Hired! Charlotte Potter Joins Yestermorrow Design/Build School as Executive Director!

Pillar Search & HR Consulting is pleased to announce that Charlotte Potter has been hired by Yestermorrow Design/Build School as their new Executive Director.

Based Waitsfield, VT, Yestermorrow Design/Build School inspires people to create a better, more sustainable world by providing hands-on education that integrates design and craft as a creative, interactive process. Yestermorrow’s courses are specifically designed to demystify the designing and building processes using hands-on, experiential learning to teach students the art and wisdom of good design and the skill and savvy of enduring craftsmanship as a single, integrated process.

Raised in the Mad River Valley, Charlotte is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design. She started her career as a glass artist and was most recently the Founding Programming Director of the Glass Studio at Chrysler Museum of Art. There, Charlotte founded and mentored the Assistantship program and has taught glass and new media courses at Universities and summer programs such as Penland School of Crafts and The Oxbow School.

Another facet to Potter’s practice is to bring contemporary art into the public and create opportunities for viewing art in the collective space. Potter has co-founded two performance glass troupes, Cirque de Verre and the Glass Theater as well as being a co-founder of the Neon Arts District in Norfolk, VA, the director of Grand Point Weird, a contemporary art component to the Grand Point North Music Festival in Burlington, VT. She has served on the Glass Art Society Board and was the co-chair of the 2017 Glass Art Society Conference. Her work has been exhibited internationally at galleries, museums and universities and is included in numerous public museum and private permanent collections.

As Charlotte joins Yestermorrow Design/Build School as Executive Director, she will be responsible for all aspects of the school’s operations, expanding programs and outreach while maintaining the high quality of current programs, and attracting significant new resources and talent to this well-established, growing nonprofit organization.

Hire the best!  Pillar provides search expertise for exceptional nonprofits and socially responsible for-profits, working with senior leaders and boards of directors to find the very best talent across all functional areas of the organization. For more information, please contact Pillar’s CEO, Cindy Joyce at cindy@pillarsearch.com.

New Search: Executive Director, Yestermorrow Design/Build School

Pillar Search is pleased to partner with Yestermorrow Design/Build school on their search for a new Executive Director.

About Yestermorrow Design/Build School:

Yestermorrow Design/Build School is a non-profit educational organization located in the Mad River Valley of Vermont offering an array of design/build programs shaped by sustainable and resilient design thinking. Programs offered include workshops, certificate programs and semester programs for adult students from around the country.  Yestermorrow’s mission is to inspire people to create a better, more sustainable world by providing hands-on education that integrates design and craft as a creative, interactive process.  The intensive and experiential curriculum includes a wide variety of topics related to sustainable design, green building, architectural craft, and furniture making. For more information about the school, please visit www.yestermorrow.org.

Job Overview:

The Executive Director is responsible for the fiscal, programmatic and functional health of Yestermorrow Design/Build School, in addition to advocating for its mission and being a steward of its reputation.

Specifically, the Executive Director is responsible for all aspects of the school’s operations, expanding programs and outreach while maintaining the high quality of current programs, and attracting significant new resources and talent to this well-established, growing nonprofit organization.

Operational responsibilities will include:

Operations & Staff Management

  • Management and development of the office and facility staff, which range from 8-18 members throughout the year, plus an additional 100+ external faculty members.
  • Direct supervision for all key staff across departments. Prioritize staff’s work plans, guide departmental budgeting/goal setting, ensure mission-alignment and financial sustainability with all staff and projects
  • Lead the organization on a day-to-day basis, troubleshooting and quickly responding to any issues that may arise
  • Manage all external vendors and operations-related contracts, including computer systems, office equipment, and facilities maintenance

Financial Management

  • Financial guidance and forecasting, in conjunction with the Board of Directors
  • Preparation of monthly Executive Committee and quarterly financial Board reports
  • Support the Financial and Administrative Assistant with accounts payable (vendor invoices), Accounts Receivable (student and client invoices and income), manage cash receipts and banking
  • Manage bi-weekly payroll, employee benefits, 941 monthly tax deposits, quarterly tax reports, annual W2 and 1099s
  • Oversee all organizational purchases and inventory management

Human Resources

  • Recruit, screen, interview and hire staff
  • Manage employee benefit plans (health, vision, dental, meal program, and PTO). Ensure all benefits programs are up to date and make annual recommendations
  • Maintain personnel records, on-board new employees
  • Conduct annual employee reviews

The annual budget for Yestermorrow is currently just over $1 million, and revenue includes earned income from programs as well as philanthropic dollars. The Executive Director will work to identify opportunities to increase revenues both from programs and philanthropy, including:

  • Develop and lead an active fundraising program, including major donor campaigns, special events, grant research and writing, annual appeals, and endowment growth and stewardship
  • Oversee and coordinate ongoing capital campaign
  • Guide efforts to reach new audiences by directing marketing and outreach strategy (with staff support). Travel to present to diverse audiences about Yestermorrow’s mission, programs, and impact.
  • Initiate, develop and support strategic initiatives, partnerships, and collaborations with appropriate institutions.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

Yestermorrow is a design school where design thinking is fully integrated with making – the way artists work. The successful ED will have experience and interest in the design/build process or related creative or artistic fields.

The Executive Director must be a strategic thinker, a decisive manager, a proven team builder, and a compelling communicator He/she must have demonstrated experience as an Executive Director or equivalent leadership position, managing comparable staff and budgets, contracts, fiscal reporting, fundraising, outreach and marketing, and organizational development, as well as liaising with boards. The position requires someone with a talent for articulating new opportunities, and a track record of implementing them.

Yestermorrow is part of the vibrant fabric of the Mad River Valley community, and as such there is a strong preference for the Executive Director to live in the Mad River Valley or the general area.

For Immediate Consideration:

The Board of Yestermorrow Design/Build School has partnered with Cindy Joyce of Pillar Search & HR Consulting on this search. For immediate consideration, please email your resume and cover letter directly to Cindy at cindy@pillarsearch.com.

Please Note:

Yestermorrow Design/Build School does not discriminate on the basis of an applicant’s race, color, religion, gender, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, age, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Pillar provides national executive search services for exceptional non-profits and foundations and socially responsible for-profit firms desiring top talent who want an occupassion, not just an occupation. In addition, Pillar offers human resources consulting services including leadership coaching, human resources audits, handbooks, assessing organizational design, training, team building, and employee communications. A woman-owned business, Pillar is based in Boston, MA, and works on both the local and national level.  For more information, please visit www.pillarsearch.com or email Pillar’s CEO, Cindy Joyce, at cindy@pillarsearch.com.

Executive Director Pro Bono Posting for SLAM! Program Los Angeles

SLAM! Program Los Angeles, a project of Community Partners, is a nonprofit, school-based program whose mission is to provide students from underserved schools with accessible, contemporary and tuition-free music instruction.  Our program is delivered through a network of volunteer college students, creating opportunities for mentorship and professional development through a shared experience of music. Our program offers a variety of classes at each partnering school, including Piano, Guitar, Percussion, Voice, Music Production, Songwriting, and Rock Band.

 

Core Values

  • Self-Esteem: The arts build community, which directly enhances students’ self-esteem.
  • Learning: Learning music is not a privilege, but a necessity for a well-rounded education.
  • Access: Every student deserves access to quality and affordable music instruction.
  • Musical Expression: Students need a voice that transcends language and dialect.

 

We believe that a strong student-teacher relationship has the power to change lives.

 

Starting out as a small pilot program in 2011, SLAM! has since grown into an expansive network that serves more than four hundred students across eleven Los Angeles middle and high schools, supported by one hundred volunteer instructors matriculating at the University of California, Los Angeles, University of Southern California, and Musicians Institute in Hollywood. In March of 2013, SLAM! became a fiscally sponsored project of Community Partners in order to support growing demand for SLAM! programming at additional schools. SLAM!’s Advisory Board recently completed a formal strategic plan which will guide the organization’s strategic priorities and financial growth from an operating budget of $170,000 to a projected $300,000 budget in the coming three years.

 

Executive Director Job Description 

The Executive Director of SLAM! Program Los Angeles is responsible for partnering with the Advisory Board to develop and implement the overall vision and strategic objectives for the organization. The individual will report directly to the Advisory Board, currently comprised of 9 members, and supervise 3 full-time and part-time staff members who oversee the delivery of our program model at each of our university chapters and middle and high school partners.

 

SLAM! offers a unique opportunity for an entrepreneurial, high-energy, and self-directed leader to build the foundation for growing our movement. The ideal candidate for this role is a passionate, committed organizer who can drive the impact of a lean and high-performing start-up organization. S/he will bring experience managing a team, executing against an agreed upon strategic direction, and familiarity with the broad education landscape in Los Angeles. The Executive Director’s responsibilities include: Fundraising and Development, Program Operations and Management, Board Governance and Strategic Vision, and Marketing and Community Relations.

 

Fundraising and Development (40%)

  • Provide organizational leadership in all aspects of fundraising and development, establishing personal relationships with key funders and donors in order to facilitate the creation of new and renewed sources of major gifts and philanthropic support
  • Work closely with the Advisory Board to develop annual fundraising plans and resources, consistently meeting or exceeding established goals
  • Work with relevant staff members to prepare grant proposals and reports, identify new grantmaker prospects, and meet all grant compliance requirements
  • Develop a robust individual giving program to cultivate existing donors for ongoing support and seek new and diverse donor prospects
  • Identify and maintain strong relationships with key community partners to diversify and expand the organization’s donor base

 

Program Operations and Management (25%)

  • Communicate and collaborate consistently with Community Partners, SLAM!’s fiscal sponsor, regarding all financial management, human resources, and legal counsel needs
  • Provide guidance, coaching, and supervision to the staff team in the high quality implementation of the SLAM! program model at all university chapters and partner schools
  • Oversee the school outreach and intake process as a liaison and ex-officio member of the Advisory Board in alignment with the organization’s projected growth
  • Execute a rigorous, timely, and professional hiring process for any available staff positions
  • Orchestrate the purchase, storage, and upkeep of a comprehensive equipment and supplies inventory across all SLAM! partner sites and central storage facilities
  • Encourage staff satisfaction and retention by fostering meaningful opportunities for their professional development and growth
  • Review position descriptions, ensuring they are up-to-date and that compensation is current with industry standards, and complete annual professional performance reviews
  • Appropriately address job performance issues in a timely and direct manner
  • Supervise financial activities in consultation with Community Partners’ Finance team to ensure that all revenues, obligations, reports, and filings are collected, paid and submitted

 

 

Board Governance and Strategic Vision (20%)

  • Provide visionary and inspirational leadership to all board members, staff, and volunteers, helping to build an innovative, entrepreneurial and nimble organization that is responsive to the needs of volunteers, school partners, and broader community
  • Establish strong working relationships with board members during and outside of board meetings, encouraging all members to participate actively and facilitating their involvement beyond board meetings
  • Provide the board with appropriate materials prior to each meeting and inform board members of any critical issues that need to be addressed
  • Oversee the annual preparation and monitoring of the budget in consultation with the board
  • Identify new board members whose talents, background, interests, experience, and commitment will further the mission and expand support

 

Marketing and Community Relations (15%)

  • Create and implement a comprehensive marketing and communications plan including: brand consistency, social media engagement, online communications, and related activities
  • Provide leadership and guidance to staff members and board members responsible for supporting marketing and communication efforts
  • Develop and distribute consistent digital communications to all organization stakeholders
  • Actively participate in the Los Angeles arts and education communities, attending conferences, receptions, workshops, and events to boost the organization’s visibility
  • Increase widespread knowledge of SLAM!, ensuring that the public as well as current or potential partners and funders understand its value and potential

 

Qualifications

 

Qualified applicants will have:

  • A deep passion for arts education, youth mentorship, and leadership development
  • A minimum of 5 years experience in a leadership role within an organization
  • Demonstrated track record of fundraising or business development through corporate and private foundations, event planning, and individual giving
  • Demonstrated ability to inspire, empower, and uplift others in a professional setting
  • Expertise in planning, organizational development, and team or culture building
  • Ability to balance day-to-day demands with big-picture vision and strategy
  • Familiarity with the Los Angeles school system and education policies specific to after school program providers
  • A broad network of contacts and potential partners eager to move the mission forward
  • An entrepreneurial mindset and interest in social entrepreneurship
  • Strong attention to detail and ability to balance multiple priorities
  • Excellent organizational skills, strategic thinking, and problem solving orientation
  • Strong interpersonal communication skills, both oral and written, with individuals across a variety of developmental and professional stages
  • Strong technological fluency (Microsoft Office Suite, Google Apps for Nonprofits, Mailchimp, WordPress, and database management, etc.)
  • The ability and flexibility to travel to partner schools across Los Angeles and work remotely with consistent access to:
    • High speed internet
    • Personal laptop with current operating system capabilities
    • Quiet and professional environment for phone or online meetings
  • A bachelor’s degree, master’s degree preferred

 

Compensation and Benefits

Position can be structured as a full or part time role. A comprehensive compensation package commensurate with experience is provided through Community Partners and includes full medical, dental, life, and long-term disability insurance benefits. SLAM! Program Los Angeles, a fiscally sponsored project of Community Partners, is an equal opportunity employer. The organization will consider qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring.

 

For more information, please visit www.slamprogram.org and www.communitypartners.org.

 

To Apply

Please submit a resume and cover letter to Jobs@slamprogram.org with your name in the subject line and all attachments. Applications accepted until position is filled.