ORGANIZATION HISTORY

Together with communities, FoodCorps connects kids to healthy food in school.

The seeds for this field-leading nonprofit were planted on Earth Day 2009, when President Obama signed the Kennedy Serve America Act into law, opening the opportunity to engage AmeriCorps in building a more healthful and equitable food system for kids. After an initial meeting that day, six co-founders launched a community planning process to design FoodCorps, a national organization that was shaped by thousands of local voices according to their needs.

In the decade since its inception, FoodCorps has grown to a nearly $20M annual budget, accelerated the careers of 1,200 emerging leaders, reached almost 1 million students, demonstrated that hands-on learning can triple fruit and vegetable consumption, and secured lasting policy change to advance its mission. 

Today, FoodCorps partners with schools, districts, and community organizations to place teams of well-trained AmeriCorps service members who support students with educational experiences with food that advance their health, well-being, and sense of belonging. The organization also advances district-wide visions for food education and healthy school meals, and advocates for policies that achieve systemic change.

POSITION OVERVIEW

FoodCorps seeks an exceptional organizational leader to assume direct responsibility for managing this $20M, 300-person national nonprofit as it operationalizes a new strategic plan, embodies its commitments to equity and justice, and pursues place-based and systemic progress toward an ambitious but achievable 2030 goal: a future where every child in America has food education and nourishing food in school.

Reporting to the Co-Founder and CEO, the President will be the organization’s most senior internal leader. In this co-leadership model, you will focus the bulk of your attention internally, giving the organization the outstanding management and culture-building that will enable its best work. The President will be responsible for managing the implementation of FoodCorps’ strategy, leading the organization’s Executive Team, and providing oversight, presence, and decision-making that will powerfully shape the next stage of FoodCorps’ culture, budget, and operations. The Co-Founder and CEO will focus most of his attention externally, with an emphasis on donor and partner relations, communications, policy advocacy, Board work, and strategic initiatives that advance  FoodCorps’ 2030 Goal.  

This is a full-time position, preferably based in one of FoodCorps’ offices (New York, Portland, or DC), and requiring post-COVID travel estimated at up to 25% time.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Co-lead the enterprise with the CEO, holding direct responsibility over internal management of the FoodCorps organization and its financial, operational, and programmatic vitality 

• Lead the Executive Team, setting composition, purpose, priorities and outcomes

• Manage senior functional leaders and ensure cross-departmental collaboration

• Collaborate with the Board to address the organization’s biggest challenges 

• Cultivate an organizational culture of impact, belonging, learning, and care

• Oversee implementation and evolution of the Just FoodCorps equity framework

• Oversee implementation and evolution of FoodCorps’ strategic plan 

• Engage in external-facing work, including partner and donor relations

WHO YOU ARE

 You are an accomplished organizational leader who is ready to take the helm of a high-potential organization, invest for the long term, and bring it to a new level of maturity, impact, inclusion, and financial and operational sustainability.

You excel at building and leading high-functioning senior teams.

You are adept at managing through change and do this by centering equity, and providing clarity, inspiration, and cultural leadership to a diverse and decentralized staff.

You are thoughtful and confident in making hard decisions, and recognize the critical importance and interdependencies of revenue, impact, and operations.

You are a model of leadership that advocates for, and generates specific support that works toward eliminating race, socio-economic status, and other differences as predictors of success.

You get energy from engaging with a diverse array of stakeholders: funders, school district leaders, elected officials, staff at all levels, and AmeriCorps members.

You bring lived experience that connects you to FoodCorps’ social justice mission, and professional experience that is relevant to the threads of FoodCorps work. You pursue the following in ways that advance justice and anti-racism, both within FoodCorps and in its external impact:

• Partnering with schools and districts in multi-year efforts to elevate food education and student nutrition;

• Accelerating the professional trajectories of the AmeriCorps leaders deployed in those efforts, especially young BIMPOC professionals pursuing careers in food education and school nutrition;

• Leveraging its place-based accomplishments and its network of alumni advocates to achieve policy change at the state and federal levels; and

You thrive in collaborative environments and are prepared to navigate shared leadership with a Co-Founder and CEO.

You excel in the self-awareness, relationship skills, managed ego, and commitment to transparency and mutual growth that this alliance will require.

KEY SKILLS

You Lead Toward a Vision:

• Guiding a large organization through change with clarity and purpose

•  Embedding values and practices of anti-racism and anti-oppression in institutions

• Mobilizing colleagues to set and achieve ambitious goals and measurable results

• Spearheading strategic and operational planning with rigor and inclusion

• Inspiring people inside and outside the organization toward FoodCorps’ mission

You Are a Courageous Manager:

• Attracting stellar senior leaders and facilitating their collaboration and growth

• Cultivating trust, curiosity and agency across teams and up and down a hierarchy

• Making or managing hard strategic choices about people, program, and money

• Bringing maturity, pattern recognition, and sound judgement to tough issues

• Managing power intentionally and shifting agency to those closest to the work

You Foster a Culture of Belonging and Learning:

• Building and developing high-performing leadership teams

• Creating authentic and trusting relationships with people across an organization

• Setting a tone of self-awareness, learning, humility, integrity, and feedback

• Showing resilience and problem-solving in the face of obstacles and ambiguity

QUALIFICATIONS

• 10+ years of experience in related fields (education, school nutrition, leadership development, advocacy, food systems, social justice; experience working with or within school systems is especially valuable)

• Track record of professional growth in positions of increasing responsibility, including senior management experience in a complex organization

HOW TO APPLY

Applications will be accepted until our ideal candidate is identified. To be considered, submit your résumé, cover letter, and any additional application materials to include salary requirements through our hiring site at http://foodcorps.hiringthing.com/. Please note: If uploading your application materials, PDF format is best.

Because we prioritize the health of communities and kids, FoodCorps has decided to require COVID-19 vaccination for staff and service members, to the extent permitted by applicable federal, state and local law. We came to this decision after much discussion and consultation and recognize that some people and partners might have to make tough decisions because of it. More information about this requirement and the exemption process to apply for a legally-required exception to the vaccination requirement will be provided during onboarding, should you receive a job offer from FoodCorps.

FoodCorps pays salaries that are competitive with nonprofits of our budget size and geographic location and offers generous vacation and medical benefits, 401(k) matching, professional development funds, and a sabbatical policy. This position is an officer role with a salary range of $184K - $216K. Base salary may be adjusted based on geographies that have a higher cost of living.

People of color, people with disabilities, veterans, and LGBTQ candidates are strongly encouraged to apply. FoodCorps is committed to a diverse workplace, and to supporting our staff with ongoing career development opportunities. FoodCorps is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate in its employment decisions. FoodCorps provides reasonable accommodation to applicants and employees as required by law.

Applicants with disabilities may request reasonable accommodation at any point in the employment process.