Job Openings

Title: Director of Development

Schedule: M-F 9-5pm

Position Overview

Literacy Mid-South seeks a dynamic, passionate Director of Development to provide high-level strategic leadership as well as day-to-day management and implementation of all fundraising efforts. The Director of Development will be a critical member of the Literacy Mid-South team, leading all direct solicitations and donor engagement. The Director of Development will work closely with the Executive Director and Board of Directors to design and implement fundraising strategies, but a high degree of creativity and independence is necessary.

 

Job Summary

• Design and implement strategies to identify and cultivate new individual, corporate, and congregational donors
• Develop and implement strategies and activities for donor recognition, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship
• Develop and coordinate special events, including acquiring sponsorships
• Develop and coordinate annual fundraising activities
• Provide staff support for benefits and sponsored events
• Serve as project manager for grant writing and reporting
• Provide leadership for the Operations Coordinator to manage donor database and all of Literacy Mid-South’s social media accounts
• Solicit and negotiate in-kind gifts of product and service
• With the assistance of the public relations firm and the Board’s Marketing Committee, secure publicity for the needs and interests of the organization
• Serve as point person for requests for speakers and interviews
• Assist with the writing and production of the annual report
• Participate in the development of marketing materials and the management of the organization’s web site
• Maintain up-to-date communications lists with donors, volunteers, and community members
• Meet or exceed established goals in scheduled personal visits, solicitations, and dollar raised

 

Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years experience in nonprofit organizations, including demonstrated success in overseeing annual campaigns, special events, and major gift solicitations
• Tangible experience in managing and forging relationships with multiple donor sources and in cultivating donor relations over time
• An incisive and collaborative communication style with prodigious receptivity to donors, colleagues, and partners
• Passion for literacy and lifelong learning
• Ability to eloquently share Literacy Mid-South’s story
• Bachelor’s degree required
• Familiarity with the Memphis community preferred
• Excellent written and verbal skills required
• Ability to work effectively with people from diverse backgrounds
• Self-motivated, organized, and able to meet deadlines
• Available to work evenings and weekends if required
• Must be able to lift 30 lbs
• Must be able to sit or stand for extended periods of time

To apply

Please send a resume, cover letter, and three relevant references to lms [at] literacymidsouth [dot] org.

Position Overview: As a member of the Research and Technology Team, the Data & Technology Analyst will support Literacy Mid-South and its Out-of-School Time Network partners to develop, maintain, and use relevant educational data and technology to continuously improve literacy outcomes in Memphis, Tennessee. This position will primarily support Literacy Mid-South's goal for all third-grade Shelby County students reading proficiently by the end of third grade. This position reports to the Senior Research & Technology Analyst.

 

Summary of responsibilities:

• Manage Student Information System and other data systems
• Write SQL queries to retrieve and merge data from multiple data sources
• Write programming scripts occasionally to enhance the functionality of in-house open source systems
• Respond to data and report requests from different levels of internal and external stakeholders in timely manner
• Supports processes and strategies for collecting, managing, and reporting data at the Out-of-School Time partnership network, program, and student levels
• Support evidence-based processes toward improving student outcomes
• Support network partners in their use of data and technology through training, coaching, and customer service
• May be called upon to assist with special projects and assume responsibility for the development, administration, and promotion of specific projects, as requested
• Perform other duties and responsibilities as requested

 

Knowledge, skills, and abilities:

• Passion for literacy
• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field required, including but not limited to Educational Technology, Management Information Systems, Information Technology, or other Social Science field. The degree should include adequate preparation in information technology and data analysis
• One year or more experience in data analytics and technology support
• Demonstrated experience working with medium to large datasets using MS Excel and MS Power BI or another BI tool
• Experience preparing and reporting descriptive data to non-technical people in clear verbal and written narrative, tabular, and graphical formats
• Working knowledge of databases, writing SQL queries, and relational DBMS such as MySQL and PostgreSQL
• Working knowledge of JavaScript or another scripting language
• Ability to learn and adapt to new technology tools quickly
• Ability to maintain strict data privacy and confidentiality

• Strong problem solving skills
• Strong interest in improving literacy outcomes of children in Memphis and Shelby County, TN
• Strong attention to detail, ability to meet deadlines, ability to operate with limited supervision, and cordial team member
• Experience in the education field
• Customer service aptitude

• Available to work evenings and weekends as required
• Required reliable transportation and poof of automobile insurance
• Able to lift 30 pounds
• Able to sit or stand for extended periods of time

 

 

Application:

Please send a cover letter and resume to datateam [at] literacymidsouth [dot] org.

Summer Associates are a position supported by the AmeriCorps*VISTA program. Literacy Mid-South Summer Associates will be charged with implementing effective programming and ensuring quality data-measures for summer reading programs. Literacy Mid-South is an intermediary organization working with programs over the summer who serve at-risk readers. Without quality programming over the summer, at risk-readers are likely to lose at least three months of reading achievement. Summer programming has a massive impact on the educational outcomes for youth. This program will provide associates with the opportunity to prevent the devastating effects of summer learning loss and learn about educational assessment procedures and reading instruction theories. Here are some of the roles the Summer Associates will play this summer:

Site-support

• Support programming as needed
• Prep work for the next day
• Observe programming to monitor procedural compliance
• Put together a list of observations and meet with appropriate staff to address areas of need

Pre- and Post-Assessments

• Learn about assessments for literacy in elementary education programs
• Work as a group to help sub-sites implement effective pre- and post-assessments
• Ensure monitoring of assessment procedures
• Monitor attendance tracking

Parent Engagement

• Research parent engagement best practices
• Understand current parent engagement practices for the organization
• Plan and implement parent engagement activities and programs
• Monitor attendance for the program
• Connect with students who have at-risk attendance over the summer
• Reach out to parents and families for students with at-risk attendance

AmeriCorps*VISTA Summer Associate details:

• 40 hours per week
• May 30th start date
• 8 Week commitment (no breaks)
• Stipend bi-weekly + education award/service award

Minimum Qualifications:

• 18 years or older
• Passion for education
• Desire to learn
• Able to interact with technology
• Organized

APPLY ONLINE HERE.

Question?  Contact Sam Mattson here (smattson [at] literacymidsouth [dot] org).

AmeriCorps*VISTA is a program created by the United States Government under the Corporation for National Community Service (CNCS). VISTA members serve for a minimum of one full year. The position is a full time obligation and requires a lot of dedication and commitment to volunteer service. During the service, VISTAs will receive a non-negotiable stipend bi-weekly from the government at $447.86, which will total about ($10,750.00) for one year of service.  VISTAs also recieve college reimbursement of $5,000 at the end of their year of service.

AmeriCorps*VISTA members are passionate and committed to their mission to bring individuals and communities out of poverty.  Members make a year-long, full-time commitment to serve on a specific project at a nonprofit organization or public agency. They focus their efforts to build the organizational, administrative, and financial capacity of organizations that fight illiteracy, improve health services, foster economic development, and otherwise assist low-income communities. 

The Literacy Mid-South VISTA Project seeks to build the capacity of after school programs to implement evidence driven reading programming for elementary school students. With VISTA member support, project host sites commit to embedding literacy instruction into their existing programming, whether that is homework help or tutoring. Literacy Mid-South is the convener for a network called the 3rd Grade Reading Collaborative Action Network along with Seeding Success. Our aim is to increase reading scores in Shelby County Schools to 90% by 2025. Literacy Mid-South will serve as an intermediary VISTA site for our after school programs including: Memphis Athletic Ministries, Refugee Empowerment Program, the Emmanuel Center Inc., Catholic Charities, Seeding Success and Literacy Mid-South.

To apply to become an AmeriCorps*VISTA member, you must apply online at the official AmeriCorps website.  

VISTA Description #1: Information Management VISTA

Assists Literacy Mid-South and its partners with educational data collection, maintenance, and reporting processes. Interface with network partners to support their use of student and program data and technology. Assists the Research and Technology Analyst to develop and manage information to support decision-making, planning, and the continuous quality improvement of Summer Learning and After School Programs. Responsible for managing the Read901 Lending Library.

Placement Sites: Literacy Mid-South, Seeding Success

Needs:

• Detail oriented/meticulous
• Responsible
• Willing to learn
• Interest in data and education

APPLY ONLINE HERE

Question?  Contact Sam Mattson here (smattson [at] literacymidsouth [dot] org).