Community Organizer - Washoe County, NV

About the Organization & Role

Faith in Action Nevada is a nonpartisan, multi-faith and multi-racial organization that organizes and advocates for racial justice, economic justice, and an inclusive democracy in Nevada.

Originally founded as ACTIONN, our organization has been active in Northern Nevada since 2011. Over time, our organization and vision for a more just world have grown to include both Northern and Southern Nevada. In 2021, we officially launched as a statewide organization: Faith in Action Nevada.

We are rooted in transformative local organizing led by communities of faith and those directly impacted by racial and economic injustice in both Clark and Washoe County. In turn, local organizing drives our powerful grassroots advocacy and voter engagement at the local, state, and federal levels.

Faith in Action Nevada is a member of Faith in Action National Network (formerly PICO National Network), the largest grassroots spiritual and congregational organizing network in the U.S.

Position Summary:

We are seeking a dynamic, compassionate, and justice-oriented individual to join our team as a full-time Community organizer in Washoe County, Nevada. The organizer will engage in advocacy, activism and to ensure members of the community are equipped to contest for power in the public square and to manifest the communities they deserve. FIANV seeks an organizer to train and coach teams of leaders in congregations in the rural communities around Washoe County. We’re looking for candidates that understand the necessity of working with those who are most impacted by issues of racial inequity. Our work focuses on the political education and leadership development of the most impacted community members to help us confront the systems that are created by white supremacy that continue to traumatize Black, Indigenous and other people of Color. The ideal candidate will have an understanding of antiracist practices, an understanding of the role of faith in addressing these issues and the ability to work and learn from people of multi-faith and multi-racial perspectives.

The Community Organizer is responsible for working with a variety of congregations, neighborhood and/or community-based groups to: find and develop leaders; identify issues important to the local community members; work with leaders to design campaign strategies and win policy changes that improve communities and the quality of life for residents. This position will specifically work with clergy and lay leaders in institutions and communities in Washoe County.

This individual is expected to be a full participant in achieving the FIANV mission, with specific responsibility to:

• Base-Building Organizing:
• Increase FIANV’s base of leaders so the organization can fully achieve its goal of being led by people most affected by racial and economic justice.
• Identify congregations, both within and outside of FIANV, who have congregants who have been affected by the policies of mass incarceration including immigrant detention and economic exploitation.
• Through regular 1:1 meetings and group training, organize and develop the leadership of individuals, both in FIANV’s congregations and in new congregations not yet connected to FIANV.
• Identify, recruit, and organize directly-affected people outside of congregations, particularly those affected by the systems of mass incarceration
• Strategize and implement additional base-building approaches that increase Black and Latino political power.
• Campaign Organizing:
• Assist FIANV’s leaders in defining vision and goals. Train leaders to act in the public arena with measurable impact.
• Support congregations and regional teams in outreach, research, and strategic planning to wage and win campaigns. This includes supporting teams to organize large community action meetings, non-violent symbolic actions, voter engagement, meetings with public officials, and developing and implementing plans around community investment.
• Work with FIANV leaders and clergy to lead campaigns including work on police reform, community investment, and criminal justice reform on the local, state, and national levels, environmental justice, immigration, healthcare, housing etc.
• Building Solidarity:
• Develop and implement strategies that create spaces where people can come together to share their stories, understand each other’s pain, and develop a common political and economic analysis.
• Leverage mutual understanding between people of faith as the basis for collective action.
• Support solidarity efforts by FIANV’s other community organizers to promote understanding and solidarity between people of color and white leaders in FIANV.
• Participate in FIANV’s fundraising efforts, staff development and administrative activities as required.
• Participate in staff meetings, development and training, and meetings with coalition partners and FIA.
• Develop appropriate training to advance the goals and responsibilities stated above.
• Provide guidance and technical assistance to Advocates and part-time organizers.
• Develop his/her organizer capacity and leadership through self-reflection, constructive feedback/challenging and ongoing evaluation from organizing staff and leaders.
• Participate in the organization’s practice of praxis - ongoing cycles of action/organizing and reflections/evaluation to advance a culture of institutional learning.
• Contribute to reporting requirements for funding sources.
• Write weekly emails, social media posts, press releases, and program materials that advance our mission.
• Meet weekly with the supervisor to shadow, plan, and evaluate work progress.
• Other duties as assigned.

Preferred Qualifications & Experience

• Should be a Washoe County resident, familiar with the community.
• Passion for social and economic justice, and strong commitment to faith- and values-based organizing.
• Able to understand and organize in Black and Latino Church congregations and other diverse faith spaces.
• Should be comfortable building relationships with community members including and especially those most impacted by racial inequities including the formerly incarcerated, clergy and other leaders.
• B.A. or B.S degree strongly preferred, or equivalent work experience.
• Experience with and comfort using web-based video conferencing systems such as Google Hangouts and Zoom.
• Familiarity with Google Suite and Mac OS.
• Spanish/bilingual proficiency is a plus.

Compensation & Benefits

• This position is full-time (40-50 hours per week), non-exempt position.
• This position includes regular evening and occasional weekend work as needed.
• Salary range is $50-65k commensurate with experience and qualifications.
• Hybrid position; the employee is able to work from home but must be able to report weekly to the office. Employees must be available for in-person meetings and campaign efforts.
• Benefits include a comprehensive health plan, PTO, 26 observed holiday breaks, and monthly cell phone stipend.

Faith in Action Nevada is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate against any employee or applicant because of race, creed, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin, disability, age, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, pregnancy or related condition (including breastfeeding), or any other basis protected by law.

All applicants must apply for this position by sending an email to Shaunda Johnson at info@faithinactionnv.org. Please have the following two (2) documents ready to upload to your online application:

• An electronic file of your resume (preferably in PDF format)
• A cover letter stating why this is a fit for you and for Faith in Action Nevada

If you need assistance or experience any technical difficulties with your online application, please contact info@faithinactionnv.org. Resumes will not be accepted via this email address. While we appreciate all candidates, we will only contact those candidates who meet the qualifications for interview.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $50,000.00 - $65,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Health insurance

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday
• Weekends as needed

Education:

• Bachelor's (Preferred)

Experience:

• community organizing: 1 year (Required)

License/Certification:

• Driver's License (Preferred)

Ability to Relocate:

• Sparks, NV: Relocate before starting work (Required)

Willingness to travel:

• 25% (Preferred)

Work Location: In person