Instructional Technology Specialist

Job Description

Reporting to the Senior Director of Academic and Instructional Technologies (Senior Director), the Specialist for Instructional Technologies provides hands-on, operational support for learning management systems (currently Canvas and LXP), integrated instructional and AI enhanced academic technologies, and similar platforms, products, and services. The Specialist is responsible for executing assigned tasks related to instructional technology output (including course content, training materials, documentation, and multimedia) in an accessible manner in alignment with Harvard’s digital accessibility standards, WCAG 2.1 AA.

Working under the guidance and direction of the Senior Director, the Specialist provides direct support for the portfolio of applications supporting academic programs, professional education, and business units that leverage similar services for outreach and education to the HGSE community and its constituents.

The role requires technical and analytical skills to support routine integration efforts, troubleshooting, incident resolution, and basic coding and configuration tasks to address customization, branding, accessibility, and visual identity requirements of HGSE. More advanced technical work is performed under the supervision of the Senior Director or a designated project lead.

The position is additionally responsible for providing standardized training to faculty and their support staff, including Digital Accessibility, the use of instructional and AI supported academic tools, both in group settings and through one-on-one appointments. All trainings, training materials, and user documentation must be designed and delivered in accordance with Harvard’s digital accessibility standards. In addition to supporting daily operations, the Specialist for Instructional Technologies maintains awareness of emerging trends in academic and AI driven technologies and researches options for determining suitability within the HGSE service catalog under the advisement and direction of the Senior Director.

Job-Specific Responsibilities:

Operations and Maintenance Activities (80%)

• Provides day-to-day operational support for day-to-day operations of instructional technology and AI enhanced services to the HGSE community.
• Ensures that instructional technology outputs (including course sites, documents, media, assessments, and other artifacts) and associated workflows meet Harvard’s digital accessibility standards.
• Responds to requests and assists with Canvas and other learning management system users to determine requirements for course websites and assists with: selection and basic configuration of appropriate instructional and AI assisted tools, site design and organization, and design and formatting of course materials (e.g., documents, multimedia, assessment instruments), ensuring compliance with Harvard’s digital accessibility standards and WCAG 2.1 AA.
• Serves as a subject matter resource on Harvard learning management systems, integrated instructional tools, and related AI supported features and services.
• Delivers standardized training to the HGSE community, including faculty, teaching fellows, faculty assistants, PPE program administrators, and similar end users through regular training programs and consultations.
• Ensures that all training sessions (in person and online), training materials, recordings, and handouts are accessible and conform to Harvard’s digital accessibility standards.
• Assists in installing, configuring and maintaining approved instructional and AI supported tools and plug-ins/LTIs within the LMS and related systems, following established procedures and under the direction of the Senior Director, with attention to accessibility features where applicable.
• Partners with operations and infrastructure teams to share current experiences and contribute input to their strategic direction and future investments; escalates complex design or strategic decisions to Senior Director.
• Understands and executes escalation protocols for service issues that cannot be resolved by the service operations team. Communicates issues to HUIT, HGSE Service Owners, and others for resolution.
• Assists the HGSE service center team in categorizing and triaging instructional technology and AI related tickets and requests.
• Collects and maintains metrics and key performance indicators related to service delivery, plug-in/LTI usage, and performance of AI enabled academic tools, following established reporting standards and templates, and incorporates accessibility-related metrics where available and appropriate.

Research in Emerging Technologies (10%)

• Monitors new trends in academic, instructional, and AI driven technologies and, under the advisement of the Senior Director, documents findings and makes recommendations for proof of concept, prototype, and pilot initiatives, including assessment of accessibility implications and alignment with WCAG 2.1 AA.
• Assists with the setup, configuration, and operational support of approved pilots and prototypes of instructional tools, under the direction and supervision of the Senior Director or a designated project lead, ensuring that accessibility considerations are incorporated into evaluation and implementation activities.
• Participates in relevant school and university wide groups, communities of practice, or collaborations across Harvard to share research, experience, and lessons learned with new initiatives and innovative efforts surrounding academic technologies, artificial intelligence, and accessibility.

Other Duties (10%)

• Performs other operational duties as assigned that are consistent with the scope of a unionized staff position, including but not limited to: routine content and course site management, basic data collection and reporting, preparation of documentation, and first level support for instructional and AI enabled academic tools.
• Ensures that all documentation, communications, and other artifacts produced as part of these duties conform to WCAG 2.1 AA.
• Assists with more advanced or specialized tasks (such as complex integrations, advanced AI topics, or custom coding) under the supervision, direction, and review of Senior Director or designated project lead.

Qualifications

Basic Qualifications:

• BA degree
• 1-2 years experience using Canvas in a support or administrator capacity
• Candidates should submit a cover letter and resume as a single PDF document. Any applicant wishing to be considered for this position should indicate that they meet all of the basic requirements in either the cover letter or resume.

Additional Qualifications and Skills:

Due to the sensitive and confidential nature of student data handled in this role, applicants must not be currently enrolled in any Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) degree program. This requirement is in place to prevent potential conflicts of interest and to ensure the integrity and confidentiality of student information.