Programs Manager, Chicago - Guitars Over Guns

Description

COVERAGE AREA:
Westside, Northwest


START DATE:
July 1st (or later)


ABOUT GUITARS OVER GUNS:

Guitars Over Guns Organization (GOGO) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides music education and mentorship by pairing students from vulnerable communities in Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York with professional musicians.

Our goal? To help them overcome challenges, discover their voice, and unleash their potential as future leaders. Since 2008, we've positively impacted over 9,700 students, boosting academic achievement and engagement.


ABOUT THE ROLE:

As the Programs Manager at Guitars Over Guns, you will play a pivotal role in ensuring the success of our school programs.

Your key responsibilities include cultivating strong relationships with school staff and mentors, overseeing the seamless implementation of our GOGO curriculum, and being a driving force behind programmatic excellence.

We are on the lookout for a proactive and organized leader who thrives on taking initiative and supporting their teams.

You'll do this through regular communication of business updates and crucial information to your team, fostering a collaborative and informed environment.

Reporting directly to the Chicago Program Director, the Programs Manager will execute high-level administrative functions, contributing significantly to the growth and execution of our after-school and community-based initiatives.

Your intuitive problem-solving skills, coupled with a positive "can-do" attitude, will be instrumental in overcoming any challenges and achieving success.

The Chicago region operates 18 programs from Chicago to the Waukegan area which serves 500 youth.

Program Managers directly manage between 4-8 of the 18 program sites, which includes approximately 32 independent contractors and 150 youth, work in collaboration with the wider organization to make sure every site in the region is set up for student success.

We pride ourselves on our office culture that values a sense of humor, collaboration, and curiosity, so come join our small, close-knit team where the "youth first" mindset forms the core of our work.

POSITION PRIORITIES:

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Site Coordinator (SC) oversight: Each of our program locations is assigned one SC (similar to a Team Leader) who is a member of our Mentorship team that also provides on-the-ground leadership and logístical support. The Programs Manager oversees SC coaching and development for their respective sites. PMs are responsible for planning and running biweekly SC meetings throughout the school year, providing SCs with training, updates and site to site collaboration.
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In-School Coordinator (ISC) oversight: Our ISCs are Public School educators and administrators who support the logistics, recruitment, and academic coaching at each of our school-based programs. The Programs Manager oversees ISC program support and Admin comms at their respective sites.
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Student experiences and events: Manage logistics for student experiences and field trips with school partners, students, families and mentor teams.
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Data management:Maintain data-driven approach to improving program and student outcomes within internal Guitars Over Guns and external donor systems including Salesforce, Hello Insight, Asana, Cityspan, Bloom Growth, etc., to make informed decisions regarding program quality.
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Program observations and coaching: Conduct site visits and observations during after school hours using tools and resources provided by the organization (in salesforce). Leverage data to inform coaching plans for mentors and site teams using curriculum/session flow execution and fidelity. Guide each program site to ambitious musical, positive youth development and academic outcomes.
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Communicate effectively: Maintain the connection between the leadership team and mentors; establish and maintain a strong organizational culture.


NECESSARY QUALITIES:

• Passionate about education, the arts and community impact
• Able to manage multiple projects and deadlines at once
• Technologically savvy; comfortable learning new software
• Detailoriented
• Comfortable working independently and taking leadership

DESIRED EXPERIENCE:

• Knowledgeable about systemic barriers facing youth of color and youth from lowincome backgrounds
• Prior experience in arts administration or the education field
• Prior experience overseeing team projects or leading teams
• Experience in program management
• Prior musical experience as a performer or with an arts organization
• Prior experience with Salesforce, Asana and Google Workspace desired but not required

WORK DEMANDS:

• Willingness to work some weekends and evenings as needed based on program schedules, events and partnership opportunities
• Able to travel independently to various programming sites around Chicago frequently during work hours
• All Guitars Over Guns employees are required to complete a Level II background check through CPS Public School