The Norman Foundation is a family foundation that supports grassroots organizations and movements that build power among people most impacted by social inequality. Since its founding over 90 years ago, the Foundation has provided grants to non-profit organizations across the country that have increased civic participation, improved wages and working conditions for low-wage workers, and won environmental protections for communities most impacted by pollution and climate change. In the coming years, the Foundation plans to expand their support to capacity building efforts and responsive grantmaking. For additional information about the Foundation, please visit www.normanfdn.org.
The Norman Foundation recently underwent a strategic planning process, from which they identified the need to increase staff capacity and develop the next generation of board members. As such, the Foundation seeks a full-time Program Associate, a newly created position that will be crucial to both the foundation’s operations and programs. The Program Associate will manage the administrative duties of the foundation and will support the Executive Director in grantmaking and board development. As a small organization – with just two staff members – the Program Associate must be highly organized and have excellent interpersonal and communication skills. This individual must be reliable, able to work with minimal supervision, enjoy handling multiple assignments and responsibilities, and be flexible enough to lend support to a range of tasks. It is also important for the Program Associate to possess skills in meeting facilitation, writing, and relationship-building.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
General Administration:
- Manage correspondence, including answering and following up on phone calls and emails, monitoring general inboxes, reviewing mail, and responding to grant inquiries.
- Carry out assignments related to financial management, including paying bills, processing check requests and reimbursements, and running financial reports.
- Assist with pre- and post-board meeting tasks, including editing and organizing meeting materials, providing logistical support on travel arrangements, preparing presentations, and documenting meeting discussions and decisions.
- Maintain and update the foundation’s website.
Board Development:
- Work with Grants Committee and Executive Director to develop learning opportunities for the Board of Directors, with special attention given to engaging the next generation of board members. This may include coordinating group site visits, sharing information from webinars/briefings, creating newsletters, and managing social media accounts.
- Build relationships with the next generation of board members: identify areas of interest, and develop ways to increase their understanding of philanthropy, grantmaking, and social justice movements and issues.
- Attend grantee site visits, briefings, trainings, and conferences with Norman staff and board members; facilitate discussions to maximize educational impact.
- Contribute to special projects, including archiving historical documents and developing training materials and reports.
Grantmaking:
- Assist Executive Director with grantmaking cycles, which includes reviewing grant proposals and financial reports, participating in grantee phone calls and/or site visits, preparing grant dockets, administering grant agreements, and managing payments.
- Maintain grantee database and files.
- Correspond with grantees and applicants, request and collect grant reports and proposals.
- Arrange schedules for grantee videoconference meetings and site visits.
- Participate in learning opportunities to build and strengthen skills and knowledge in grantmaking, philanthropy, social justice organizing, and movement building.
- Stay informed on grantees’ campaigns and monitor relevant policy developments.
IDEAL CANDIDATES WILL HAVE:
- A demonstrated commitment to social justice.
- Experience in the non-profit sector with familiarity and experience in the Foundation’s issue areas (e.g., climate justice, workers’ rights, civic participation).
- Excellent interpersonal skills, including ability to build relations and problem-solve with colleagues, active listening skills, dependability, and ability to communicate professionally with various stakeholders.
- Effective written and verbal communication skills, including excellent facilitation, presentation, and editing skills.
- Organizational skills, attention to detail, and ability to work collaboratively and independently.
- Experience with office administration and proficiency with Word, Excel, Outlook, and Teams. Familiarity with grants management and accounting programs a plus.
- Critical thinking skills, a strong sense of curiosity, and a commitment to ongoing learning and professional development.
- The ability to travel domestically on a regular basis for meetings, conferences, and site visits. Travel may take place over multiple days at a time.
- A bachelor's degree or equivalent experience. We encourage people with experience in community organizing and civic engagement to apply.
COMPENSATION, BENEFITS, AND WORK CULTURE:
This is a full-time position with a salary range of $65,000 - $75,000, depending on experience. The Norman Foundation offers a comprehensive benefits package, including health/dental/vision insurance and paid holidays, vacation, and sick days.
The Norman Foundation is committed to cultivating an organizational culture where everyone is treated with respect and dignity. As an equal opportunity employer, we do not discriminate against any employee or applicant because of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy status, national origin, mental or physical disability, veteran status, military status, marital status, familial status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristics protected by law.
LOCATION AND SCHEDULE:
The Norman Foundation office is in New York, NY. While we prefer to hire someone locally, we are open to candidates living elsewhere who can accommodate occasional travel to NYC for in-house projects and meetings with staff and board members. Travel may take up to 20% of the Program Associate’s time.
The Program Associate is required to work Mondays-Thursdays.
HOW TO APPLY:
Please submit a resume and cover letter to norman@normanfdn.org. Applicants that advance to the final round of interviews will be asked to submit 3 references and complete a writing assignment. We will review applications on a rolling basis and seek a Spring 2025 start. Applicants are encouraged to apply early.