professionalism and professional development.
Proficiency in Microsoft Office, including Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, SharePoint, and Excel.
Interest in and commitment to the mission of Cultural Vistas.

Nice To Haves

Experience working in a cultural exchange, educational, or international relations environment.
Working knowledge of SEVIS and DS-2019 issuance.
Experience with event planning, group travel, and logistics.
Experience with Salesforce or another CRM platform.
Knowledge of one or more learning management system (LMS) platforms.
Proficiency with Zoom or other virtual meeting tools.

Responsibilities

Serve as the first point of contact for German participants and college coordinators, and for American participants and applicants on routine matters; respond to inquiries accurately and promptly.
Support German participants through arrival, academic term, internship phase, and re-entry, including placement, cultural, academic, and internship-search challenges.
Support American participants through application, selection, pre-departure, and program-year phases in coordination with the Senior Program Officer and German partner organization.
Coordinate housing placement logistics with the Housing Family Management Partner; provide participant information and preferences, location counts, program dates, and arrival timelines, and communicate requirement changes.
Track housing placement status, maintain placement and change-of-placement records in the CBYX online database, and flag delays or gaps to the Senior Program Officer.
Coordinate college placement with the Senior Program Officer, including preparing and submitting admissions applications, translating German certificates and transcripts into English, and tracking admissions and enrollment.
Escalate participant health, safety, and welfare concerns immediately and draft incident documentation for review.
Prepare content for and deliver assigned inbound and outbound seminar presentations.
Support administration of the Congressional Internship Program, including applicant processing, host family placement logistics, and orientation delivery.
Maintain participant and alumni databases, records, applications, and confidential documents in an electronically accessible format for required sharing with the ECA Youth Programs Office.
Serve as a designated Alternate Responsible Officer; prepare, print, and sign DS-2019 forms and maintain participant records in SEVIS under Senior Program Officer oversight.
Coordinate payments with Accounting, including tuition, travel reimbursements, seminar payments, and vendor invoices; track budget lines and flag variances.
Prepare grant-funded housing remittances for Assistant Director approval and reconcile partner invoices, housing payment records, and the housing continuity reserve with Accounting.
Enroll participants in the Accident and Sickness Program for Exchanges (ASPE) for the full program period.
Track participant travel and prepare international travel approval requests for review and Department of State submission.
Prepare documents, information packets, mailings, and letters, including CBYX pre-departure mailings.
Administer the CBYX application platform, including annual configuration and testing, applicant technical support, and application processing.
Administer participant surveys under the Performance Monitoring Plan to support MODE data collection; track response rates and compile results.
Support marketing and recruitment, including social media, outreach materials, and alumni engagement.
Assemble and submit content and images for regular program highlights and participant activity roundups.
Maintain and update program process documentation to make recurring procedures repeatable and transferable.
Organize venues, transportation, lodging, and food for program activities, orientations, and seminars, including the Congressional Internship Program orientation.
Book German participant travel to evaluation seminars and the Congressional Internship Program.
Arrange Congressional visits for participants during seminars in Washington, D.C.
Arrange panelists and logistics for CBYX selection interviews.
Support CBBSX logistics as directed by the Assistant Director, including gathering selected Congressional staff biographical and travel information, coordinating ticketing, and processing ASPE enrollment.
Represent Cultural Vistas and CBYX at conferences, fairs, and meetings; proactively engage vendors, stakeholders, and participants.
Support and advise participants, host families, host colleges, and host companies as directed, in cooperation with the Senior Program Officer and Assistant Director.
Maintain regular communication with Cultural Vistas gGmbH and the German partner organization to support collaboration with the Parlamentarisches Patenschafts-Programm (PPP).
Provide consistent customer service to internal and external parties.
Depending on business needs and budget, participate in recruiting program interns and temporary support, lead training, assign and review work, and provide feedback.
Delegate appropriate assignments, monitor completion, and provide feedback and appreciation; support staff engagement across programs and projects.
Support staff performance management through conflict resolution, mentorship, and respect for diverse work and learning styles.
Maintain working knowledge of J-1 visa regulations, Cultural Vistas policies, and current issues in international education.
Develop industry knowledge through workshops, conferences, professional organizations, classes, and publications.
Communicate with appropriate staff about initiatives and new and existing business; proactively improve business functions and departmental workflow.
Work in accordance with and support the mission, goals, values, and strategic direction of Cultural Vistas.
Perform other tasks as assigned by the Senior Program Officer.