Senior Specialist, Membership

POSITION SUMMARY:

The American Council on Education (ACE) is the major coordinating body for the nation's colleges and universities. ACE is a membership organization that mobilizes the higher education community to shape effective public policy and foster innovative, high-quality practices. With a diverse base of member institutions, ACE represents nearly 1,700 college and university presidents and executives, serving as the only major higher education association to represent all types of U.S. accredited, degree-granting institutions. ACE's mission includes serving 280 minority serving institutions, 25,000 higher education professionals, and 7.7 million students enrolled in colleges and universities. ACE membership extends to all 50 states, Washington DC, Puerto Rico, Guam, and 21 other countries.

The Senior Specialist, Membership plays a key role in delivering an exceptional member experience through customer service, member engagement, data integrity, and program support. They will continually seek to improve the quality and effectiveness of service and communications with members. The Senior Specialist will manage all aspects of ACE's day-to-day customer service, ensuring all inquiries are handled in a timely, professional manner. They will maintain ongoing communications with members, including renewal and engagement efforts, and will coordinate and manage online content and virtual meetings. The Senior Specialist will partner with the Senior Director, Membership to ensure ACE meets its goals by assisting with implementation of member retention and engagement tactics, and will ensure ACE's data management meets the highest quality standards.

ESSENTIAL JOB DUTIES OR TASKS:

• Execute member engagement programs such as new member onboarding, monthly member emails, and new president acknowledgements, including coordinating mailings, phone calls, and emails as needed.
• Coordinate virtual meetings and programs, including member open houses and webinars.
• Manage all aspects of ACE's customer service function, including membership, webinar registrations, and general inquiries:
  
  
  
  • Ensure all inquiries are met in a timely, professional manner.
  • Identify service issues and work with other departments when necessary to bring resolution.
  • Identify and implement process, communication, and technology improvements.
  
  
  
  
• Develop and maintain proficiency in ACE's member systems, including MMA CRM, Cvent, and Attendee Hub, at a level sufficient to train other ACE staff on MMA CRM.
• Partner with the Senior Director, Membership on the annual renewal process and execute retention tactics throughout the fiscal year.
• Ensure accuracy of all president and chancellor contact information and make updates as needed.
• Provide excellent service to internal colleagues who seek assistance with member-related or CRM questions.
• Provide support for onsite meetings, partnering with ACE Connect colleagues.
• Perform quality control reviews on membership and events data to ensure the maintenance of high-quality data.
• Update inaccurate data, including processing bounce-backs (postal and email).
• Support special projects as assigned that may relate to member engagement, such as special mailings or outreach, or working with a cross-functional team to improve ACE's operational effectiveness.
• Key relationships - Internal: Membership, Marketing, Web Services, IT, Finance, and ACE program staff.
• Key relationships - External: ACE members, prospective members, vendors, and other constituents.

EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE/SPECIALIZED KNOWLEDGE AND COMPETENCY REQUIREMENTS:

• Bachelor's degree preferred, or equivalent experience.
• Five to seven years in a similar role, preferably at an association or nonprofit organization.
• Experience working in a CRM or other association management tools.
• Knowledge of databases and/or CRM/association management systems, including the ability to query, run reports, and create and update records.
• Results-oriented, with the ability to understand desired outcomes and develop the steps needed to achieve them.
• Demonstrates initiative and the ability to manage multiple priorities independently.
• Highly organized, with exceptional attention to detail and strong time-management skills.
• Comfortable initiating contact with members by phone and email to gather information, follow up on lapsed memberships, and respond to inquiries.
• Strong oral and written communication, analytical, decision-making, problem-solving, teamwork, and interpersonal skills.

WORKING CONDITIONS/PHYSICAL EFFORT:

This is a hybrid position based in Washington, DC. Team members work onsite at our One Dupont Circle NW office three days per week (Tuesday through Thursday), with remote work on Mondays and Fridays.

ANTICIPATED SALARY RANGE: $72,936.00 - $91,170.00

HOW TO APPLY:

Please submit a resume and cover letter with your application for consideration. Applications that do not submit a cover letter will not be considered.

APPLICATION DEADLINE:

Applications will be accepted through August 14, 2026, or until we receive a maximum of 200 applications, whichever comes first. We encourage interested candidates to apply as early as possible, as the posting may close ahead of the listed deadline based on volume.

BENEFITS OVERVIEW:

We offer a comprehensive and competitive benefits package, including:

• Medical/Dental/Vision Insurance
• Flexible Spending Account
• 403B with matching incentive + employer contribution
• Short term disability/Long term disability/Life insurance
• Generous PTO package
• Paid Parental Leave
• 13 paid holidays + week between Christmas Eve & New Years Off
• Professional Development Opportunities
• ....and more!

For a full summary of our benefits, please reach out to the Recruiting Team.

Please Note: ACE does not accept unsolicited resumes or candidate referrals from third-party recruiters or staffing agencies. Any resumes submitted without a prior signed agreement will be considered the property of ACE, and no fees will be paid.