Western Community Organizer

About the organization

Citizen Action is a statewide grassroots movement organization that fights for political, social, racial, economic and environmental justice. We work at the grassroots to give people a sense of their own power. We collaborate with organizations and coalitions in communities throughout New York to address critical issues at the local, state and federal levels.

About the position

Citizen Action is looking to add a Western New York Community Organizer to our team. The community organizer is key to the success of our regional chapter. The Western New York organizer will engage with several issues, including a primary focus on education justice in Buffalo City schools with an eye towards building local issue campaigns, electoral campaigns, and large mobilizations to the State Capitol that amplify the urgent education needs of parents, youth, and children in the region.

This organizer will work directly with leaders and members to create basebuilding outreach strategies that build people power and the chapter’s political strength locally and statewide.

What you’ll do and the impact you'll make

• Chapter Building – Recruit dues-paying members and create/maintain chapter governance through a Regional Council. Use issues and electoral campaigns to grow the chapter through outreach strategies that grow the dedicated base of volunteers. Develops and employs strategic campaigns at the local level that connect to the statewide priorities of the organization.
• Outreach and Recruitment - Create an outreach and recruitment plan to grow our membership base alongside leader builds for chapter meetings, committee meetings, mobilization efforts, and campaign tactics. Use organizing tactics such as phone banking, text banking, and canvassing in order to grow chapter members. Lead weekly outreach events with members. Focus will be on outreach to directly impacted individuals who can share the stories that amplify the need for change in our issue campaigns.
• Leadership Development:
  Train volunteers and members in strategic education and hard skills such as strategy, one to ones, organizer’s math, etc. Ensures that leaders in the community have a role and develop their skills in organizing for social change.
• Administrative - Manage the chapter’s VAN requirements, such as entering data into VAN such as 1:1’s, volunteer activities and turnout, and volunteer profile. Work with the Data Director to create recruitment phone banks and canvass lists. Work with the Mobilization Director to create outreach and recruitment scripts.
• Legislative – Work with staff and members to create outreach strategies based on legislative campaigns during the planning phase and support committee management during legislative sessions.
• Campaigns - Work with staff and members to identify, plan, and execute local campaigns that connect to the statewide education justice work.
• Electoral:
  Recruit members and leaders to be a part of the endorsement committee and help identify members to run for political office.
• Communications –Creates content for weekly emails, social media. Works with Communications staff to get community members to write letters to the editor, op-eds, and finds ways to amplify the voice of the community
• Additional responsibilities may be assigned by supervisor

Skills/Qualifications

• Alignment with the organization's vision of a world where every person’s basic needs are met. It’s a world filled with love and respect for its people and the planet. It’s a world where democracy reigns, and each person is able to reach their fullest potential. It is a world where equity is the norm and oppression, in all forms, is eradicated.
  
  It is a world without war and violence. The world we want is possible, but it will only exist if we work together.
• A minimum of 3 years experience in a voluntary or paid role working on an issue campaign and/or electoral campaign.
• Demonstrated success and skills in recruiting and leadership development with volunteers/member leaders. Includes, directly anchoring and training volunteers to do phone banks, canvassing, planning events, lobbying, facilitating workshops and meetings.
• Excellent verbal and…