Grants Officer

BayLegal is Hiring - Grants Officer - Oakland, CA

Do you want to help to tell the story of how legal services can help end inter-generational poverty and address social injustice?  Help engage public and private funders in supporting BayLegal's mission to provide free civil legal services to low-income individuals and families in the Bay Area and remove the legal barriers to health, safety, and stability.  Join the largest poverty law firm in the Bay Area dedicated to fighting for the social safety net, breaking cycles of poverty and social inequality. 

Bay Area Legal Aid is on the front lines fighting for our clients' rights. Last year, BayLegal removed legal barriers to health, safety, and stability through representation, legal advice and information, referrals, community education, and advocacy for more than 75,000 low-income individuals and their families throughout seven Bay Area counties. Through our regional county offices, our mobile advocacy clinics, and our nationally-recognized Legal Advice Line, BayLegal prevents domestic violence and sexual assault, increases economic stability, protects consumers, expands access to healthcare, and prevents homelessness. If you love working with people and have a strong commitment to social justice, with a minimum of 3+ years' experience prospecting, evaluating and managing grant opportunities, we would love to talk with you.

About the Role: We are seeking an experienced, culturally sensitive Grants Officer with a strong commitment to social justice, to be a member of our Grants & Contracts Team.

Responsibilities: As a member of BayLegal's Grants & Contracts Team, the Grants Officer will: 

• Maintain a portfolio of grants and contracts, including federal, state and local cost reimbursable grants, as well as foundation and corporate grants;
• Helping to develop new proposals –researching new funding prospects and working with program staff and collaborative partners to prepare and submit applications for new and renewal funding;
• Monitoring and assuring grant and contract compliance, including working with program staff, collaborative partners and finance team to: monitor project deliverables and spending; develop and submit timely narrative reports and invoicing; processing contracts; coordinating and attending site visits with funders; and meeting any additional funder requirements;
• Establish, build, and maintain good relationships with funder contacts;
• Work closely with BayLegal's Finance Department to develop and modify grant budgets, ensure timely submission of invoices, monitor grant spending, and ensure timely and complete communication on all grant related issues;
• Maintain grants and contracts tracking system, records, files, and databases (Salesforce); and
• Assist the Director of Grants & Contracts and Executive Director with projects related to the strategic development of institutional funding support

Skills and Abilities:

• Passion for BayLegal's mission and possesses an ability to understand and enthusiastically articulate the goals and vision of a multi-disciplined poverty law firm
• Strong personal work ethic and ability to organize time, manage diverse activities, and meet critical deadlines with minimal supervision
• Ability to work well with colleagues and community allies in a variety of settings

• Excellent communication skills (oral and written)
• Strong analytical skills

Experience and Education:

• Has a minimum of three (3) years of experience prospecting and evaluating grant opportunities, submitting grant applications, managing a portfolio of grants, including government (federal, state and/or local) cost reimbursement grants or contracts and foundation grants, and/or managing direct services programs
• Experience developing, analyzing and managing budgets
• Experience analyzing programmatic data and business processes

• Experienced using fundraising software and understands the value of a data-driven fundraising process. Experience with Salesforce is preferred
• Experience and comfort working with marginalized and diverse populations
• A Bachelor's degree is required. Master's degree in non-profit management or related field is preferred.

Diverse candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

Compensation and Benefits:  We offer a diverse, family friendly environment, and competitive   compensation along with a generous benefits package which includes 100% employer paid medical, dental and life insurance for employees and 60% paid for dependents.  We also provide 100% paid long term disability and a 401k retirement plan after one year of employment with immediate vesting.  Our benefits package includes paid vacation, sick, floating holidays and comp time.

Applications: Bay Area Legal Aid thrives on our diversity and we are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to building a culturally diverse workplace and strongly encourage women, persons of color, LGBTQ individuals, veterans, persons with disabilities, and persons from other underrepresented groups to apply. Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled. Applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible. Please send separate cover letter, diversity statement (see below), resume, references, and writing sample to Human Resources at jobs@baylegal.org. Please reference "Grants Officer" in your application and subject line of your email.

In a separate page from your cover letter, please address the following:

Please note that your response to the prompt below will not be read by your interviewing hiring committee. To reduce potential bias, your name will be removed and your response to this prompt will be read and reviewed separately from the rest of your application. Feedback on your response will then be provided to the interviewing hiring committee for this position. Therefore, if there is any specific information that you would like the interviewing hiring committee to be aware of, please make sure to include that information in your cover letter, even if there is some duplication.

BayLegal’s clients are low- and very low-income members of our communities. They include the working poor, seniors, veterans, and people with disabilities. To ensure our organization is best serving these populations, BayLegal strives to promote an evolving set of behaviors and attitudes amongst our staff, as well as policies that enable us to work effectively  in all cross-cultural situations, with clients, with our coworkers, and with the community. We see this as a commitment to enhance the provision of our services to all clients; to raise the level of positive client outcomes; and to create an inclusive and respectful workplace in which differences are acknowledged and valued. 

How do you think your personal background or experiences, professional or otherwise, have prepared you to contribute to our commitment to cultural humility and diversity amongst our staff? Feel free to think broadly about your response to this question, applying various aspects of your life and personal experiences.