Co-Executive Directors

Co-Executive Director of Finance and Operations &

Co-Executive Director of Programs and Education

(TWO ROLES)

Location: Seattle, Washington (must reside in or near Seattle, WA)

Salary: $100,000 - $110,000 each, annually

The Opportunities

Creative Justice is seeking nominations and applications for two Co-Executive Directors. Working collaboratively with the Youth Leadership Board (YLB) and the Community Advisory Board (CAB) and reporting directly to RVC (fiscal sponsor), the new Co-Executive Directors will serve concurrently and collaboratively in separate, but overlapping capacities. This search is designed to fill both roles.

As the senior managers of Creative Justice, these Co-Executive Directors will act as equal partners to ensure ongoing programmatic excellence and work to ensure the consistent quality of finance and administration, fundraising, communications, and program evaluation as the entire team drives toward the mission. The new EDs will be unwavering in their commitment to Black Liberation and will possess a highly nuanced understanding of the carceral system and its role in the systematic disenfranchisement of Black and Brown people, particularly youth. They will work from an abolitionist framework and will also possess an advanced intersectional approach to anti-racism, the capacity for a systems analysis of racial inequality, and expertise in the function of art as a tool for resistance, healing, and justice. They will be artists in their own right and possess a deep commitment to the use of art as a tool in social transformation.

These new leaders will work in tandem and act as servant, facilitative leaders who respect the expertise of young people and the Creative Justice team - especially those who have been directly impacted by carceral systems.

The Co-ED of Finance and Operations

The Co-Executive Director of Finance and Operations will work to ensure that the mission and vision of the organization can be sustained financially. They will be the primary supervisor of the development team and work with the team to allocate resources to ensure that the operations of the organization are healthy and rooted in the vision and mission of Creative Justice. As they sustain and grow the current financial scope of Creative Justice, they will also build out internal systems to ensure the team grows and develops as well.

The Co-ED of Programs and Education

The Co-Executive Director of Programs and Education will develop and maintain relationships with community partners throughout the region in order to enhance Creative Justice’s mission and benefit its participants and the community at large. Furthermore, the co-Executive Director of Programs and Education will serve as the primary supervisor of the Education, Community Care, Strategic Organizing, Community Partnerships, and Advocacy Directors and report to and work closely with the Directors.

About Creative Justice

Creative Justice builds community with youth most impacted by the school-to-prison-(to-deportation) pipeline. Participants and mentor artists work together to examine the root causes of incarceration, like systemic racism and other forms of oppression, creating art that articulates the power and potential of our communities. Art makes us think and it feeds our spirit. It is also a conduit towards a more just world. By responding to personal and social issues through the creative process, youth and mentor artists engaged in Creative Justice attack systemic issues that contribute to our oppression, while building healing-centered spaces that strengthen the protective factors that help us all to thrive.

Creative Justice uses art-making as a vehicle to prepare young people to be leaders in community and the workplace, to amplify youth voice as a source of community transformation, to promote teamwork, collaboration, and community engagement, to help lift up the power of young people of color, youth from low-income families, and LGBTQA youth. Further, Creative Justice aims to increase youth and community understanding of the histories and conditions that create racism, classism, sexism, heterosexism and other forms of oppression and to enhance skills that help young people reflect on their social position, choices, and personal power so they can stay out of jail.

Organization Mission and Strategy

These new Co-Executive Directors will work collaboratively to ensure that the mission of Creative Justice is fulfilled through its programs, planning, and community outreach and to ensure the financial stability of the organization. Together the Co-EDs will be the public face of the organization through their respective roles. Both will coordinate their efforts with the YLB and CAB to ensure that the work and future vision of Creative Justice remains values and mission aligned. Moreover they will advance Creative Justice’s mission and values through art, activism and advocacy, and by partnering with other professional, civic and private organizations to do the same.

Board Governance

These two Co-Executive Directors will work directly with CJ Directors, the Community Advisory Board (CAB) and the Youth Leadership Board (YLB) in order to fulfill the organization’s mission. They will lead Creative Justice in a manner that supports and guides the organization towards a stronger community, using art to promote healing and reduce the harm caused by incarceration and its root causes. Together they are responsible for communicating effectively with CJ Directors, the CAB and YLB and providing, in a timely and accurate manner, all information necessary to provide input into decision making.

Financial Viability

While the Co-Executive Director of Finance and Operations (detailed below) will take primary responsibility for developing the resources sufficient to ensure the financial health of the organization, these two new Co-Executive Directors will work collaboratively on the development of a proposed annual budget and monthly financial statements which accurately reflect the financial condition of the organization. They will further ensure the organization operates within the approved budget while seeking funding opportunities that are in line with Creative Justice’s mission and values. These two co-Executive Directors will ensure that the programming and education is supported financially.

Ideal Attributes and Experiences

In order to serve the organization and lead Creative Justice into its next phase of development, these two new Co-Executive Directors must each possess the following:

• Lived experience as a Black person with deep, nuanced knowledge of the tactics the police and prison system use to target and disrupt the lives of youth –particularly Black, Brown and queer youth.
• Background in the arts and artistic expression with a deep understanding of the role the arts can play in liberation.
• An understanding of the role arts and culture play in social transformation, personal transformation, and organizational transformation.
• Experience partnering with grassroots leaders to create community-based programs.
• Experience communicating with and collaborating with various stakeholders, including, but not limited to city officials, public education leaders, artists and more.
• Experience managing the operations for small to medium-sized organizations including, but not limited to, hiring and onboarding team members, managing a budget, authorizing contracts with consultants, collaborating on SOWs with consultants and regular communication and collaboration with stakeholders and the Board (collaboration with advisory Boards preferred).
• Significant experience in nonprofit leadership - either in programming or in governance - with a deep and nuanced understanding of funding, start-up environments, grassroots strategy, community development, program management, cross-sector partnerships, team development, and board management.
• A commitment to facilitative leadership that emphasizes the expertise and experience of the youth participants and a desire for a collaborative relationship with the directors.
• A commitment to a community-based, decolonizing approach by prioritizing moving in alignment with movement partners.
• A desire and capacity for facilitating direct communication with and among staff.
• Capacity to build relationships with staff and community partners.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF EACH CO-DIRECTOR

Co-Director (Finance & Operations)

The Co-Executive Director of Finance and Operations will work to ensure that the mission and vision of the organization can be sustained financially. To grantors, donors and foundations they will be a public face of the organization. More specifically, the Co-ED for Finance and Operations will

• Partner closely with their Co-Director to ensure a seamless, collaborative leadership as they work together to lead the team.
• Act as the senior leader of the development team to ensure the financial viability of the organization, including maintaining and initiating relationships with funders and allocating resources across all operations and programming. 
• Report to and work closely with the Directors, CAB and YLB to secure their input in policy decisions, fundraising and to increase the overall visibility of Creative Justice.
• Oversee the hiring and onboarding of qualified team members, consultants and contractors.
• In partnership with the Community Advisory Board, translate the vision of Creative Justice into a strategy to drive development and fund implementation/allocation.
• Finalize and authorize notes, agreements, and other instruments made and entered into and on behalf of the organization.
• Work closely with RVC operations team to develop policies, yearly budget and ensure Creative Justice as a fiscally responsible organization.
• Develop and maintain community relationships in partnership with staff (especially the Community Partnerships Director and Donor Development Director).
• Work collaboratively with the Co-ED of Programs and Education to plan the annual retreat.

Co-Director (Programs & Education)

The co-Executive Director of Programs and Education will be a public face of the organization, developing and maintaining relationships with community partners throughout the region while working closely with those directors managing community partnerships and strategic organizing. These relationships are crucial to Creative Justice’s community-based programs including art installations, artistic actions, trainings, or their creative advocacy regarding public policy. More specifically, the Co-Executive Director of Programs and Education will:

• Partner closely with their Co-Director to ensure seamless, collaborative leadership as they work together to lead the team.
• Oversee the hiring and onboarding of qualified team members, consultants and contractors.
• Serve as the primary supervisor of the Education, Community Care, Strategic Organizing, Community Partnerships, and Advocacy directors.
• Report to and work closely with the Directors, CAB and YLB to seek their involvement in policy decisions, fundraising and to increase the overall visibility of Creative Justice.
• Oversee development and maintenance of curriculum framework and assist program staff and mentor artists with instruction, lesson planning and classroom management as needed, including the planning and execution of culminating event or action.
• Support the Advocacy Director as the secondary liaison to King County Courts and other local governmental entities in order to reduce the number of youth confined to secure detention and other justice system contact.
• Take lead on professional development opportunities for program directors and work collaboratively with the Co-ED of Finance and Operations to plan the annual retreat.
• In collaboration with the program staff, design and execute professional development programs.

SALARY

Each Co-Director will be offered between $100,000 - $110,000 annually plus benefits. These roles are focused on the local community, thus each Co-ED will need to reside in or near Seattle, WA. Creative Justice will reimburse relocation expenses up $8,000, if necessary.