Organizer

Organization Overview

Californians for Justice is a statewide, youth-powered organization fighting to improve the lives of people of color, immigrants, low-income families, LGBQiA2S+/TGNC youth and other marginalized communities. Through organizing in schools and in their neighborhoods, youth who join Californians for Justice become leaders in their own communities. They deepen their knowledge on issues like systemic racism, gender and sexuality, and education inequity, and organize and activate their peers to take action.

CFJ is the only grassroots, youth-powered organization in California that organizes students to have a voice in both local and statewide education policy. Our campaign and policy reform goals include adequate and equitable school funding, increased access and success in K-12 and higher education, and creating Relationship Centered Schools - schools that invest in youth voice, in staff, and in creating space for youth and adults to build positive relationships with one another. CFJ currently has four regional offices in Fresno, Long Beach, San Jose and Oakland, 42 full-time equivalent staff and a budget of $5.5 million.

Californians for Justice has been successful because of our strong, dedicated staff team. CFJ staff are unwavering in their commitment to youth power and racial justice, to building connection and trust with their teams, and have a strong sense of purpose and dignity in their work.

Position Overview

The Organizer will lead and coordinate CFJ’s grassroots organizing work in Long Beach through base building, leadership development, political education workshops and other activities with high school students. The Organizer will also actively participate in CFJ’s local and statewide education organizing and campaign work through action research, coordinating campaign events, delegations with system leaders, alliance work, and electoral organizing.

The Organizer is part of a four-­person team: an Organizing Director, Lead Organizer, and two Organizers. The Organizer reports to the Lead Organizer in Long Beach and also works closely with other CFJ regional organizers, and across departments and teams in the organization. The position is full­‐time and non-exempt. Organizers have a schedule of Mon - Fri 10/10:30 AM - 6:30/7 PM, some weekends, late evenings and overnight retreats may be required.

Organizational Competencies

Organizers at CFJ are expected to demonstrate proficiency in the following competencies:

• Impactful Collaboration - Inspired by the work; inspires others to engage in the movement. Manages projects and recommends deliverables and timelines that are well prioritized and met with an appropriate level of urgency for accomplishing team goals. Results have been rigorously tested with multiple possible scenarios and solutions accounted for.
• Problem Solving - Asks and begins to answer: What else can we try? Has full knowledge of the job area enabling solutions to problems that are tailored for the unique needs of the project. Foresees near-term problems that may arise and creates plans for mitigation or proactively seeks help from leadership in removing roadblocks.
• Sustainability - Initiates resilient protagonism without direction from supervisor. Models rest/reflection/action for community leaders. Is self-aware of their own growth opportunities; Requests and responds to feedback. Learn to share feedback with peers.
• Communication - Begins to practice effective communication to various audiences - executive leaders, community leaders, press, etc. Communicates decisions through documentation, presentations or other communication channels. Communicates effectively across teams, proactively identifies challenges for projects and communicates these issues early to help course-correct.
• Relationship-Building - Achieves goals through effectively working with others. Has built trust by leading by example, adhering to deadlines, operating with empathy, and setting and managing expectations.

Essential Responsibilities

Base Building & Leadership Development (60%)

• Conduct base-building activities throughout the school year with high school students including but not limited to: school outreach, classroom presentations, one-on-ones phone banking, management of three school-­based chapter(s), developing and managing teacher ally relationships, and sustaining an active base of students at chapter(s) based on annual goals.
• Lead Long Beach’s leadership development programming through weekly student leader meetings centered on: skills building, political education, community building, and conducting consistent one-­on-­one member check-­ins.
• Lead Long Beach’s leadership development tracking, manage and oversee our membership goals, and member’s individual leadership development and trajectory through CFJ’s leadership pathways.
• Manage and implement Long Beach’s regional Distributed Leadership Model by recruiting and training a core group of members who will develop their own teams made up of high school youth who will work together to advance CFJ’s campaign and programmatic goals.
• Supervise a team of high school interns and build their leadership and organizing skills.

Campaign Organizing (30%)

• Support our local and statewide education organizing and campaign work through action research, coordinating campaign events, delegations with system leaders, and electoral organizing (including phone banking during elections).
• Participate in ally events and meetings to build and maintain CFJ’s visibility and community solidarity.

Organization-­wide responsibilities (10%)

• Participate in all grassroots fundraising campaigns and maintain a portfolio of individual and organizational prospects for solicitation.
• Participate in and be accountable to cross-­department committees, teams, and departments.
• Assume rotating meeting facilitation, notetaking and tech support roles and responsibilities as needed.
• Provide support and participation for organization-­wide and regional campaigns and events.

Other Responsibilities

Other duties as assigned.