Civic Engagement & Organizing Director

 

About Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta

Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta is the first nonprofit legal advocacy organization dedicated to protecting the civil rights of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander (AANHPI) and Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian (AMEMSA) communities in Georgia and the Southeast. We envision a social movement in which communities of color are fully empowered, active in civic life, and working together to promote equity, fair treatment, and self determination for all.

 

Founded in 2010 as the Asian American Legal Advocacy Center (AALAC), our organization became part of the Asian Americans Advancing Justice affiliation in 2014. Since then, we have re-organized our work into four major focus areas: Policy Advocacy, Organizing & Civic Engagement, Impact Litigation, and Legal Services.

 

About The Department 

The Civic Engagement and Organizing (CEO) department aims to build and support sustainable, community-centered movements to affect deep, long-term shifts in power, behavior, and culture. Historically, our strategies have included community building  and education, leadership development, issue-based and electoral campaigns, and multicultural, multiracial coalition building. Our civic engagement efforts include working with community partners to make sure Georgia’s Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities, as well as immigrant communities, have the in-language information and support they need to successfully vote and be civically engaged. Our organizing work focuses on building a strong and principled community that mobilizes for immigrant rights, racial justice, queer and trans justice, and more with an intersectional framework. 

 

Position Summary:

The CEO Director at Advancing Justice-Atlanta is at the forefront of pioneering and steering pivotal civic engagement and community organizing initiatives across Georgia, aimed at empowering AAPIs and diverse immigrant communities. This role is especially crucial during high-stakes election cycles to lead the organization’s civic engagement and election protection efforts. The CEO Director will lead a dynamic team in addition to a network of passionate volunteers, interns, field managers, and canvassers.

 

The CEO Director's leadership is characterized by a visionary approach. The CEO Director engages with a broad spectrum of community partners and stakeholders, driving forward the organization's mission to build and maintain strategic partnerships. In a dynamic landscape, the CEO Director navigates changing priorities with agility, ensuring impactful organizational responses to urgent community needs. The CEO Director is adept at anticipating future challenges, positioning Advancing Justice-Atlanta as a resilient and proactive force in the realm of civic engagement.

Core Competencies

  1. Technical Expertise: Demonstrates profound technical proficiency in civic engagement, community organizing,  relevant data analysis, and the design and implementation of field mobilization strategies, ensuring all initiatives are grounded in best practices and geared towards measurable impacts.

  2. Visionary Leadership: Possesses a forward-looking vision to not only create and build movements but also to stay abreast of changing dynamics and opportunities, adapting strategies to meet evolving community needs to serve as a leader externally for the department, as well as internally within the organization. 

  3. Management Acumen: Experienced in leading diverse teams, the CEO Director excels in fostering an environment of accountability, empowerment, and inspiration, ensuring all team members from varied backgrounds feel valued and motivated.

  4. Relationship Building: Skilled at fostering deep, trust-based relationships across varied cultural and power divides within organizations and across communities. 

How You’ll Contribute to Our Impact:

  • Develop, coordinate, and implement civic engagement activities for every election cycle, including census, voter registration, voter education, Get Out the Vote (GOTV), and election protection efforts across Georgia.
  • Develop, coordinate, and implement community organizing strategies to build a multiethnic and  multiracial progressive movement, including issue-based advocacy (in collaboration with Advancing  Justice-Atlanta’s Policy Department).
  • Oversee CEO Department mutual aid programs. 
  • Work as a thought partner across the organization, in close collaboration with other Directors and Executive Leadership to further organizational impact. 
  • Supervise, research, and identify community needs through various outlets, including community needs- based surveys and other forms/methodologies. 
  • Develop a statewide strategic field plan to ensure the CEO Department’s goals align with community needs and gaps, as well as organizational priorities. 
  • Collect accurate field data to support Advancing Justice-Atlanta’s other areas of programmatic work including the Impact Litigation Department, Legal Services Department, and Policy Department. 
  • Develop and manage annual budgets and work plans for the CEO Department. 
  • Ensure the high quality and success of Advancing Justice-Atlanta’s civic engagement and organizing  programs through quality control monitoring, supervision, and ensuring fulfillment of progress to goals. 
  • Ability to utilize civic engagement digital tools and databases, including the Voter Activation Network (VAN), texting platforms, and phone banking platforms.   
  • Cultivate and sustain key relationships and partnerships with critical stakeholders including community leaders, community partners, and funders by attending funder convenings, conferences, ongoing meetings, and community events.
  • Ensure compliance with federal, state, and local regulations related to voter registration, voter outreach, and election protection. 
  • Partner with the Communications Department in the creation of outreach and voter education materials, including mailers, walk cards, newsletter content, website content, and social media content. 
  • Represent Advancing Justice-Atlanta in the media, including ethnic media outlets, funders, stakeholders, and the general public regarding civic engagement and organizing strategies. 
  • Help design and implement comprehensive multimedia campaigns for election and non-election cycles, ensuring cohesive messaging across digital, mail, paid media, etc. align with organizational goals.
  • Partner with the Development department in fundraising and development efforts, providing essential data, narratives, and insights to enhance donor communications and grant applications, in addition to interfacing directly with funders.
  • Collect, analyze, and apply data to refine field mobilization strategies, making real-time adjustments to optimize effectiveness based on the evolving realities, challenges, and opportunities on the ground. 
  • Communicate the CEO Department’s insights and successes to internal and external stakeholders, supporting research reports and media strategies while maintaining organizational transparency.

 

What You’ll Bring to the Team:   

  • At least 5 years of relevant experience in community organizing and civic engagement within communities of color and/or immigrant or refugee communities. 

  • Ability to build, lead, supervise, and coach an effective, diverse, and expansive team. 

  • Strategic vision and creativity, including the ability to set and drive a long-term vision for building community power, as well as the ability to connect long-term visions and concepts to daily work. 

  • Strong ability to develop work plans, manage budgets, set deadlines, and oversee multiple projects and duties simultaneously. 

  • A sincere desire to protect and advocate for the rights of AAPIs and immigrant communities while demonstrating a commitment to Advancing Justice-Atlanta’s mission. 

  • Familiarity with Georgia’s political landscape and/or demonstrated experience in rapidly becoming a leader in a new community.

  • Resilience in the ability to successfully face and adapt to difficult or challenging work experiences presented by both external and internal demands. 

  • Exceptional relationship building skills, including empathy, listening skills, and emotional intelligence.  

  • Strong equity and inclusion skills, including a drive to challenge structural inequities and self-awareness of one’s own identities.  

  • Demonstrated ability to work effectively and respectfully with others, including across lines of difference and power.

  • Ability to work in a fast-paced and dynamic environment  

  • Demonstrated characteristics of being efficient, highly motivated, detail-oriented, and results-driven.  

Preferred Qualifications 

  • Proficiency in Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Tagalog, Hindi, Urdu or Spanish preferred.  

 

Why You’re Excited About Us:

  • Impact: We are building the power for good in the South, and your contributions will matter.

  • Growth: We are invested in growing your leadership within the organization and beyond.

  • Our Team: We are a group of talented, passionate, and dedicated people who love our community and care about cultivating meaning, authenticity, and joy in our work.

  • Flexibility: We follow a hybrid work model and invest to support remote work. We encourage and support work-life balance because you’re able to do your best work when you’re living a full life. 

  • Benefits: We offer an attractive variety of healthcare plans, several come with a $0 employee premium, matching 100% of 401(k) contributions up to 4% of salary, paid time off and a generous holiday calendar, covering DACA/TPS renewal fees, and professional development opportunities.

  • Salary: Salary range for this position is $105,000 - $125,000 commensurate with experience, and is based on principles of internal equity. 

Supervisory Responsibilities:

Yes.

Physical Requirements: 

The candidate must be local to the Norcross or Atlanta area, with access to reliable transportation. The position permits working from home but requires travel, as necessary, to the Advancing Justice-Atlanta office and to other meetings and events across Georgia, as required for this position. 

 

To Apply:

 

Send a resume and cover letter to our TriNet. 

 

Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. All qualified persons are encouraged to apply, regardless of race, color, creed, ethnicity,  national origin, ancestry, age, height, weight, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, HIV status, marital or domestic partner status, or religious affiliation. For any accommodations requests in the application process, please contact hr@advancingjustice-atlanta.org