Program Assistant, ACS H.O.P.E.

About the American College of Surgeons

The American College of Surgeons (ACS) is a professional and educational organization of surgeons that was founded in 1913 to raise the standards of surgical practice and improve the quality of care for surgical patients. The College is dedicated to the ethical and competent practice of surgery. Its achievements have significantly influenced the course of scientific surgery in America and have established it as an important advocate for all surgical patients. The College has more than 90,000 members and is the largest organization of surgeons in the world. For more information, visit www.facs.org.

Summary: The Program Assistant, ACS Health Outreach Program for Equity (H.O.P.E.) will support the implementation of all programs and initiatives coordinated by ACS H.O.P.E.. This position will work with both internal staff and external partners to schedule meetings, process financial and travel documents, and support additional administrative needs of the Medical Director and Program Manager.

This non-exempt position will report to the Program Manager, ACS H.O.P.E. in the Division of Member Services. It is based in our Chicago office and is a hybrid role: 3 days per week in the office/2 days per week remote.

The anticipated salary range for this position is $50,000 ($25.95/hr) - $55,000 ($28.21/hr) (commensurate with related experience).

Responsibilities:

• Meeting Coordination - Schedule both internal and external meetings, including setting up Zoom or Teams links, sending calendar invites, and issuing reminders via email and WhatsApp. Responsibilities also include preparing and distributing meeting agendas and materials in advance, taking detailed minutes, and uploading them to the appropriate folders. Additionally, the role provides logistical support for both virtual and in-person events, such as Clinical Congress sessions and committee meetings.
  
  
• Finance management - work with our accounting department to process expenses for the Medical Director, process reimbursements for volunteers, and assist with facilitating the new vendor verification process for volunteers.
  
  
• Surgical Volunteerism Awards - Provides coordination for the full Surgical Volunteerism Award cycle, including nomination portal oversight via Aptify, coordinating reviewers and score collection, scheduling related meetings, and coordinating communication. In addition, this position serves as the primary liaison for award winners leading up to and during Clinical Congress, providing support with travel logistics, hotel bookings, and gathering bios, photos, and media materials. Responsibilities also include coordinating with the Communications team on event visuals and printed assets, such as PowerPoints, videos, and dinner booklets.
  
  
• Surgical Training Collaborative Support: Assisting workgroups in achieving their deliverables by taking notes during in-person work plan meetings and summarizing them into slide format for follow-up discussions, coordinating meetings and follow-up tasks related to activities, updating documents in internal and external SharePoint folders, co-managing the volunteer travel schedule, and organizing pre-departure orientations and post-trip debriefs.
  
  
• Committee & Scholarship Support: Provides administrative support to the Committee on Global Engagement and its programs, including the COSECSA awards and Global Surgery Expert Lecture Series. Responsibilities include managing onboarding and offboarding for committee members, sending appointment and term notifications, and coordinating speaker outreach, scheduling, and WhatsApp reminders for the lecture series. The role also supports the administration of the COSECSA Women Scholar Award by managing communications and collecting and organizing scholar bios and required documentation
  
  
• General Administration and Course Support: Provides logistical and operational support across program activities. Responsibilities include coordinating meetings and communications for the 10-module global surgery course, maintaining course documents, organizing materials in SharePoint, and sending meeting reminders. Monitors shared inboxes, responding to volunteer inquiries, managing volunteer databases, and organizing shared files. Additional tasks include notetaking for work plan meetings and special projects, preparing PowerPoint slides for presentations, and assisting with invoice and payment processing as needed.
  
  

Required Education and/or Experience:

• Bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited college or university is preferred.
  
  
• At least 1 year of administrative experience, preferably in global health, healthcare, or nonprofit sectors is preferred.
  
  
• Strong communication skills (both verbal and written), including professional email and document drafting are required.
  
  
• Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Office products (Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint) and a willingness to learn new systems.
  
  
• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail are essential.

Comprehensive Benefits:
We're committed to attracting and retaining top talent via valuable benefits!

• Vacation, personal, and sick hours including 13 paid holidays per year
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Medical-comprehensive coverage through BlueCross BlueShield
• Dental, Vision, and Prescription drug program
• 403(b) Matching Program
• Pension Plan
• Flexible Spending Medical/Dependent Care
• Employee Assistance Program
• Short Term/Long Term Disability
• Life Insurance
• Domestic Partner Coverage

The American College of Surgeons is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. If, because of a medical condition or disability, you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the employment process, please send an e-mail to recruitment@facs.org or call (312) 202-5000 and let us know the nature of your request and your contact information.