Manager of Organizing
Atlanta, Georgia

Location: Atlanta, GA

Reports to: Director, Organizing & Campaigns

THE OPPORTUNITY

Our Turn isn’t here to improve education. Our Turn is here to fight for education justice. Education justice looks like students exerting decision making power for their education. It is students and families elevating what works for them, and resources flowing to support their aspirations. It is students serving as the evidence base. It is the centering of Black, Indigenous, and students of color in data, curriculum, culture, communications, and funding.  Our Turn activates the next generation of diverse civic leaders who know what’s possible for all students because they’ve built power in their communities to dismantle inequities through grassroots organizing. In the past few months, our work has been recognized by Teen Vogue, The Guardian, and The New York Times. We are hiring a Manager of Organizing to build student power, win youth led campaigns, and increase Our Turn’s brand awareness and coalition presence in Atlanta. The Manager of Organizing will grow a network of youth activists and key stakeholders that are responsive and engaged in taking action to ensure education justice is a reality in Atlanta Public Schools.

 

WHY WORK FOR OUR TURN

We approach our work with the audacity of believing that students have the power to rewrite the rules of education in our country and the humility to know that thousands have come before us in this fight. We know that young people, especially young people of color, have been shut out by decision makers who shape their educational experience and respond by providing transformational leadership development and grassroots organizing experience that flip the traditional power dynamic on its head. Our team is highly collaborative and works with urgency, passion, and — most importantly — a lot of joy. We are looking for strategic, entrepreneurial social justice activists to join us and continue the fight for education justice. 

We believe that supporting, developing, and retaining our team is the most critical investment we can make for achieving bold outcomes. To ensure that our team is prepared and excited to do their job with excellence every day, we offer a comprehensive benefits package that includes: a performance-based culture with generous paid time off; flexible working environment; opportunities for internal and external professional development; health, dental, and vision insurance; retirement plan with an employer match.

 

YOUR GAMEPLAN 

 

Recruitment and Base Building 

  • Recruitment & engagement of BIPOC Atlanta high school students, alum in local colleges, and young people most impacted by education inequity.
    • Build and sustain a volunteer base of young people of color by recruiting in-person and digitally throughout Atlanta.
    • Organize [a] outreach activities with volunteers including canvassing, phone/texting banking, and tabling, [b] leadership development and organizing activities such as trainings, leadership and committee meetings, [c] large-scale actions including community conversations, town halls, public meetings, and direct actions, and [d] digital communications, such as social media and email.
  • Build, maintain, and coach a team of core student leaders to lead the coalition.
  • Create regular email and text communications to keep the list informed of opportunities and campaign activities.
  • Accountable for meeting ambitious metrics around student recruitment and engagement, including but not limited to new sign-ups, number of action takers, and communications outcomes.
  • Responsible for ensuring that data is up-to-date and accurate. 

 

Coalition and Campaign Strategy 

  • Support the launch of the Atlanta Student Agenda and lead the launch of an issue campaign this fall in collaboration with students, and lead future campaign issue selection & systems change work around the APS Board & District.
  • Candidate engagement: Partner with our Growth team to develop and execute a school board candidate engagement plan, with tactics including, but not limited to, candidate forums, public report cards, direct meetings including students, and more.
  • Partner engagement: Collaborate with local mission-aligned partner organizations to shape the campaign plan, drive calls to action, and enhance recruitment.
  • Coach student organizers to develop their leadership around organizing and advocacy skills 
  • Partner with our Communications team to build student- and community-focused knowledge of youth issues and drive action on campaign calls to action, through tactics including, but not limited to, social media, email, video, earned media, and events.

 

Management and Leadership 

  • Manage a team of young people to develop and implement campaign and advocacy plans on local issues, and meeting metrics around fellow satisfaction and growth.
  • Develop work plans and a yearly fellow development plan for lead student organizers and evaluate their performance.
  • Able to work with leaders across race, class, and gender to align different interests towards a common goal of building community power to achieve student- and equity-focused systems change.
  • Collaborate with the development team to develop and execute a local fundraising plan, by sharing campaign plans and strategies, supporting the communication of local stories, providing relevant metrics and data, and participating in conversations with funding partners.
  • Attend and actively participate in team meetings, meet regularly with supervisor, submit all reports in a timely manner, and attend professional organizer training as required.
  • Develop the leadership of young people to share their stories with each other and publicly, with the media and online.
  • Provide support on executing national organization initiatives and processes, such as mobilizing the local coalition around national campaigns and supporting issue-based knowledge building across internal teams.

 

QUALIFICATIONS 

  • The desire to work smart, hard, with passion and love, and a deep hunger for advancing social justice through organizing in partnership with young people. 
  • Demonstrated impact as a political change agent, as exhibited by a successful cycle of local grassroots organizing, leadership in a political campaign, and/or achievement in an advocacy or elected official’s office.
  • Demonstrated ability to build strong relationships with diverse stakeholders and communities 
  • Evidence of network and relationships in Atlanta Public Schools and Atlanta Metro Community
  • Collaborative work ethic and ability to work effectively across lines of difference 
  • Commitment and ability to provide consistent in-person recruitment and student engagement
  • Ability to work autonomously and as part of an innovative team. 
  • Ability to write and speak clearly and persuasively, including speaking in small and large group settings.
  • Foundational knowledge about Atlanta Public Schools and local politics
  • Complete alignment with Our Turn’s Mission, Student Agenda, and Theory of Change. 
  • Consistent access to a car and a valid driver’s license. 
  • Must be willing to work flexible hours that will include time outside of the traditional work day and weekends.
  • Someone will be successful in this role if they are an expert at:
    • Recruitment
    • Building relationships with diverse stakeholders
    • Backwards planning and problem solving
    • Time management
    • Power mapping to achieve a goal
    • Communication and reliability

 

STUDENT AGENDA 

Read more about our student agenda for education equity here.

 

COMPENSATION 

Salary range for this position is $55,000 - $68,000 and a comprehensive benefits package is included.

 

COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY 

Our Turn encourages individuals of all identities and backgrounds to apply for this position and is committed to recruiting a team that reflects the diversity of our student movement (BIPOC, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, first generation college students). Our Turn does not discriminate against any applicant for employment because of race, color, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, nation of origin, disability, age, marital status, military status, or parenthood. 

 

HOW TO APPLY 

Click here to fill out an application and upload your resume. Applications will be accepted until the position has been filled and the first review of candidates will begin the week of August 7th, 2023. Please email [email protected]  with any questions or requests for accommodations. We’re happy to help! Please visit Our Turn’s website (www.itsourturn.org) for more information.