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Website White Bird
Presenting the world's best dance in Portland, OR for 26 years.
POSITION: Director of Inclusion/Diversity/Equity/Accessibility
TERMS: Full-time, permanent employee. FLSA status: exempt
SALARY RANGE: $56,000 – $60,000, DOE
BENEFITS: Paid PTO and holidays, health and dental insurance, plus addt’l benefits
REPORTS TO: Executive Director
SUPERVISES: No supervisory requirements
White Bird, a dance-presenting nonprofit organization based in Portland, Oregon, is seeking a motivated, passionate, and professional individual to fill its full-time position of Director of Inclusion/Diversity/Equity/Accessibility (IDEA Director).
White Bird Mission Statement
White Bird is committed to bringing the best regional, national, and international dance companies to Portland and to fostering the growth of dance in the region. Through presenting established and emerging companies and choreographers, commissioning and co-commissioning new work, as well as collaborating with other arts organizations in Portland and the region, we are able to make these dance performances possible. White Bird strongly believes in making dance exciting, educational, equitable, and accessible to everyone, young and old, of all social backgrounds, and through contributed income and sponsorships, is able to facilitate outreach to schools and to keep ticket prices affordable. A passionate advocate for dance, White Bird strives to broaden audiences and diversify its programming through the lens of its Equity Commitment.
White Bird Profile
White Bird was founded in 1997 by Walter Jaffe and Paul King and, since 2021, has been led by Executive Director Graham Cole. To date, we have presented over 270 dance companies from around the world in 750 performances before a total audience of 525,000. Each season we present a subscription series as well as non-subscription performances. We have supported the growth of dance by commissioning 42 new works. We are committed to expanding the audience for dance through extensive community engagement activities. Through our innovative Equity initiative, the NEST (No Empty Seats Today) Program, we distribute hundreds of free performance tickets each year to Portlanders in need. We are a small team of devoted arts administrators, passionate about dance.
POSITION OVERVIEW
The IDEA Director works collaboratively to maintain existing relationships and build new ones between White Bird and our local community. This involves listening to stakeholders and working with our team to translate that feedback into action. The IDEA Director also supports the coordination of community outreach.
This position ensures that all our team members have the tools and language they need to work ethically and thoughtfully, while we collectively work to reach White Bird’s goals for growth and development.
The incoming Director joins White Bird at an exciting moment of transition and growth, and will find dedicated partners in action within our Staff and Board. We are seeking a social, optimistic, reliable, and service-oriented individual to join our team as IDEA Director.
SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES INCLUDE:
External Relationship Building and Community Outreach (60%)
- Build new relationships with local leaders throughout the greater Portland area, especially those representing underserved communities.
- Conduct surveys, interviews, and other forms of feedback collection.
- Synthesize collected information into written reports and sharable digital content.
- Together with the Communication team, convey the impact of White Bird’s outreach and programs to our stakeholders.
- Together with the Operations team, coordinate White Bird Team members and volunteers in the promotion and execution of all community engagement activities.
- Maintain an open presence at all White Bird shows and events.
Internal Team Support and Research (30%)
- Together with Patron Services and Communication Team members, develop strategies for attracting a diverse range of audience members to White Bird presentations.
- Together with the Executive Director, facilitate opportunities for White Bird team members to receive continued education on topics related to Inclusion/Diversity/Equity/Accessibility.
- Together with the Executive Director, identify and pursue opportunities for new funding to support White Bird’s NEST program and community outreach. This includes support from individuals, businesses, foundations, and government.
- Use an equity lens to provide editing and content suggestions for all staff.
General Support (10%)
- As needed, assist White Bird team members in meeting deadlines on special projects.
SUCCESSFUL APPLICANTS WILL HAVE MOST, IF NOT ALL, OF THE FOLLOWING:
- An appreciation for the Arts generally, and Dance specifically.
- An alignment with anti-racism, both in philosophy and in practice.
- Strong writing skills: the ability to draft accurate and professional copy, for both persuasive and informative purposes.
- Strong social skills: enthusiastically and repeatedly engaging in conversation with new people.
- Solid project, time, and budget management skills; an ability to progress multiple projects with varying timelines simultaneously, without sacrificing attention to detail.
- Experience working collaboratively within teams of 2-6 people.
- Familiarity with Microsoft Suite, as well as project management and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platforms. Experience with Asana and Salesforce, specifically, is a plus.
- A passion for and documented history of:
o Listening to and engaging with people from all walks of life and age groups.
o Collecting and using both objective data and informed opinions to evaluate the impact of one’s work.
o Applying an analysis of bias to one’s own work and the work of others.
o Recognizing, and acting counter to, discrimination on the basis of a person’s race, gender, age, religion, disability status, or any number of other personal characteristics.
WORK SCHEDULE AND LOCATIONS:
The time commitment for this position is 40 hours per week. The IDEA Director is expected to complete most of their work during business hours (no earlier than 9am and no later than 6pm), Monday through Friday. Some onsite night and weekend work is required to be present for White Bird performances and events. In White Bird’s 2024-25 Season, this translates into 18 evening performances on weeknights and weekends that are spread over 7 months, plus no fewer than 10 outreach activities and special events spread throughout the year. White Bird utilizes clear and consistent flex and comp time policies for after hours and weekend work.
Work will mainly take place at White Bird’s offices in downtown Portland. The IDEA Director’s presence is expected at many performances and community engagement events throughout Portland. During the first six months of employment a small (~10%) portion of IDEA Director’s time will be spent meeting with stakeholders and partners, both onsite at our offices and offsite. After the introductory period, this aspect of the position may grow to become a larger share of the Director’s work week. While White Bird employees are able to work remotely up to one day per week, this is primarily an in-person role.
APPLICATION PROCESS:
Please email a résumé, cover letter, and the contact information for 2-3 professional references to info@whitebird.org. In the cover letter, please include where you learned about the position.
Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until the position is filled, and early application is highly recommended. The anticipated start date for this position is in mid-August 2024.
To apply for this job email your details to info@whitebird.org