Program Officer

Areas of Responsibility  

• Provide in person and virtual technical assistance to local revitalization organizations 

• Represent Main Street America in internal and external communications, speeches, presentations. This may involve meetings with elected and appointed officials from local, regional, state and federal governments as well as leaders in economic development, preservation, revitalization, corporations, foundations and media.  

• Collaborate with the Education Department to provide innovative service offerings that meet the needs of big cities, small towns and everything in between 

• Support the creation of content for Main Street Now conference, blogs and Main Street America Institute.  

• Collaborate with the MSA membership staff to link local programming with membership benefits and the Main Street network 

Requirements

The following are MUST HAVES for qualified candidates:  

• Proven track record of and desire to connect with and build trust with people who have identities different than your own 

• Desire to learn how to be and practice being an ally to teammates of a diversity of identities 

• Desire to learn from your colleagues in the field 

• Experience working in community in some capacity (e.g., community organizer, preacher / pastor, educator, trainer, field or campaign staff)  

• Education mindset – interested in understand how different audiences learn best, willing to share the same material in many formats 

• Commitment to evaluation of one’s own work 

• Loves working with people, respects people, centers dignity in all 

• Appreciation for and commitment to clear documentation 

• Ability to work collaboratively, to listen to learn and adapt 

• Full throated commitment to the mission of Main Street America 

• Commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility 

• Enjoys working on a distributed team 

• Thrives in a work context wherein half the job is on the road and in community 

The following are NICE-TO-HAVES for qualified candidates: 

• Knowledge of the following fields or issue areas: urban or town planning, urban design, placemaking / placekeeping, asset-based community development, community finance, small business services, historic preservation, community economic development, community preservation, entrepreneurship, urban and rural community development, community marketing & storytelling, capacity building, transportation, arts and community design, cultural preservation, and community disinvestment.   

• Experience organizing in rural Black, Indigenous, and / or People of Color majority communities 

• Experience working in diversity, equity, inclusion or accessibility in a previous job 

• Fluency in Spanish, Mandarin, Tagalog or Vietnamese 

• Experience using a CRM 

To apply, please submit a resume and cover letter by the deadline of Tuesday, September 3.

Hiring Timeline

• Wednesday, August 7: Job opens 

• Tuesday, Sept 3: Applications due 

• Tuesday, Oct. 15 - 25 screenings 

• Wednesday, Nov. 6 thru 15: Round 1 Interviews begin

• Nov. 18: Round 2 Interviews begin 

• January: Ideal Onboard/Start Date 

Benefits

The salary range for this position is $85,500 - $88,200.

Main Street America is a dynamic, diverse, remote-first team. We hire empathetic managers, create a fulfilling work environment, and provide excellent benefits. We strive to balance achievement, connection and rest through key structures:  

• We all organize our work annually around our six long-term objectives of our strategic plan;  

• We meet in person twice a year at team retreats, and many staff attend our annual conference; and 

• We have more than 25 paid holidays (including the last week of December and the week surrounding the fourth of July), and have meeting-free weeks (“Rejuvenation Weeks”) the last week of August and first week of January for deep focus and planning.  

We keep a 35-hour work week, and most of our team works Monday through Friday during regular business hours. Some positions require additional hours and time outside regular business hours.  

Full-time, regular employees are entitled to:   

• Health Insurance: Our group benefit plans include medical, EAP, dental and vision, life, and disability plans.  

• Paid Sick Leave: Full-time employees accrue sick leave at a rate of 3.23 hours per pay period (maximum accrual at 420 hours). 

• Vacation Accrual: In addition to the more than 25 paid holidays mentioned above, full-time employees begin with two weeks vacation, and accrue vacation at a rate of 4.85 hours per pay period for the first 3 years. At years 3-10, the accrual rate increases to 6 hours, and employees with tenures of more than 10 years accrue at a rate of 6.92 hours per pay period (for a maximum accrual at 210 hours). 

• FMLA: We follow the DC Family and Medical Leave Act, which provides 16 weeks of unpaid leave in blocks or intermittently for family leave (the birth or adoption of a child, or caring for a sick relative) and 16 weeks of unpaid leave in blocks or intermittently for medical leave (recovering from a serious illness) in a 24 month period for any employee employed for at least a year. 

• 401(a) Defined Contribution Retirement Plan: At its discretion, Main Street America makes an employer contribution typically equal to 5% of earned compensation no later than April for the prior calendar year in which you worked at least 1,000 hours. Vesting begins at 20% after two years, and increases until it reaches 100% after five years. 

• 403(b) Individual Retirement Plan: Employee pre-tax contributions are permitted up to IRS limits. For 2024, those are $23,000, plus another $7,500 in catch-up contributions for employees age 50 years and over. 

• Professional Development: At its discretion, Main Street America provides $1,500 in professional development funds to each employee annually, as well as other team-wide professional development trainings.