Program Associate

About NACEDA

NACEDA’s mission is to lead the community development field and its partners in shaping and influencing strategies that advance community prosperity. As an alliance of 38 state and regional community development associations in 25 states and the District of Columbia, our network includes 3,500 community development organizations across the country.

The Position

NACEDA seeks a Program Associate to support its new and growing programs and advocacy efforts. The associate would report to the executive director but would regularly work with other organizational staff and consultants. The ideal candidate will have strong writing and interpersonal skills, experience working with colleagues with diverse skills and backgrounds, be able to manage several projects at once, have experience leading projects, possess very strong administrative skills, be comfortable managing simple website related tasks, and have a healthy sense of humor. Experience with conference management, fundraising/grants management, and public policy advocacy are a plus, as is experience with the community development field.

Below are the anticipated projects the associate will support in 2021.

Research Project: Community Development Corporation Study

NACEDA is launching an ambitious research agenda to measure the financial health and programmatic focuses of community development corporations nationally.This program will involve the associate working directly with the executive director and lead research consultant. The tasks associated with this program are largely administrative and logistical. We anticipate this program will account for 30% of the associate’s time in 2021.

Specific Tasks

• Support ED to create an organized method of sending and tracking a large number of emails
• Support ED to schedule a large number of meetings with stakeholders using a program such as Calendly or similar
• Support ED and Communications Director in creation of communications plans, materials, announcements, social media posts, and graphic design
• Support crafting of fundraising proposals
• Take notes during conversations and organizing follow up tasks for ED and other staff
• Coordinate on logistics and meeting support with contractor
• Develop and maintain tracking systems for project activities, contacts, and lists
• Organize shared materials and maintain active files
• Support various staff in pulling together language and boilerplate for different audiences into new documents and email drafts
• Support and promote the active use of Slack for internal project coordination

Advocacy

NACEDA is tracking and advancing several legislative priorities in 2021 and hosting a virtual Federal Advocacy Weekin June 2021. This program reports to the executive director. The tasks related to this program are to assist in the organizing of large groups of people, assisting in legislative ‘asks’ and follow up, and scheduling. We anticipate this program will account for 25% of the associate’s time in 2021.

Skills required:

Specific Tasks

• Support attendees of People & Places Federal Advocacy Week in June 2021 to make legislative meetings, coach attendees on asks and talking points.
• Attend legislative meetings during Federal Advocacy Week and throughout 2021. Support and/or directly make requests of legislative staff. Take notes. Follow up on promises and commitments
• Assist other staff in crafting advocacy documents, including action alerts, one-pagers, leave-behinds.
• Attend coalition meetings, take notes, report back to ED and other staff.

NACEDA Summit and Resilient Communities Forum

NACEDA’s 2021 Summit and Resilient Communities Forum will be hosted virtually in October of 2021. The events will bring community development professionals from acrossthe country to explore topics such as eviction and foreclosure prevention, small business recovery, health sector partnerships, community engagement, and more.This program reports to the Communications and Membership Directors. The tasks related to this program are to assist in the hosting and administration of the online event in coordination with staff, consultants, and NACEDA’s members. We anticipate this program will account for 35% of the associate’s time in 2021.

Specific Tasks

• Follow up and confirm speakers, collect necessary information for web and promotional purposes.
• Share in the planning of sessions and content. Host session prep meetings. Coordinate details with consultants and staff.
• Post conference details to the event website.
• Attend regular planning meetings with staff, consultants, and members. Take notes. Hold others accountable to commitments and deadlines.
• Assist in sponsor outreach and tracking; assist with sponsor benefit fulfillment.

Membership Support

NACEDA’s members are its most important stakeholders. This program reports to the Membership Director. The tasks for this program largely support ongoing membership needs. We anticipate this program will account for 10% of the associate’s time in 2021.

• Create launch plan for NACEDA’s annual membership survey. Ensure responses are collected.
• Assist the Membership Director to launch dues collection for 2022.
• Assist the Membership Director toset agendas and schedule peer member meetings.
• Assist in website and email list maintenance, member database maintenance.

Overall required skills

• Ability to manage complex scheduling and logistics tasks
• Ability to document conversations and synthesize large amounts of information into salient points
• Ability to use various technologies to develop tracking and monitoring systems for ongoing projects
• Comfortable leading small group meetings
• Effective and succinct writing skills, experience with communicating verbally and in writing to diverse stakeholders
• Keen sense of organization of files, notes, and information
• Clear communications to advance key goals and activities
• Basic layout and formatting of key documents
• Experience with Microsoft Office

Other desired skills

• Knowledge of community development practice, in particularin one or more of the following areas: small business development, creative placemaking, community organizing, affordable housing, family asset building, economic development or public health.
• Bachelors and Advanced Degree.
• Public speaking experience.
• Experience working on grassroots advocacy or electoral campaigns.
• Advanced computer skills, including database management and web design.
• Experience with MemberClicks.
• Sense of humor.

Hours and Travel

This is a full-time position requiring some evening and weekend hours. Candidates should expect to travel within the United States one or two times per month on average once safety guidelines allow. The position will be virtual for the foreseeable future, though it is possible we will return to some in person office work later this year. Our office is in DC. Our office is currently open for in-person work if needed or preferred.

To Apply

Interested applicants should emaila resume and cover letter to info@naceda.org. Please also include up to three references. Applications are due by May 31, 2021.CompensationThis position pays between $40,000 -$50,000 annually. Employees have access to NACEDA’s health insurance plan that covers 100% of monthly premiums, including dental. Employees also have access to NACEDA’s 403b retirement plan. NACEDA offers a retirement match after one year of employment. NACEDA is an equal opportunity employer.