Neighborhood Initiatives Program Manager - City of Philadelphia

A best-in-class city that attracts best-in-class talent, Philadelphia is an incredible place to build a career. From our thriving arts scene and rich history to our culture of passion and grit, there are countless reasons to love living and working here. With a workforce of over 30,000 people, and more than 1,000 different job categories, the City of Philadelphia offers boundless opportunities to make an impact.

As an employer, the City of Philadelphia values inclusion, integrity, innovation, empowerment, and hard work above all else. We offer a vibrant work environment, comprehensive health care and benefits, and the experience you need to grow and excel. If you’re interested in working with a passionate team of people who care about the future of Philadelphia, start here.

What we offer

• Impact - The work you do here matters to millions. 
• Growth - Philadelphia is growing, why not grow with it? 
• Diversity & Inclusion - Find a career in a place where everyone belongs.
• Benefits - We care about your well-being.

Agency Description

The Office of Community Empowerment and Opportunity (CEO) provides leadership on issues of economic justice by advancing racial equity and inclusive growth to ensure that all Philadelphians share in the city’s prosperous future and by alleviating the immediate impact of poverty on individuals, families and communities.  CEO is Philadelphia’s Community Action Agency (CAA); CAAs are private or public agencies created by the 1964 Economic Opportunity Act and federally designated to receive Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) funding.

CEO’s Guiding Principles

• The people of Philadelphia deserve the opportunity to live happy, healthy, full lives.
• City Government should both recognize its culpability in creating and sustaining inequity and aspire to its responsibility to provide opportunities, represent the best interests, and promote the well-being of all residents.
• People can offer meaningful insights into both their personal experiences and how the systems around them function.
• Poverty is a deliberately created systemic issue and city government can lead in calling for justice and dismantling the barriers that often prevent opportunities.

CEO’s Values

• Dignity: We actively respect our individual colleagues and people in the community.
• Inclusivity: Our work is more beneficial, valuable, and valid when our full range of experiences, knowledge, and skills can contribute.
• Persistence: We recognize the challenges inherent in this work, and when we get discouraged, we find ways to be resilient, lift each other up, and push forward.
• Accountability: We are transparent and honest about our plans, our actions, and our results.
• Honesty: We create a space to have healthy, honest dialogues about systems, people, and misconceptions and then communicate truthfully.

Position Summary

Neighborhood Initiatives Program Manager is an integral part of the City’s Office of Community Empowerment and Opportunity. Its mission is to advance economic justice through racial equity, in order to increase mobility out of poverty and ensure that all Philadelphians can share in the benefits of economic growth. CEO also distributes federal Community Services Block Grant funding and other resources to support this work.

The goal of the Neighborhood Initiatives unit within CEO is to improve the quality of life in targeted neighborhoods by building and nurturing strategic partnerships to support community led planning, enhanced access to funding opportunities, and stronger community networks. 

For the past 10 years, the Neighborhood Initiatives unit has served as the lead convenor for the West Philadelphia Promise Zone, a federal designation aimed at creating jobs, improving education, reducing crime and empowering the community. CEO’s partners in the West Philadelphia Promise Zone represent public, nonprofit, private, academic, and community-based organizations and institutions. Together they have spearheaded several initiatives and invested financial and in-kind resources aimed at creating and sustaining a vibrant and thriving community. With the official conclusion of the federal designation in January 2024, the Program Manager will continue to work in partnership with West Philadelphia Promise Zone partner agencies and community stakeholders to build a sustainable, long-term, collaborative structure that is community-led and well positioned to address the current needs of the community.

The Program Manager will also build on the findings from the 10-year Promise Zone convening work to implement best practices in collective impact and stakeholder engagement in one or more neighborhoods in Philadelphia. The Program Manager will be responsible for developing an equitable and data-driven strategy for identifying and selecting opportunities for long-term (3-5 year), place-based, stakeholder engagement projects for future intervention. The Program Manager will supervise one or more AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) members to build capacity for carrying out these functions.

Essential Functions

The main areas of work and associated tasks for the Neighborhood Initiatives Program Manager are as outlined below:

Strategic Alignment

• Convene or participate in all pertinent meetings required for engaging stakeholders in the West Philadelphia Promise Zone and other targeted neighborhoods.
• Support other City departments and CEO initiatives in the West Philadelphia Promise Zone and other targeted neighborhoods (e.g., the BenePhilly Initiative and the Financial Empowerment Centers).
• Work with outreach and engagement programs within CEO’s Place Based Initiatives vertical to build stronger connections and coordinate interventions within the West Philadelphia Promise Zone and other targeted neighborhoods.
• Advance CEO’s place-based community engagement strategies by listening to, supporting, and including community groups and community members in the planning and implementation of project and initiatives.

Program Management

• Serve as a primary contact to federal and institutional partners supporting or participating in stakeholder engagement work.
• Ensure strong engagement and representation from community residents and stakeholders to participate in community engagement activities and build capacity to assume leadership roles.
• Advance CEO’s place-based community engagement strategies by listening to, supporting, and including community groups and community members.
• Review and contribute to monthly newsletters and other methods for sharing information on funding opportunities and program activities

Supervision

• Support AmeriCorps VISTA members in maintaining consistent community engagement via regular contact with leaders of community-based organizations and civic associations; overseeing the development and execution of community events, such as resource fairs.
• Support AmeriCorps VISTA members who manage the day-to-day work of partner engagement, including meeting facilitation, dissemination of materials and information between meetings; preparing agendas; developing action plans and identifying roles for partners; and leading research efforts and the development of materials to advance work of the collaborative.
• Support AmeriCorps VISTA members in collecting, analyzing and reporting on data pertaining to the West Philadelphia Promise Zone and other targeted neighborhoods.

The duties of this position and the preferred qualifications and experiences of the successful candidate being sought for this position are as follows:

Program and Strategy Related

• Participate in meetings with community partners and VISTA staff to prepare for and help strategize engagement goals, objectives and agendas
• Facilitate/co-facilitate community meetings in collaboration with partners and stakeholders as needed
• Assist community partners and VISTA staff in identifying strategic priorities, sponsoring special projects, and planning community events
• Participate in collaborative efforts with National Coalition of Promise Zones (NCPZ), currently known as Our Places of Promise
• Attend City agency meetings to remain aware of city-wide programs and priorities and how to connect them with the West Philadelphia Promise Zone and other targeted neighborhoods.
• Convene stakeholders across a variety of program and service areas to support and facilitate cross sector/cross agency coordination and collaboration.

Personnel and Volunteer Related

• Supervise and support VISTA staff in all areas of their work
• Assess the performance of VISTA staff in their work

Program Evaluation Related

Coordinate with CEO in:

• Establishing metrics/data measurements to help define, track, and inform: (1) the effectiveness of engagement efforts; and (2) strategic priorities and associated outcomes as identified by community partners
• Assessing and reporting program performance to ensure progress, transparency, and accountability across all priority areas
• Using available census and administrative data to assess and track neighborhood conditions in the West Philadelphia Promise Zone and other targeted neighborhoods. This will include refining and finalizing the West Philadelphia Promise Zone Data Hub (dashboard), and working with the AmeriCorps VISTA and CEO staff to research demographic and economic mobility indicators at the neighborhood level
• Maintaining a series of neighborhood asset maps (geographic and/or diagrammatic) for use in assessing and evaluating neighborhood capacity in the West Philadelphia Promise Zone and other targeted neighborhoods

• Convening institutional stakeholders and/or research partners to measure and assess program performance and outcomes as needed
• Reporting program performance and outcomes to community partners on a regular basis
• Other duties as assigned

Resource Development (Lead) and Policy Development (Support) Related

• Help identify public and private resources that community partners can access to perform their work
• Promote and advocate for public policies that support, and advance goals identified by community partners
• Identify grant opportunities through and in coordination with CEO, the local HUD office, and other federal and state agencies
• Provide letters of support for funding applications aligned with community partner programs and priorities

Competencies, Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Successful work, and demonstrated capacities and skillsets in the areas of:

• Qualitative and quantitative analysis
• Information sharing
• Collaboration and consensus building
• Meeting facilitation
• Organizational strategic planning
• Community and economic development
• Resource development

High comfort level engaging a variety of audiences and colleagues, including but not limited:

• Multi-ethnic and multi-racial groups and program constituencies
• Multi-generational groups and program constituencies
• Corporate and philanthropic entities
• Government officials (elected and appointed)
• Human service organizations
• Community-based, service-oriented organizations

High level communication skills in:

• Public speaking
• Writing and editing
• Telecommunications
• Conventional and social media

To be successful in this role, candidates should have experience with most of the bullet points below. We also welcome candidates that have non-professional experience in these areas. For example, lived or volunteer experience can be just as valuable as professional experience. Our primary qualifications for this position include:

• Undergraduate or graduate degree
• At least six years’ successful professional experiences in: Public Administration, Urban Planning, Public Health, and/or Social and Environmental Sciences

Supervisory Responsibilities

• Directly responsible for the supervision of AmeriCorps VISTA(s) 

Other Specialties, Certifications, Physical Requirements, and Work Conditions

• Regular, predictable attendance is required
• Successful candidate must be a city of Philadelphia resident within six months of hire

TO APPLY: Interested candidates must submit a cover letter and resume.

Salary Range: $67,000 - $72,000

Discover the Perks of Being a City of Philadelphia Employee:

• Transportation: City employees get unlimited FREE public transportation all year long through SEPTA’s Key Advantage program. Employees can ride on SEPTA buses, subways, trolleys, and regional rail for their daily commute and more.
• Parental Benefits: The City offers its employees 6 weeks of paid parental leave.
• We offer Comprehensive health coverage for employees and their eligible dependents.
• Our wellness program offers eligibility into the discounted medical plan
• Employees receive paid vacation, sick leave, and holidays
• Generous retirement savings options are available
• Pay off your student loans faster - As a qualifying employer, City of Philadelphia employees are eligible to participate in the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. Join the ranks of hundreds of employees who have already benefited from this program and achieved student loan forgiveness.
• Unlock Tuition Discounts and Scholarships - The City of Philadelphia has forged partnerships with over a dozen esteemed colleges and universities in the area, ensuring that our employees have access to a wide range of tuition discounts and scholarships. Experience savings of 10% to 40% on your educational expenses, extending not only to City employees but in some cases, spouse and dependents too!

Join the City of Philadelphia team today and seize these incredible benefits designed to enhance your financial well-being and personal growth!

*The successful candidate must be a city of Philadelphia resident within six months of hire

Effective May 22, 2023, vaccinations are no longer required for new employees that work in non-medical, non-emergency or patient facing positions with the City of Philadelphia. As a result, only employees in positions providing services that  are patient-facing medical care (ex: Nurses, doctors, emergency medical personnel), must be fully vaccinated.

The City of Philadelphia is an Equal Opportunity employer and does not permit discrimination based on race, ethnicity, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, marital status, source of income, familial status, genetic information or domestic or sexual violence victim status. If you believe you were discriminated against, call the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations at 215-686-4670 or send an email to faqpchr@phila.gov.

For more information, go to: Human Relations Website: http://www.phila.gov/humanrelations/Pages/default.aspx