Job Description

 

Please Note: The start date of this position is contingent on the signing of an expansion contract. The estimated start date is Fall 2023. Our screening process will also be slowed down/on pause during the last week of August as we close out our fiscal year.

Friends of the Children - Los Angeles (Friends LA) is part of a national network of Friends of the Children chapters dedicated to impacting generational change by empowering youth facing the greatest obstacles through relationships with professional mentors from kindergarten through high school – 12+ years, no matter what. These mentors – Friends – give 1:1 weekly support in the home and classroom to ensure healthy social and emotional development, safety, educational success, and the overall well-being of their youth. Friends LA operates two sites in South Los Angeles and a second in the Antelope Valley. While Friends LA is only four years old, the national organization has 27 years of experience and extensive research that proves the model’s success.

Friends LA focuses on enrolling children of young parents who experienced foster care in their childhood. Over 80% of our parents experienced foster care, putting their children at a higher risk of Child Protective Services involvement than any other population. The additional 20% of our caregivers are grandparents or great-grandparents who have stepped up to care for their grandchildren. Through our research-based, two-generation (2Gen) approach, Friends LA empowers parents and caregivers to set and achieve their own goals and help them access stable housing, educational opportunities, and gainful employment.

Position Summary:

The Director of Community Partnerships will serve as the on-the-ground point person responsible for coordinating the participation of community stakeholders and partners (e.g. community-based organizations) throughout Los Angeles County. This position partners seamlessly with the programs team on strategy and execution of chapter goals for serving more youth and families across the region, while strengthening our network of community partner agencies.

The Director of Community Partnerships will support long-range strategic priorities, advance the agency's goals, and persuasively convey the mission of Friends LA to diverse constituencies, including current and prospective youth, community partners, youth-serving leaders, and others who are critical to the agency's overall prosperity. The successful candidate must be proactive, well organized, possess outstanding program assessment and community asset mapping skills, able to work with diverse partners and communities, have excellent oral and written communication skills, and be able to work in a team and relate well with others. The job requires that a significant amount of time be spent in the community with the flexibility to attend evening meetings or events/activities as appropriate.

The Director of Community Partnerships Outreach will report to the Chief Program Officer but provide shared support to the programs department and other Executive Team members, as assigned.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Collaborate with community partners: Work with the development department to develop and implement communication strategies (including collateral, logos, flyers, direct mailers, blogs, social media posts, and press releases) to uplift Friends LA.
• Program expansion and execution: Serve as a bridge between community partners and the program implementation team. Work closely with community partners to help them achieve project KPIs (e.g., help to enroll over 700 youth and families and activate 60+ community-based partner organizations).
• Assist in overseeing programmatic and grant compliance with contracted partners.
• Assist in community partner management, including creating MOU agreements and consultant contracts, monitoring progress, and processing.
• Monitor and update internal reports and analyze data across programs and initiatives.
• Oversee and implement community engagement strategy for overall chapter programming: presentations, focus groups, workshops, steering committees, and check-ins with community partners.
• Assist with the development of expansion KPIs and data collection strategy and draft and process contracts with community partners.
• Attend and represent Friends LA at resource-related community events
• Regularly assess existing community partner relationships and opportunities to expand program partnerships with a strategic lens across the organization supporting site-based PDs.
• Strengthen existing alliances while building new community partner collaborations to increase our impact on the progress of serving children and families for 12+ years.

KEY QUALIFICATIONS & COMPETENCIES:

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university, however relevant related experience may be considered as a proxy.
• Minimum two years of professional experience in community development with some combination of administrative, communications, project management, and research responsibilities.
• Experience in community organizing, grassroots, direct service, and/or in-person outreach.
• Working knowledge of the economic, political, and social environments of the LA Region, especially lower-income neighborhoods, organizations, and community development efforts is a plus.
• Comfortable with public speaking.
• Experience analyzing data and research reports for program development.
• Experience with grant and federal grant monitoring and compliance.
• Strong attention to detail and ability to manage many moving projects at once.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Highly motivated, solution-oriented individual who is self-directed, and able to successfully work simultaneously on multiple tasks and projects, set priorities for a challenging workload, and be positive, and solution-oriented.
• Flexible and positive attitude, ability to work in a dynamic environment, enthusiasm, and an outcomes-based outlook.
• Commitment to accuracy and attention to detail.
• Ability to work collaboratively with co-workers and representatives from the nonprofit, philanthropic, and public sectors and operate in a team environment.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills; ability to write clear and concise communications such as memos, reports, and emails.
• High level of proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite of programs, especially Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Candidate must also have the capacity to learn and navigate new software
• Passion for the mission of Friends LA, with at least general familiarity with youth development, mentoring, and FOTC 2Generation (2Gen) Approach.

Why You’re Right for the Job:

• You’re a master connector. The ability to connect with people and connect people has enabled you to build strategic partnerships across the LA landscape of service providers and lead mutually beneficial collaborations across groups with seemingly different missions, but to service youth and families holistically.
• You're an experienced project manager who cares about the details. These strong project management and organizational skills allow you to assess dependencies, manage many moving parts, adhere to deadlines, and follow up promptly on action items.
• You work well autonomously and can switch gears or pivot quickly. While Friends LA is a nonprofit, it more closely resembles a start-up with a rapidly changing environment. You will need to wear multiple hats well, be comfortable in a results-oriented culture, and not require daily oversight or check-ins to be successful.
• You thrive in fast-paced, highly autonomous roles. Bring an entrepreneurial spirit and goal-oriented mindset which will allow you to be comfortable in a results-oriented culture. You know how to keep people looped in without requiring daily oversight or check-ins to be successful.
• You’re authentic and approachable. Your demeanor and openness often lead people to approach you with their honest thoughts and feelings. You’ve been told that your responses to problems are refreshingly authentic and empathetic. You hold these confidences with care, so people know they can confide in and depend on you.
• Your values are front and center: You put children first, build relationships on love, and demand equity. In addition, you have a commitment to inclusion, or the need for solutions to support all people in a community regardless of race, religion, gender, immigration status, or ethnicity.

Benefits

Friends LA cares about our employees as whole people. We offer a generous vacation and sick leave policy, quarterly reset days, 12 paid holidays, summer half days, a summer recess the first week of July, and an annual winter recess during the last week of December. Employees are eligible for medical benefits (including vision and dental), 401k retirement plan, EAP, and ongoing professional development opportunities.

Employees can add optional plans, at employee expense, which include medical coverage for dependents, Flexible Spending Accounts, supplemental life insurance, and more.

Friends LA requires COVID-19 vaccines for all employees. As of March 1, 2022, we will be expanding our in-person vaccination requirement to include booster shots. Accommodations or exceptions can be requested for medical or religious reasons.

Friends of the Children – Los Angeles is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to addressing discriminatory practices, and to working toward racial equity. The equal employment opportunity policy of Friends of the Children provides fair and equal opportunities for all employees and job applicants regardless of race, color, religious creed, national origin, ancestry, age, sex, gender, pregnancy, sexual orientation, marital status, familial status, disability, or genetic information, in compliance with applicable federal, state and local law. Friends of the Children – Los Angeles hires and promotes individuals solely on the basis of their qualifications for the job to be filled.

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