Program Director, Ready to Rise, Liberty Hill Foundation

Position Title: Program Director, Ready to Rise

Reports to: Senior Director, Programs

Position: Full-time, Exempt, 3-year term - renewable annually 

Location: Hybrid-Onsite; Los Angeles, California

Salary: $100,600 - $125,700

About Liberty Hill

At Liberty Hill Foundation, we are at the forefront of social change, championing social justice and equity by supporting grassroots movements in communities most affected by systemic oppression. Our mission is to transform lives, communities, and policies, building a more equitable future for all. We are a dynamic team of passionate changemakers, committed to supporting community organizing through our programs: grantmaking, training and capacity building, and alliance building.

Our staff represents a dedicated community of people who are committed to social justice and improving the material conditions in which we live. At Liberty Hill, we’re also committed to our organizational values of Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI). 

We embrace the differences and characteristics that make us all unique, and we encourage collaboration as an essential element of our mission to reach our North Star goal—to achieve justice and equity by building power in communities most impacted by systemic oppression.  

The Role

Liberty Hill Foundation is seeking a dynamic and experienced individual to join their youth justice team as the Program Director for the Ready to Rise initiative.  

Over the past decade, Liberty Hill has partnered with community-based organizations, private foundations, and government agencies to achieve several key goals: reducing youth arrest and incarceration rates, closing youth prisons, and investing in holistic youth development. 

As part of the vision to create the nation’s largest youth development system, the Ready to Rise (R2R) program was launched in 2019. This three-year, $38 million partnership involved the Los Angeles County Probation Department, the California Community Foundation (CCF), and Liberty Hill. CCF provided grants to 49 youth-serving organizations, while Liberty Hill designed and implemented an innovative capacity-building program for these grantees. Through their programming, these community-based organizations collectively served 26,000 high-need youth.

After four years, Liberty Hill is extending its contract with the county for another seven years to continue the Ready to Rise (R2R) program. Additionally, the Foundation will develop complementary program elements with support from private foundations that share the program’s vision. The coordinated efforts of Ready to Rise, other Liberty Hill youth justice programs, and the leadership of a vigorous community movement have achieved significant results: the closure of 10 youth prisons, a 60% reduction in youth incarceration rates, and a 75% reduction in overall youth arrest rates.

Impact Areas 

Leadership and Program Oversight

• Represent Ready to Rise in internal program discussions, positioning it within Liberty Hill’s broader youth development agenda.
• Guide Program Managers in project tracking and coordination.
• Manage a team of consultants to implement program curriculum and evaluation with strategic input from the Senior Director of Youth and Transformative Justice.
• Facilitate internal cross-team meetings and present updates on program progress.
• Lead project teams using project management techniques to ensure program progress within budget and scope.
• Partner with the finance department to ensure compliance with County requirements for the R2R contract.
• Lead strategic planning with Liberty Hill staff and Ready to Rise consultants for future iterations of R2R.

Program Development and Community Engagement

• Supervise capacity-building curricula and training programs for Ready to Rise, including contractor recruitment, curriculum development, peer learning facilitation, and session design.
• Understand grantee training needs and maintain relationships within grantee networks to align programs with youth development and justice strategies.
• Support the Senior Director in managing relationships with community partners, government allies, and other external stakeholders.
• Design and plan events to support programmatic needs, such as training, networking opportunities, and celebrations.
• Collaborate with the Communications team on narrative development and promote interdepartmental coordination for maximum impact.
• Manage content and logistics for R2R convenings, ensuring alignment with Liberty Hill’s commitments to justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion.
• Lead follow-up activities, fostering ongoing communication with partners to integrate in-person gatherings with other programmatic elements.

Grantmaking and Financial Management

• Assist in the grantee selection process for Ready to Rise cohorts, including application review, site visits, and documentation of grant recommendations.
• Manage grantmaking for aligned R2R programs, such as the Youth Ecosystem Strengthening (YES) grant program.
• Collaborate with the grantmaking team on recommendations for emerging organizations.
• Contribute to other Liberty Hill grantmaking programs to ensure cross-team strategy alignment.
• Manage the full budget of the R2R initiative, including consultant contracts, event budgets, and internal staffing requirements, ensuring fidelity to County agreements.
• Select vendors for program expenditures in accordance with the budget.
• Ensure grants are expended according to agreements and budget; provide input on department budgets, and review finance reports for variances.
• Ensure legal compliance of program activities and accurately process financial transactions.
• Prepare department reports, provide summaries of activities, and coordinate project management efforts.
• Support invoice and financial report preparation monthly in partnership with the Deputy Director of Contract Compliance and the broader Finance team.

Community, Donor, Board, and Foundation Relations

• Develop and maintain funder relationships to advance Ready to Rise, including prospecting, cultivation, and stewardship.
• Collaborate with Foundation Development staff on fund development strategies, including proposal and report writing.
• Highlight program achievements for donors and prospective funders in partnership with the Advancement and Development staff.
• Maintain relationships with key stakeholders and represent the Foundation at external events.
• Draft reports to update County and Community stakeholders on program progress and metrics, and update program messaging in various formats.
• Assist in public communications for youth justice strategies, including conference presentations, research opportunities, and donor reports.

Documentation and Evaluation

• Manage the evaluation team to support data collection reflecting the Ready to Rise program’s impact.
• Summarize program evaluations to improve effectiveness and measure impact, including developing user-friendly annual reports.
• Oversee evaluation and data-tracking efforts to advance program cohort goals and metrics.
• Conduct research to support communication on program impact, youth justice policies, youth development models, and philanthropy trends.
• Utilize the R2R research base and evidence-based practices in articles, op-eds, and other communications to support alternatives to incarceration.

Requirements

Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities

• Education: BS/BA Degree or equivalent personal/lived/professional experience
• 7+ years’ experience in the nonprofit field, and at least three years in a project or program leadership role
• Familiarity with social issues and the political landscape in Los Angeles
• Background leading programmatic initiatives, preferably within a social justice organization focusing on youth empowerment and capacity building 
• Fund development background, with managing or contributing as a part of a team
• Experience working with government partners, including compliance duties that are associated with public/private partnerships or aligned intermediary role
• Experience with program budget development and management
• Experience in program development, coordination, and oversight of various projects and people including consultant management
• Dedication to advancing social and racial justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion
• A philosophy compatible with Liberty Hill’s social justice mission and the ability to work with diverse donor and grantee constituencies
• Ability to remain adaptable and dependable in challenging situations, including conflicts, crises, or shifting priorities
• Proficiency in Office365 and project management applications (Slack, Asana)
• Strong interpersonal skills with a keen awareness of cross-class and intergroup dynamics
• Availability to work occasional evenings and weekends
• Proficiency in other languages is welcome, but not required

Physical demands:

• Ability to operate a remote workstation and laptop/screen for extended periods.
• Ability to travel for in-person co-working, meetings, events, and live in Los Angeles County.

Core Competencies

Collaboration: Actively seek out collaboration opportunities and drive them forward.

Communication: Possess the ability to empathize and persuade diverse audiences effectively. Take ownership of objectives and outcomes on a broader scale than individual responsibilities, being prepared to address and navigate unforeseen challenges.

Problem-Solving: Recognize patterns through data and trend analysis; Identify gaps and explore alternative pathways not immediately apparent; Utilize tools and resources to develop innovative problem-solving approaches; Challenge assumptions by posing questions and considering alternative perspectives.

Execution: Align plans with organizational or departmental strategy; Identify necessary resources for plan execution; Monitor and evaluate progress towards solutions; Adjust as needed to achieve desired outcomes; Proactively improve processes, systems, and results.

Strategic Thinking: owning strategic planning; coaching strategic thinking in others
Innovation: drives innovation internally across teams.

Benefits

• Comprehensive coverage for employee healthcare, vision, and dental at 100%.

• Employer contribution and match for 403b retirement savings.
• Stipend to support remote work.
• 10 Days of PTO paid vacation time the first year and 58 hours of sick time.
• Generous benefit of 22 paid holidays.
• 2 dedicated Volunteer Days.
• Fridays off throughout August.
• Summer Break is the first week in July, and Winter Break is the last two weeks of December.

Liberty Hill operates in a hybrid remote environment with a dedicated coworking space in downtown Los Angeles. While in-person elements vary by function, key elements of this role revolve around face-to-face mentorship, in-person meetings and events, and other components that require physical presence and participation.

Physical Asks

• Ability to engage in a hybrid remote work environment in our shared downtown co-working space or working remotely.
• Must live in Los Angeles County and be available for face-to-face collaboration when necessary. 

How to Apply

Liberty Hill has retained the services of Charity Search Group to coordinate the search for this position. To apply, please complete this online application. If you have questions or need accommodations, please contact Pascale Hughes at [email protected] ​or visit www.charitysearchgroup.com.

Liberty Hill is an equal-opportunity employer and is committed to having a workforce that reflects diversity at all levels of the organization. We recognize the importance of not viewing individuals based on a single identity, and we thrive on being equitable in our recruitment process as well as in our efforts to be inclusive of all employees.