Community Engagement Coordinator, Special Litigation

The Legal Aid Society’s Criminal Defense Practice has an immediate opening for a passionate and dedicated Community Engagement Coordinator who will contribute to the Policy Unit of the Law Reform Team. The Policy Unit spearheads the Legal Aid Society’s policy and legislative initiatives on criminal legal issues at the state and city levels. It delivers expert testimony and analysis on proposed policies in conjunction with community-based organizations and peer-defender groups and advocates for legislative change.

We seek an individual with personal experience of the criminal legal system who will bring essential perspectives to our work that are often overlooked in traditional policy-making circles. The Coordinator will contribute to our work on multiple campaigns by participating in coalition spaces, helping to organize advocacy days, scheduling meetings with elected officials, attending Community Board meetings, organizing and assembling advocacy day packets, providing input on legislative language, testifying before City Council, and working with Law Reform’s Community Justice Unit (CJU) to educate and connect with the community we serve. The Coordinator will be provided professional development opportunities, such as media training, public speaking, and legislative advocacy, to help champion our policy reform efforts.

This position is funded by a temporary grant and the continuation of the position is dependent on funding availability. If funding for the position is not continued, the Community Engagement Coordinator will be eligible to apply for other internal positions or be transferred into a comparable position.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES

Program Management: (25%)

• The Community Engagement Coordinator will work with the Policy team to organize and expand both internal and external contact lists, schedule meetings and maintain contact with elected officials and community partners
• The Coordinator will work with the team to organize advocacy days and rallies and hearing testimony

Community Engagement  (70%)

• The Community Engagement Coordinator will work with the Policy team to build out and deliver educational platforms on the legislative campaigns for the communities we serve. In doing so they will work closely with our Community Justice Unit as well as internal subject-matter experts
• The Coordinator will participate in coalition spaces and work to build support for smaller legislative reform packages and attend community board meetings to build out local support for criminal legal system reforms
• The Coordinator will work with the Policy team to develop a sustained and effective method of communicating with New Yorkers who have been represented by our criminal practice in order to garner feedback and direction for current proposed reforms and those that should be proposed

Professional Development and Other Duties as Assigned (5%)

• Participate in continuous professional development
• Continuously learn about forms of bias in the workplace and demonstrate affirmative behaviors that support an inclusive work environment
• Other duties as assigned

QUALIFICATIONS

Required qualifications:

• A combination of 2+ years of post-secondary education, work experience, or an equivalent of relevant lived experience, such as a period of incarceration
• Demonstrated interest and experience in racial and social justice advocacy or criminal legal system reform.
• Strong project management and organizational skills
• Ability to work collaboratively and develop and maintain relationships with internal and external partners.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills

 Preferred qualifications:  

• Some experience working on legislative and policy issues relating to criminal justice, or other issue-based coalition work including experience with public comments or testimony
• Familiarity with the criminal legal system and the work of public defense organizations
• Familiarity with current legislative campaigns and current failings of the criminal legal system
• Experience working with community organizations, elected officials, and organizers
• Ability to work within a team model

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES

Position Based Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: 

• Knowledge of movements to reform New York’s criminal legal system, including jails and prisons
• Demonstration or performance of coalition building and community engagement work
• Ability to successfully navigate public databases of state and local legislation as well as to reach lawmakers via their staff to schedule meetings and briefings

Organizational Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Commitment to Legal Aid Society’s mission to secure equal justice before the law for all New Yorkers 
• Interpersonal and communication skills that enable healthy and productive working relationships
• Ability to perform duties with the highest regard for confidentiality, integrity, and respect
• Commitment to Legal Aid Society’s mission and values

Physical, environment, travel, and other duties required: 

• Mostly sedentary, significant time using a computer and monitor; communicating and meeting using video
• Will require travel within NYC, across the five-borough region, and to Albany, NY
• This is a two-year position

SALARY AND BENEFITS

The salary range represents a good faith estimate of the range we expect to pay for this role. The actual salary offered may vary depending on many factors, including but not limited to job-related knowledge, skills, and experience, as well as collectively bargained salary steps for unionized roles.

Salary Range: $65,000 - $70,000

The Legal Aid Society offers a generous benefits package including health insurance, paid vacation, disability, and life insurance, and more. Click here to read more about benefits.

Higher Education and Loan Forgiveness

The Legal Aid Society is a qualified employer for the purposes of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness. This position allows an employee to take advantage of PSLF and other State and Federal loan forgiveness programs. Additionally, employees who are New York residents may be eligible for assistance from New York state to assist with loan repayments, depending on years of practice. To learn more, click the links below. 

studentaid.gov

hesc.ny.gov/loan-forgiveness-programs

WORK AUTHORIZATION

All applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States for any employer without sponsorship for a work visa or permit. We are currently unable to sponsor employment visas or permits. (However, for citizens of Canada and Mexico, LAS will provide a letter documenting employment status that is needed to obtain a TN visa.)

HOW TO APPLY

All applications must be completed online via the career portal. We do not accept emailed applications. Submit the following documents as a combined PDF:

• Cover Letter
• Resume 

For technical difficulties or questions regarding this posting, please email [email protected]. 

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

As an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer, The Legal Aid Society prohibits discriminatory employment actions against and treatment of its employees and applicants for employment based on actual or perceived race or color, size (including bone structure, body size, height, shape, and weight), religion or creed, alienage or citizenship status, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity (one’s internal deeply-held sense of one’s gender which may be the same or different from one’s sex assigned at birth); gender expression (the representation of gender as expressed through, for example, one’s name, choice of pronouns, clothing, haircut, behavior, voice, or body characteristics; gender expression may not conform to traditional gender-based stereotypes assigned to specific gender identities), disability, marital status, relationship and family structure (including domestic partnerships, polyamorous families and individuals, chosen family, platonic co-parents, and multigenerational families), genetic information or predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence victim status, arrest or pre-employment conviction record, credit history, unemployment status, caregiver status, salary history, or any other characteristic protected by law.

OUR COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION

The Legal Aid Society is committed to a work culture of zealous advocacy, respect, diversity and inclusion, client-oriented defense, access to justice and excellent representation. We are dedicated to building a strong professional relationship with each of our clients (people), to understanding their diverse circumstances, and to meeting their needs. Our ability to achieve these goals depends on the efforts of all of us and our ability to build strong relationships with our colleagues. Every member of our community is expected to continuously learn about the dynamic, evolving, and emerging field of knowledge of identity, bias, and systemic forms of oppression and participate in productive efforts to dismantling bias in all forms.