Communications and Fundraising Strategist

Communications and Fundraising Strategist

National Center for Law and Economic Justice

Title:                             Communications and Fundraising Strategist

Reports to:                   Director of Philanthropy, Director of Litigation and Advocacy (Joint Report)

Exempt Salary:              Up to $85,000 commensurate with experience

Location:                      NCLEJ’s office is located in NYC. Preference for NYC-based candidates. 

NCLEJ’s Mission:

The National Center for Law and Economic Justice (NCLEJ) advances economic justice for low-income families, individuals, and communities across the country. We fight every day to eliminate an array of unfair economic and racial injustices. We work to expand access to critical benefits like food stamps, Medicaid, and childcare, protect low-wage workers’ rights and safety, advance the rights of people with disabilities, and end unlawful debt collection. Our tactics to advance economic justice include​​ winning strategic class action cases, representing marginalized individuals and communities, and changing federal and state legislation and private institutions’ practices. We partner with other litigation and advocacy organizations, grassroots and community organizations, and individuals in our fight for racial and economic justice.        

Communications and Fundraising Strategist’s Role:

Help build an exciting future for NCLEJ!  NCLEJ is seeking a Communications and Fundraising Strategist to help plan and execute its communications strategy under the guidance of NCLEJ’s Director of Philanthropy and Director of Litigation and Advocacy. In this dynamic role, you will partner with our leadership team and our expert staff of lawyers and advocates to support advocacy campaigns, execute our marketing strategy, and achieve fundraising goals. 

Primary responsibilities:

30% - Coordinate Strategic Communications to support advocacy and fundraising (joint report to Director of Philanthropy & Director of Litigation and Advocacy)

• Build on an existing communications system and support the Directors in creating a comprehensive annual marketing plan that identifies strategies to elevate NCLEJ’s racial and economic justice work and secure new audiences and supporters. 
• Work with Director of Litigation and Advocacy and Director of Philanthropy to maintain Editorial Calendar that meets programmatic needs and aligns with annual fundraising plan and targets. Execute a multi-channel marketing strategy, including social media channels, email, and website. Post to, manage, and monitor social media accounts.  
• Maintain brand voice and integrity across all platforms and marketing (programmatic and fundraising). 
• Track key audience engagement metrics, including website and social media analytics. Review and update systems to improve tracking engagement across various platforms to make data-driven decisions.     
• Maintain website (currently on Wordpress).
• Elevate the brilliance and expertise of our staff of advocates and lawyers.

35% - Support Fundraising Marketing (report to Director of Philanthropy)  

• Collaborate closely with Director of Philanthropy to create and implement special events, in-person and virtual, including taking the lead on content creation (invitations, marketing, graphics, video/audio). 
• Prepare and manage e-newsletters and targeted audience/donor mailings (segmenting).
• Develop and lead grassroots fundraising strategy including setting the annual fundraising goals for this audience.
• Work with the Director of Philanthropy on CRM and email management upgrades. 

• Improve and maintain mailing list (Mailchimp). 

35% - Support Programmatic Marketing and Advocacy Campaigns (report to Director of Litigation and Advocacy) 

• Prepare and manage all communications material in support of advocacy campaigns, including the development of digital and print assets, such as press releases, one-pagers, graphics, impact reports, and video/audio.
• Work with clients and colleague organizations on events such as report releases and briefings
• Manage media relations and develop contacts with media members, influencers, and community leaders.
• Support Executive Director, Director of Litigation & Advocacy, and other staff in media engagements. 

Qualifications and experience of the ideal candidate: 

• Exceptional writer and editor with an effective social justice writing style – such as tone and approach that is strategic, strong, clear, and accessible to audiences at many levels of understanding.
• Strong project and time manager with a demonstrated ability to work independently and as part of a team.   
• Commitment to anti-racism and economic justice issues. 
• Experience with professional social media management highly preferred.
• Experience growing and engaging audiences for grassroots fundraising and social justice causes highly preferred.
• Experience or strong interest in connecting legal advocacy and litigation to broader social justice movement-building.
• Experience working collaboratively with colleagues at all levels, ideally in a multi-cultural and multi-ethnic work environment.
• Highly proficient computer skills, including Wordpress, MailChimp, MS Office, Google Analytics, and CRM/fundraising databases (DonorPerfect or others).
• Experience with event planning a plus, but not required
• Experience with visual design skills such as graphic design on Canva or other design programs, photography skills, video editing, fluency in another language are pluses, but not required.

Benefits: NCLEJ has a generous benefits package including health, dental, and vision insurance; 15-24 vacation days and 10-15 sick days per year (based on length of service); 13 paid holidays per year; an FSA plan for medical, childcare, and transit expenses; an Employee Assistance Program; and contributions to individuals’ 403(b) plans. 

Vaccination Requirement: To help ensure that NCLEJ continues to operate in the safest manner possible, NCLEJ requires all employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. 

Equal opportunity: NCLEJ is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. We value a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture. We strongly encourage people of color, people with disabilities, LGBTQ+ people, and people from other historically disenfranchised communities to apply. NCLEJ does not discriminate because of race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, marital or parental status, citizenship, disability, veteran status, record of arrest or conviction, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. NCLEJ makes every effort to assure that its recruitment and employment provide all qualified individuals, including individuals with disabilities, with full opportunities for fellowships and employment in all positions. 

Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply for jobs unless they believe they meet every one of the qualifications as described in a job description. We are most interested in finding the best candidate for the job, and that candidate may be one who comes from a less traditional background. If you are interested in applying, we encourage you to think broadly about your background and qualifications for the role.

Application process:  Please submit a resume, a cover letter, and one work sample (such as an advocacy email, press placement, or similar communications asset) that you wrote, ghost-wrote, or developed which conveys your strategic approach and writing style. Please email us all three pieces in a single Word or PDF document to Betsy Jacob at jacob@nclej.org with “Communications and Fundraising Strategist” in the subject line along with the site that you saw this posting. 

NCLEJ is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals with disabilities. If you are a qualified individual with a disability and need assistance applying, please contact Leah Lotto at 212-633-6967 or lotto@nclej.org. If you are selected for an interview, you will receive additional information regarding how to request an accommodation for the interview process.