Community Organizer jobs in the United States

Position Summary

Description of Duties

Recruitment and Base building (15-20%) 

• Recruits leaders to membership through door-to-door canvassing, personal visits, social service agency outreach, house meetings, and phoning.  
• Plans and coordinates outreach and organizing meetings in order to build an effective, ongoing organization and to promote participation and leadership of grassroots members and allies.  
• Develops and maintains outreach and organizing plans, work plans, campaign plans, leadership development plans, communications systems and databases to track leadership development.  
• Works with teammates, managers and leaders to meet PAO standards for leadership development, base building, one-on-one conversations, and campaign development.  

Grassroots Organizing (60-70%)

• Collaborates with teammates and leaders to plan and execute an ongoing curriculum joining hard organizing skills with advanced political analysis and an anti-racism and anti-oppression worldview.  
• Trains leaders on a variety of core organizing skills including: member recruitment, facilitation and public speaking, planning, issue analysis, campaign strategy and tactics, advocacy, and organizational development.  
• Develops and implements leadership training on social change theory, power analysis, worldview analysis and ideology to help leaders develop their ability to win campaigns.  

• Works with community members to cut policy issues that serve as a basis for meaningful personal and systemic change.  
• Trains and positions leaders to run policy campaigns that recognize intersectional issues and incorporate an anti-racism and anti-oppression worldview.  
• Assists in issue research and analysis.  
• Trains and mentors leaders to represent the organization in meetings with policy makers and campaign targets, and to develop press stories/materials and media relationships in collaboration with SHCS communications staff.  
• Coordinates activities and actions, including the development and implementation of mobilization strategies for public participation in public policy hearings, actions, and discussions, with the goal of turning out hundreds of people at the peak of a campaign.  
• Supports leaders to create organizing materials including talking points, marketing collaterals, flyers, fact sheets, etc.  
• Supports agency-wide advocacy efforts that align with the mission and vision of Sacred Heart, result in meaningful change in people’s lives, and have the support of PAO members.  

• Work with organizers and staff in other program areas to create a culture of organizing and transformation with a broader definition of what it means to build power, including mutual support.  
• Participate in training agency staff and leaders/members of program areas to develop organizing skills, political analysis and an anti-racist, anti-oppression worldview and practice.  
• Develop joint work plans on specific projects that promote leadership development, base-building, mutual support and meaningful policy change tied to PAO's core issues.   
• Work with staff across programs to identify and respond to organizing opportunities external to Sacred Heart's programs and existing membership.  

Collaboration and Partnership (5-10%)

• Work with the executive director and other senior staff to set appropriate roles and participation with regional partners.  
• Serve as liaison with local and regional anti-poverty advocacy collaborations and SHCS Power and Organizing Team.  
• Identify and build collaborations with key community partners.  

General (10-20%)

• Supports the planning and implementation of SHCS programs, events, training, and outreach efforts.  
• Performs other duties as assigned.  

Required Qualifications and Experience

• Strong commitment to our vision of uniting community to ensure every child and adult is free from poverty;   
• Ability to work with diverse people, communities, and cultures, with understanding of culturally competent practices;  
• 1-2 years experience working in community organizing and/or public affairs, or similar grassroots leadership experience;  
• Ability to motivate and inspire members to take action;  
• 2-3 years of community outreach and recruitment experience (i.e., door-to-door canvassing, personal visits, social service agency outreach, house meetings, phoning);  
• Bilingual in Spanish and English;  
• Demonstrated experience in grassroots leadership development programs, including curricula development, training, and tracking systems;  
• Excellent meeting planning and facilitation skills;  
• Superior verbal, written, and presentation skills;  
• Detail oriented, self-motivated, ability to multitask, provide quick responses and highly organized;  
• Impeccable work ethic with flexibility for occasional long hours during peak campaign periods, and some evenings and weekends;   
• Computer literacy with proficiency in database systems (i.e., Salesforce or similar relationship management software), web-based communications, and Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides.  

Preferred

• Demonstrated success in public policy advocacy  
• Basic graphic design software proficiency