Program Officer, Foster Youth Initiative

International hotelier Conrad N. Hilton established the grantmaking foundation that bears his name in 1944 to help people living in poverty and experiencing disadvantage worldwide. Today, the work continues, concentrating on efforts to ensure healthy early childhood development and sustainable livelihoods for youth, support young people transitioning out of foster care, improve access to housing and support services for people experiencing homelessness, identify solutions to safe water access, and lift the work of Catholic sisters. Additionally, following selection by an independent, international jury, the Foundation annually awards the $2.5 million Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize to an organization doing extraordinary work to reduce human suffering. The Foundation is one of the world’s largest, with approximately $8.5 billion in assets. It has awarded grants to date totaling more than $2.4 billion, $339 million worldwide in 2021. Please visit www.hiltonfoundation.org for more information.

**Cover letter req. for consideration**

Job Summary

The Program Officer is a key member of the Domestic team and supports the Foundation's grantmaking in the Foster Youth initiative. The Initiative partners with organizations that provide services, connections, skills and supports to ensure TAY-age Foster Youth have what they need to lead healthy, meaningful, and self-sufficient lives. The Initiative's geographic areas of focus are Los Angeles, New York City, and Atlanta. Reporting to the Senior Program Officer (SPO), the Program Officer serves as a key thought partner and will have primary responsibility for managing the Foster Youth initiative's overall grant portfolio. The Officer will work closely with the SPO to design, implement, and monitor a portfolio of grants in alignment with the Board-approved strategy for Foster Youth. The Officer will help to identify potential grantees, assist with proposal development, provide grantee technical support, and monitor grant progress.

The ideal candidate has an understanding of child welfare systems and policy and is a proactive team player with excellent multi-tasking skills. The individual must have strong critical thinking and problem-solving skills, with the ability to understand, interpret, and translate qualitative and quantitative data. They will be expected to resolve time-sensitive issues with a high degree of precision and exhibit strong organizational, written and verbal communication skills. Attention to detail and the ability to anticipate needs are a must.

Responsibilities

Portfolio Management

• Participates in the identification of potential grantees and projects.
• Reviews proposals and works with the SPO to determine which ones will be further developed and recommended for funding.
• Presents recommended proposals for funding at board meetings, as needed.
• Provides counsel to organizations invited to develop proposals.
• Reviews and refines grant-write-ups and assists in writing and preparing other materials for the quarterly board of directors’ meetings
• Monitors portfolio of grants in Foster Youth and other projects as assigned.
• Monitors and evaluates grants and grantee performance, including timely completion of all progress reports. Provides feedback to SPO.
• Recommends for approval any deviations from approved plans and budgets, and ensures that such changes are documented.
• Conducts site visits, as needed.

Strategic Support

• Acts as thought partner and provides support to SPO in planning, development and implementation process, as needed.
• Works with SPO and MEL partner on convening planning. Attends strategy convenings.
• Works with SPO in identifying the need for consultants within the program area; plans scope of work for contracts, develops terms of contract and monitors progress.

Communications

• Supports SPO's work with communications team to develop communication strategy for the Foster Youth initiative.
• Writes blogs/articles for the website and supervises web-site content and updates.

Qualifications

Required:

• Bachelor's degree in public health, public policy, social sciences, social welfare, business or a related field, with a minimum of five (5) years experience.
• A minimum of five (5) years of relevant work experience in program development and/or management experience.
• A substantive knowledge of Domestic policy issues and the funding landscape.
• Ability to assess the leadership, track record, fiscal health and capacity of a nonprofit organization to lead a proposed program or project.
• Demonstrated ability to think critically about program design and implementation.
• Enthusiastic, professional and self-motivating, with a ‘can-do’ attitude.
• Understands quantitative and qualitative data; ability to ask the right questions; experience with data analytics and evaluation.
• Creative, flexible, and collaborative with an ability to work in a team-oriented environment; demonstrates a high degree of initiative; results-oriented.
• Ability to continually seek information and look for new approaches to processes and practices.
• Welcomes feedback as a means to personal and professional growth.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills; strong presentation skills and the ability to clearly articulate ideas.
• Some domestic travel will be required to the Initiative's geographic areas of focus in New York City and Atlanta.

Desired:

• Graduate degree in public health, public policy, social sciences, social welfare, business or a related field.
• An understanding of grant-making and the non-profit sector.

About our Benefits

We value the health and well-being of our employees, some of the benefits we offer include:

• Comprehensive and generous health and life insurance options
• Relocation Pay 
• Fitness benefits
• Paid holidays, time off, and parental leave
• Flexible work schedules and technology benefits
• Foundation funded retirement savings plan
• Professional learning and development and educational assistance
• Employee matching gifts to qualified non-profit organizations