The Organization
About Borealis Philanthropy
From Black-led movement-building, to queer and trans liberation, to disability justice and inclusion, community organizers are working every day to bring about transformational change. Borealis Philanthropy exists to listen to, invest in, and support them. Our staff of experts come from the communities we serve, and bring their lived experiences, values, and visions to the work of supporting community-driven change through grantee and funder collaboration.
As a philanthropic intermediary, Borealis Philanthropy builds bridges between funders and organizers by creating opportunities for impact-driven investments. We team with funders to conceive, develop, and implement grantmaking initiatives that resource the many innovative organizations within each of our respective grantmaking funds. In partnering with philanthropy, we remove barriers to funding for grassroots organizations and invest in intersectional movements building a future that serves all of us.
Position Overview
About the Fund
The Black-Led Movement Fund (BLMF) funds powerful local organizations that anchor progressive, Black-led organizing networks, such as the Movement for Black Lives (M4BL), and the movement infrastructure that amplifies their work. The BLMF exists to ensure that Black-led movement organizations have the resources, visibility, infrastructure and leadership capacity to sustain their day-to-day work of fundraising, organizing, advocacy and collective care work needed to combat anti-Black racism, cis-heteropatriarchy and state violence and achieve transformational and lasting change.
Our Values
Responsiveness, Racial Equity, Trust, People-Centered, Curiosity, Boldness
Job Overview
The Program Associate supports programming, administration, grantmaking, and other operational activities for Borealis Philanthropy’s visionary funds. In addition, the Program Associate participates in cultivating relationships, corresponding to and fielding inquiries, conducting research on topics for proposals, and identifying potential donors/grantees, etc.
With clearly defined guidance and the direction of a program officer, the Associate solves routine problems and maintains processes and procedures to ensure effective and efficient operation of programs and fund-related projects.
Responsibilities
Project Management and Operational Support: The Program Associate provides stellar support to the Fund, including:
- Providing administrative, logistics, booking accommodations, scheduling, note taking, and planning/ coordination support for program projects, such as meetings, trainings, and webinars
- Maintaining and supporting the development of tools and resources for program use
- Maintaining calendar of Fund events and deadlines, and coordinate with organization-wide grantmaking calendar
- Maintaining and organizing program files, gather analytics, and monitoring program deliverables
Grantmaking Support and Data Management: The Program Associate will be the key point person for ensuring that all data is accurate and that stakeholders, both internal and external, have what they need to support their work. This includes:
- Tracking and organizing grantee applications and reports in Salesforce database
- Serving as the liaison with grants management to support the Fund’s grantmaking processes
- Entering and maintaining contact information for donors, grantees, and collaborative partners in Salesforce database
- Providing access to the grantee portal for those submitting applications and reports
Communicate and Collaborate: The Program Associate communicates regularly with other Fund staff, other Borealis departments, and with grantees and other external partners, including:
- Assisting with drafting, reviewing and organizing communications to internal and external audiences
- Gathering and sharing Fund and grantee-related updates with the Communications department for both short-term projects (grantee spotlights, social media content) and longer-term projects (grant announcements, newsletters, communications planning)
- Working with the Development department to ensure development plan content is accurate and updated
- Coordinating with the Finance Department to process contracts, invoices, honorariums, etc.
- Assisting with researching and tracking updates on emerging trends in philanthropy, advocacy, policy, and other relevant program topics
- Collaborating with team members and external constituents to support program objectives
- Monitoring Fund general email inbox and respond to general inquiries from potential grantees
Other Duties: As a member of the Borealis staff, the Program Associate performs certain functions that are not specific to their job, but support the organization as a whole. This includes:
- Submitting expense reports and timecards by stated deadlines
- Attending all staff meetings and required trainings and events
- Participating in organizational development and change processes, including serving on committees or special project teams
- Support Borealis’ culture and values; align outcomes, practices, and communications within organizational culture
- Assist with special projects and other duties as assigned
Education & Experience
- High school diploma required, Associates degree preferred.
- One-year of experience administering multiple projects/programs; three years of experience preferred
- Experience using systems and tools such as Salesforce, Zoom, Google Suite, Slack, Asana and Calendly
Competencies (Knowledge, Skills & Personal/ Behavioral Attributes)
- Ability to organize work, manage time, and build relationships in a virtual environment
- Ability to communicate clearly and concisely through verbal and written communication
- Excellent attention to detail and high level of follow-through
- Commitment to Borealis’ vision and values
- Ability to organize, manage and analyze data
- Experience working or volunteering with Black-led, and/or racial justice organizations
- Experience working within diverse groups or committees towards a shared purpose
- Event and meeting coordination
- Strong collaborative spirit
- Good problem solver that can help a growing team and organization create greater administration efficiencies with our current tools, systems and practices
Work Environment (Conditions and Physical Demands)
This job operates in a professional, virtual, home office or co-working environment, with occasional local and national travel. This role routinely uses standard office equipment, including laptop computer and cell phone. The employee is generally required to spend long periods of time sitting, typing, and working at a computer. May require the ability to occasionally lift and transport items. Accommodations will be made based on ability and accessibility.
Commitment to Disability, Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
Borealis is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, we will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, please contact hr@borealisphilanthropy.org. Borealis is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, religion, national origin, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability, age, or any other category protected by local, state, or federal laws. We are committed to building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive staff team. We strongly encourage applicants who are people of color, LGBTQ, women, trans and gender non-conforming people, people with disabilities; and/or formerly incarcerated people.
How To Apply