Program Manager - Fresno

The Youth Leadership Institute (yli) builds communities where young people and their adult allies come together to create positive community change that promotes social justice and racial equity.  For over 20 years the Youth Leadership Institute has sparked the leadership of young people to solve pressing social issues and serve our communities.  yli’s community-based programs are located in San Francisco, Marin, San Mateo, Madera, Merced, Fresno, Long Beach, and Coachella.  In addition to serving eight California counties, yli provides customized trainings, consulting, evaluation, and technical assistance services nationally.  yli is committed to engaging and developing young people of color, low-income youth, and other non-traditional youth as researchers, advocates, and agents of social change.  With support from yli staff and through authentic partnerships with other key adult allies, young people build the skills necessary to research the issues that most affect them and their communities, develop campaigns to advocate for change, and partner with local stakeholders to implement these changes in their respective communities.  

PRIMARY FUNCTION

The REP559 (Redefining Equity through Policy) Program Manager will enable the organization to develop staff to support youth change agents and work with partner agencies to move an equity agenda through youth policy advocacy and organizing across Fresno County.  With support from the yli Senior Director of Programs and Director of Program Financial Systems, the REP559 Program Manager is responsible for directly coordinating and leading the REP559 Program and coordinating and leading youth advocacy and youth organizing campaigns to advance health and racial equity with and for youth and communities across Fresno County.  These efforts are designed to create opportunities for young people to serve as community advocates, organizers, and leaders in efforts to advance health equity through policy and systems change advocacy. They are an experienced professional with demonstrated success in planning and operating community-based youth organizing and engagement programs as well as the ability to work collaboratively and strategically toward a shared vision.

The REP559 Program Manager is expected to be an empowering and creative change agent, with an appetite for learning, coupled with an ability to operate as part of a team with internal staff and external partners.  They should be familiar with a variety of the concepts, practices, and procedures in the fields of youth development, social justice, environmental prevention, and youth advocacy and youth organizing.  In addition, they rely on extensive experience and judgment to plan and accomplish goals while performing a variety of tasks and leading and directing the work of others on their team. 

They will be coming into existing regional and statewide coalitions and/or campaigns and expected to integrate into these initiatives and assume leadership roles, including but not limited to assuming leadership of day-to-day programming, key roles in coalitions, advancing policy advocacy initiatives and/or campaigns, etc… 

RESPONSIBILITIES

Strategy, Program, Contracts, & Partnership Management

• Manage program design and goals in accordance with organizational mission and strategy
• Manage contracts by creating processes for documenting program activities, including progress reports and year-end reports, within required timeframes; ensure that data collection methods meet funder obligations; draft and submit required reports
• Cultivate positive relationships with grant funders, including prospecting new funding relationships for targeted programs
• Support the program staff in the development and implementation of balanced, demographically diverse youth membership; provide oversight in the production of program outreach materials
• With support from Senior Director and Director of Financial Systems, develop strategic alliances and partnerships to advance program and organizational goals

Recruitment and High-Quality Relationships to support youth development

• Conduct outreach to recruit and attract dynamic youth of color
• Utilize positive youth development and youth-adult partnership principles to guide the work
• Hold one-on-one meetings, as necessary, with and provide mentorship to youth
• Represent yli to networks and community in a professional way
• Develop relationships with local leaders & decision makers
• Attend local government meetings and events when needed

Program Leadership and Logistical Functions 

• Using yli curriculum, including customizing and co-creating curriculum, plan for and deliver developmentally appropriate and engaging workshops and training that build leadership and organizing skills, deepen issue and community knowledge, and strengthen connections among members, as well as spark transformation that leads to impactful advocacy.
• Supervise and mentor youth leaders to develop and implement youth-led campaigns and/or projects that offer multiple youth leadership development opportunities.
• Plan and arrange meetings and events, including: preparing sites, agendas, and materials, and providing transportation.
• Conduct follow-up activities after meetings and events including: preparation and distribution of minutes and other records, carrying out tasks assigned at the meeting.
• Align program curriculum with the different and innovative aspects of media.

Management and Oversight of Campaign Development and Implementation

• Manage coordination of media and press coverage for campaigns as necessary.
• Employ social media tools as a method to organize youth base.
• Develop capacity of youth, adults, and staff to facilitate youth-led community level data gathering and analysis in support of campaign actions.
• Manage coordination of key campaign events, like rallies, assemblies, press conferences or legislative hearings as needed.
• Implement and oversee organizing efforts including but not limited to phone banking, door-to-door knocking, community workshops and presentations, etc.
• Secure support of campaigns by key stakeholders including school administrators, teachers, parents, community members, policy leaders and other youth groups.
• Maintain and regularly update a database of allies, constituents, and opponents for use during mobilization and regular communication with campaign supporters.
• Oversee, coordination, and development of internship programs.
• Attend City Council meetings, County Board of Supervisor, and state Legislature meetings as needed during campaigns.

Human Resources Planning and Personnel Management

• Establish a positive, healthy, and safe work environment
• Ensure that staff receives an orientation to the organization and that appropriate training is 
• provided
• Ensure interns and volunteers receive an orientation to the organization and that appropriate training is provided
• If necessary, Implement the yli performance management process for staff which includes monitoring the performance of staff on an on-going basis and conducting an annual performance review
• With support from the Directors, coach and mentor staff as appropriate to improve performance and develop and implement a professional development plan, including but not limited to: CPR/First Aid Training, Mandated Reporter Training, Budget Management, Meeting Facilitation, Suicide Prevention Training, etc.

California Endowment (TCE) Contract Deliverables

• Work with youth, staff, and partners to advance health improvement efforts locally, regionally, and/or statewide through policy, systems, practices, and community norms campaigns  
• Continued alignment of content with TCE community partners and campaigns locally, regionally, and/or statewide
• Participation in relevant local, regional, and/or statewide events/trainings/workshops by youth and staff
• Participation in regular, periodic meetings with funder to provide report on progress of the work

Curriculum Development 

• In collaboration with other staff, create curricula, toolkits, case studies, articles and position papers in a diverse range of topics to capture lessons learned and internal and program evaluation results 

Resource Management, Fund Development, & Leveraging New Opportunities

• Identify and share funding opportunities to support programmatic direction
• Support funding opportunity proposal submissions, including but not limited to drafting and submission of proposals, participation in information sessions, etc. 
• Engage in regular reflection about what is being learned through the work
• Routinely adjusting work to reflect salient lessons learned
• Work with PM-Leadership Team to support ongoing organizational learning 
• Maintain current, and cultivate new, networks and stakeholder relationships
• In partnership with the Finance Team, ensure timely reporting of expenditure reports and invoice
• Share project budgets with programmatic staff
• In partnership with Directors, develop and manage annual program budget 

General and Other

• Promote yli’s organizational mission and goals, including articulating the mission and taking opportunities to advance its goals when appropriate
• Participate as a team member in Youth Leadership Institute-, Central Valley-, and Fresno-wide events, staff meetings, PM-Leadership Team Meetings and other yli activities
• Track trends and stay current on the state of health equity as it relates to community organizing and movement building
• Represent the organization at community activities to enhance the organization's community profile
• Must be able to work weeknights and weekends, including periods of regular weeknight/weekend work schedules 
• Other assigned duties as required

Desired Skills and Qualities

• B.A. and/or a minimum of four to six years relevant experience in field of youth development
• Commitment to social justice, public health, and community organizing as strategies to affect change
• Commitment to actively dismantling systemic racism, and to continuously deepening your own understanding of intersecting oppressions, including anti-Blackness, colorism, ageism, and gender inequities
• Experience supervising youth and interns leading campaigns
• Experience facilitating, organizing, and training with youth and adults 
• Demonstrated capacity to work with youth and adults from communities of color and low-income communities
• Approaches young people in a manner that reflects they are whole and powerful, in a way that amplifies their voices and honors their perspectives
• Experience with social media and media relations
• Demonstrated commitment to social justice through previous work experience
• Experience in project management
• Strong written and verbal communications skills
• Excellent follow-through skills; detail-oriented, organized, professional; can succeed in a fast-paced, multifaceted environment
• Experience with community-based research or assessment models
• Able to work in a fast-paced, multi-faceted environment
• Computer literate in Mac platform and Google Suite (gmail, gdrive, gcal, gdocs, gsheets), and the capacity to quickly learn new technology
• Capacity to be self-motivated
• Commitment to yliI’s values of social justice, community, innovation, and inclusion
• Experience organizing to win improvements in the lives of youth and/or adults, especially in Fresno County
• Experience supervision and/or mentorship of youth
• Experience training and providing technical assistance to youth and adult leaders
• Knowledge of Fresno neighborhoods and communities very helpful
• Familiarity with social media as a tool for organizing and advocacy

Physical Requirements

• Access to a personal vehicle and clean driving record
• Capacity to communicate effectively via email, phone, and video call
• Sitting and typing required for several hours per day
• Frequent local travel across Fresno County, and occasional in-state travel required
• Occasional lifting of up to 20 lbs, to handle media equipment or promotional materials

This job description subject to revision.