Position Announcement: Youth Service Calfifornia: Program Director

Youth Service California 
Title: Program Director
Reports to: Deputy Director

Work Hours: Full time; occasional evening and weekend work required.

Classification:  Exempt

Organizational Background:

 

Youth Service California's mission is "Making service a meaningful part of every young person's life." We envision young people transforming themselves and their communities, civically, educationally, spiritually and emotionally through service.  In order to achieve this vision, we look for the multiplier effect when choosing our work:  we work with teachers who then have an effect on hundreds of students each, with organizations that interact with hundreds or thousands of young people, with regional, statewide, national and international groups.  We focus our work in areas where we have the greatest opportunity to engage youth in making a real difference and improvement in their lives and communities.

We achieve this work through a variety of programs, including:

Yes We Can:  Youth Serving California, which brings together young people from community- and faith-based organizations, and K-12 schools to use service-learning as a way to tackle issues of concern to them in neighborhoods across California. 

Cesar E. Chavez Afterschool Service Clubs bring service-learning to Title I middle schools around the state.

CATALYST Youth Service Ambassadors, trains and utilizes high school youth in promoting and advocating for high quality service-learning and youth development.

The Regional Service-Learning Leads Network, a group of adult service-learning leaders who provide training, support, and program development in service-learning across the state.

Annual California Service-Learning Leadership Institute, offering engaging professional development for service-learning practitioners, and advances the best thinking and practice in the field. 

We also promote our work though a cadre of publications and fee-for-service training modules.  In general, we provide leadership and resources to California for service-learning and high quality youth service.

Position Summary:

As head of the Program Team, the Program Director is responsible for program development, implementation and evaluation of all current & upcoming programs, fee-for-service work, and publications. The Yes We Can: Youth Serving California initiative is the newest YSCal program and will be a major focus of the Program Director's efforts.  The Program Director is key figure in the YSCal operating structure and will provides leadership and advice to the overall organization. 

Essential Knowledge:

The Program Director should know how to design, implement, manage, evaluate, and adapt a variety of program plans.  His/her academic and experiential background should demonstrate awareness of broad social issues, the role and importance of service, and effective program management techniques.

Essential Skills:

The Program Director must have the ability to lead others, especially by his/her own example, and work comfortably in a team setting.  S/he must be able to write curricula, facilitate workshops and trainings. The Program Director must be able to think creatively and envision new approaches. S/he needs the ability to implement effective evaluation strategies and adapt YSCal programs based on the results. 

Essential Attitudes:

The Program Director must be a creative, responsible, proactive, and effective member of the YSCal team.  S/he should be community-focused and constantly strive to create stronger bonds with our partners and reach out to new individuals and groups to implement YSCal's vision.  Above all, the Program Director needs to embody the belief that being of service to others is one of the key paths to discovering our real selves and to creating real change in the world.

Essential Functions: 

The Program Director will fulfill two essential functions: 

1)  Director of Yes We Can: Youth Serving California. The Program Director will oversee the continuing evolution, implementation and evaluation of this signature YSCal program.

2)  Director of YSCal Programs:  The Program Director oversees all the operations of all YSCal programs, ensuring they are fully integrated into one another. S/he is also responsible for monitoring compliance with all contractual agreements. Along with the Executive and Deputy Director, s/he takes the lead role in envisioning and concreting the ways in which we can more fully fulfill our mission to make service a meaningful part of every young person's life.

Specific Qualifications

• Three-to-five years experience in hands-on program management.

• Exceptional leadership, organizational, interpersonal, and troubleshooting skills.

• Proven ability to meet multiple deadlines, balance numerous projects, and work in a team context as well as independently.

• Understanding of financial management, budgeting, and administrative systems.

• Working knowledge of Macintosh computers and MS Office software.

• Strong writing skills.

• Proven commitment to youth, with a specific focus on youth service and/or service-learning.

• Commitment to multiculturalism, social responsibility, and progressive change. 

Start date: September 1, 2009

Salary: DOE

Benefits: Full medical, dental and vision (staff member only, not dependents)

Please email cover letter and resume by July 27, 2009 to: info@yscal.org

Youth Service California has a strong commitment to equal opportunity in employment. We seek a diversified staff that closely represents the demographics of the state of California