Program Specialist, Fellowships

ABOUT EQUAL JUSTICE WORKS 

Equal Justice Works (EJW) is the nation’s largest facilitator of opportunities in public interest law. We achieve this through creating Fellowship programs for lawyers and community organizers, hosting the largest national public interest law career fair, advocating for Public Service Loan Forgiveness, and supporting law students pursuing public interest law careers. 

We bring together an extensive community of law schools, law students, lawyers, community organizers, legal services organizations, and supporters to promote a lifelong commitment to public service and equal justice. Following their Fellowships, more than 85% of our Fellows remain in public service positions, continuing to pursue equal justice for under-resourced communities across the country. 
 

POSITION OVERVIEW 

The Program Specialist is a member of the Fellowships Unit and supports the management of privately and federally funded Fellowship programs, including those focused on disaster resilience, crime victims, housing, and racial justice.  The Program Specialist is a key programmatic and administrative point person for external stakeholders, including host organizations, fellows, and consultants. This position is envisaged to play an active role in our supporting and growing housing justice, economic justice, and racial justice-focused fellowship programs. The work of the Program Specialist significantly contributes to the delivery of unit operational plans aligned with Equal Justice Works’ strategic vision and mission.  

RESPONSIBILITIES  

Fellowship Experience 

• Work closely with the Senior Program Manager to administer all aspects of the fellowship program and fellowship experience, from onboarding to exit into the alumni program. 

• Collaborate with external consultants to develop training and technical assistance responsive to the substantive learning needs of the Fellows. 

• Facilitate connections between Fellows, alums, and subject matter experts by coordinating program-specific events for fellows/host sites, including organizing webinars/teleconferences and in-person events.  

• Collect and maintain information critical to fellowship programs including contact information, demographic data, biographical information, and suggestions for improvement. Enter and maintain relevant data on Microsoft Dynamics, a CRM. 

• Act as a key programmatic and administrative point person for host organizations, fellows, and other program stakeholders.  

Grant Administration and Host Organization Management 

• Support the process of administering competitive calls for proposals and selections. 

• Collect and maintain complete grant files for each host organization. 

• Develop program orientation and technical assistance materials for Fellows and host organizations. 

• Support budget monitoring, review financial reports and process invoices. 

• Evaluate and monitor host organization programmatic capability and performance. Support periodic program monitoring activities, including conducting desk reviews and host site visits. 

• Maintain a thorough understanding of compliance regulations, grant conditions, and internal policies and procedures to effectively identify and raise issues to Unit management. 

Fundraising and Stewardship 

• Support program fundraising initiatives working closely with the Institutional Advancement team to conduct research and draft proposals. 

• Work with the Senior Program Manager to monitor, compile and analyze program data, and produce draft reports on program progress activities, including financial and narrative progress reports. 

Unit Support 

• Assist with organizing the annual Leadership Development Training conference.  

• Participate in broader Unit-wide activities and organizational initiatives, and act as a liaison and program/Unit representative for internal committees as assigned. Undertake other duties as assigned. 

DIRECT REPORTS 

• None 

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE  

• Undergraduate degree or equivalent relevant work experience and training; minimum of three years of progressively complex professional experience contributing to project results  

SKILLS 

• Excellent writing skills with previous experience in grant proposals and report writing or similar 

• Proficient in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and ability to use technology to manage and consolidate data. Experience with a Customer Relationship Manager (CRM) platform such as Dynamics or Salesforce is a plus.  

• Professional, customer-service oriented mindset with an ability to exercise good judgment and diplomacy 

• Experience with public speaking, virtually and in-person, and regularly facilitating meetings with a broad array of stakeholders 

• Skill and interest in data, monitoring and evaluation - consolidate, and analyze a high volume of program metrics, financial and narrative data for reporting and monitoring purposes  

• Takes initiative and brings a high level of attention to detail to tasks. Works independently with and ability to manage multiple priorities with a range of complexity  

• Solutions oriented with superior problem solving and judgment, ability to issue spot and bring recommendations to supervisor 

• Prior experience with foundations/government fundraising and grant management a plus 

• Demonstrated commitment to growth, meeting a high bar, and contributing to a positive workplace culture of continuous improvement and teamwork 

• Commitment to upholding Equal Justice Works’ mission, vision, values, and (DEI) Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion principles.  

TRAVEL 

Occasional travel within the US to participate in conferences and monitoring activities is expected to be approximately 10%. 

LOCATION

Daily activities are conducted in a typical office environment. EJW adheres to a hybrid work model whereby employees who live within a reasonable commuting area must be in person in-office twice per week. 

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS 

The salary range for the Program Specialist position is $55,900 - $60,000, based on experience. Health and well-being are a top priority at Equal Justice Works. EJW offers a comprehensive suite of benefits designed to support your total health and wellbeing, including unlimited PTO (Paid Time Off); additional paid holiday leave the week between Christmas and the New Year; sixteen weeks of paid parental leave for those with EJW for six months or more; excellent medical and dental insurance with Equal Justice Works paying 100% for employee premiums and 75% for dependent premiums; student loan repayment assistance; and a $1000 professional development stipend per year. 

APPLICATION PROCESS 

Visit www.equaljusticeworks.org to upload application materials. Interested applicants should submit a resume and a cover letter that describes their interest in and qualifications for this role.  

BACKGROUND AND REFERENCE CHECKS 

Finalists for this position must satisfactorily complete a pre-employment background and reference check as a condition of employment. 

WORKING CONDITIONS 

Equal Justice Works is committed to providing access, equal opportunity, and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities in employment, its services, programs, and activities. This employee is regularly required to sit, stand, bend, stretch and kneel for extended periods of time; frequently required to talk, hear, and use repetitive hand motions; and should possess the ability to push, pull, and lift to ten pounds unassisted. 

As a condition of this position, which is required to work at the Equal Justice Works office, and as a part of our continued efforts to maintain a safe workplace for employees and visitors, EJW is requiring all employees that work in the EJW office to receive an FDA-authorized and/or approved COVID-19 vaccination. 

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER 

Equal Justice Works is committed to building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspective, and skills and encourage people of diverse ages, sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions, disabilities, religions, races, ethnicities, socioeconomic statuses, work, and life experiences to apply.