Program Associate, Powerbuilding

TransitCenter • Full-time • Remote (United States) • $80k - $90k / year • 2w ago

Who we are

TransitCenter is a private foundation that works to secure a more just and sustainable future with abundant public transportation options. TransitCenter’s philanthropic work began in 2013, and in 2024, it completed a strategic planning process to position itself as a catalyst in growing and expanding the movement of advocates to change how America moves. To achieve our mission, and as we prepare to spend our endowment by 2036, we need to build a movement working to transform how transportation is currently funded, and how resources are spent.

Our focus areas include:

Powerbuilding: Strengthen local organizing, mobilize key constituencies, and build a base for transit advocacy by broadening the stakeholders for transit.
Mobilizing philanthropy: To increase the philanthropic funding dedicated to transit
Narrative change: To shift the narrative so that many more people see transit as an essential service deserving of more funding

What you will do

As the Powerbuilding Associate, you will support the Director of Powerbuilding (DoP) and other TransitCenter team members in strengthening the transit movement by meeting regularly with grantees and other field partners to discuss campaign strategies, work plans, partnerships, and organizational sustainability.You will also identify and build deep relationships with organizations and leaders that can help bring key constituencies—especially real estate and related business sectors—constructively into the fold. The focus is on supporting advocates to build durable alignment and influence with these stakeholders, so they can help move the land use policies and practices needed for transit to thrive.

You will support the Powerbuilding strategy area grantees using your campaign experience and issue knowledge of matters pertaining to transit, land use, and housing. You will act as a connector and capacity builder, working closely with community-based advocates and helping build bridges with powerful constituencies to expand the reach and impact of transit-oriented campaigns.

You will bring strong organizing experience to help understand grantees’ campaign needs and assess their capacity to achieve their campaign goals. By supporting organization-wide efforts to foster collaboration among grassroots groups, policy influencers, and stakeholders from powerful business constituencies, you will help the Powerbuilding strategy area identify and support strong, diverse, and enduring coalitions that champion transit as an essential public service.

Who you are

You are an organizer with three to six years of experience working in coalitions and supporting policy campaigns, preferably with a deep understanding of issues related to the issues related to the intersection of transit and land use policies. You are passionate about social change, rooted in values of equity and justice, and committed to building an inclusive transit movement to create a better society.

You thrive in working closely with grassroots groups and other stakeholders, helping foster cohesive working relationships in the pursuit of joint campaign goals. You have solid experience with qualitative data analysis and some quantitative analysis, and can compellingly present campaign analyses and impact to diverse audiences.

You excel at working closely and collaboratively with a small internal team, and you exhibit a collegial work style and sense of humor. You are a team player who demonstrates maturity and good judgment in handling complex situations, including complex coalition dynamics.

Essential functions:

Strategy Support

Map the relationships of organizations working on transit and mobility with powerful constituencies such as labor and business, and help identify and create opportunities to expand the transit movement's relationships with these constituencies.
Provide strategic and policy support to grantees by acting as a thought partner and by fostering connections between grantees and policy organizations and networks. The associate may also support grantees with developing plans for engaging and building relationships with groups that represent important constituencies in the community, such as organized labor, business associations, etc.
Assist the DoP in staying informed about policy developments in the land use and housing spaces, particularly their intersections with transit policy, in the key states where TransitCenter works.

Relationship Building

Develop trusting relationships with TransitCenter grantees and other field partners or strategic allies.
Conduct site visits- independently or as part of a team, as determined by the DoP.
Carry out grantee outreach through one-on-one conversations and focus groups, and gather information about state and local campaigns and coalitions. Synthesize this information in a way that is useful for the Powerbuilding team in making informed decisions about the portfolio.
Engage in capacity-building efforts to strengthen local organizing, as recommended by the DoP.
Identify and help create opportunities for local and state organizations to build relationships with and leverage the power of constituencies such as labor and business to advance transit-oriented campaigns.
Assist the organization in building the community of TransitCenter's network of grantees through helping with convenings, connections between organizations, and with powerful stakeholders such as labor and business.

Grantee Monitoring and Evaluation

Assist the DoP in the collection, organization, and dissemination of grantee accomplishments to produce compelling reports and summaries for relevant stakeholders
Assists in evaluating grant applications and grantee reports as part of a staff-wide team.

Miscellaneous

The Associate may be asked to represent the organization at public events and forums, usually accompanied by other team members.
Play a hands-on role in operations and shoulder a portion of the organization’s administrative and clerical duties as assigned.
Other duties as assigned by DoP, as related to the work of the Foundation
Up to 15% travel may be required

Qualifications and requirements:

The ideal candidate will have 3-6 years of organizing experience with a demonstrated ability to work in or manage coalitions consisting of organizations with a diverse set of interests, including business owners and chambers of commerce, developers, housing justice advocates, etc. An understanding of policies related to transit advocacy, in particular those related to transit advocacy’s intersection with land use and housing policy, is highly desired.

Applicants must already possess valid authorization to work in the United States.

Salary Range: $80,000- $90,000

Term: This is a term-limited position of up to 5 years.

Benefits:

100% Employer-paid medical, dental, and health insurance for staff and dependents
401k with a 5% employer match (no waiting period).
PTO
22 days of vacation per year
10 sick days (received immediately)
Holidays
TransitCenter observes 11 office holidays throughout the year
TransitCenter’s office is closed December 24-January 1
We provide 12 weeks of leave at full pay for the adoption or birth of a child that is a dependent of the employee – an employee becomes eligible for this leave after 6 months of employment.
Employee assistance program

Location: Remote, anywhere in the United States

To Apply: Please send a cover letter and a resume to careers@transitcenter.org.