Social Justice Program Manager

Job Title: Social Justice Program Manager

Reports to: Director of Education

Type: Full-Time

Location: Lowell, MA

About UTEC Inc.:

UTEC’s promise is to ignite and nurture the ambition of our most disengaged youth to trade violence and poverty for social and economic success. UTEC’s outcomes-focused model begins with intensive street outreach, reaching proven high-risk youth where they’re at. UTEC engages youth in workforce development and educational programs and provides mental health services and intensive case management. Social justice and civic engagement are embedded in all programming. For more info, please visit .

UTEC is committed to its vision for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion which pledges to honor the lived experiences and expertise of individuals; create community and celebration of cultures; challenge all forms of oppression; and embody a culture that leans into discomfort and recognizes it as a growth opportunity. UTEC is dedicated to fair and equitable compensation practice, the health, mental health, and overall well-being of young adults and staff and to creating an environment that supports work-life balance and the individual and professional growth of all.

The Social Justice Program Manager will be responsible for facilitating engaging learning experiences and opportunities for young adults to develop transferable skills, as well as foundational concepts of Social Justice and Organizing. In this phase of programming young adults will explore social justice related topics that impact their communities and begin to formulate their identity as a part of their community.

The Social Justice Program Manager will also oversee projects like the youth-led candidate forums, community responses to violence, and will act as UTEC’s liaison to local and statewide coalitions like the Mayor’s Youth Council and more.

Key Responsibilities:

• Self & Community Awareness (My Story Matters, My Community is worth learning about, I have experiences that connect me to justice work.)
  • Support young adults in their transition from Transformational Beginnings to Workforce programming by building community and culture
  • Create opportunities for young adults to learn and grow transferable skills, specifically the UTEC Emotional Intelligence Competencies
  • Support young adults in their identity development and understanding their strengths and areas of growth
  • Exposure to real community role models, organizers, youth leaders, stories to help youth connect their own lived experiences to larger social issues, and expand the sense of what they can become.
  • Understanding family & cultural identity through storytelling and community history

• Leading and Problem Solving
  • Support young adults in their identity development as someone who can help their community not just observe it.
  • Help young adults build skills in facilitation, advocacy, & organizing to show them they can lead.
  • Support young adults in identifying and choosing community issues to address and create a plan of action.
  • Support young people in the implementation of plans of action.
  • Foster an environment and culture of showing up for each other.

• Changemakers with Power
  • Significant understanding of politics, government, and nuance of social justice topics
  • Participate and support UTEC organizing and advocacy events such as speaking in support of policies and bills, attending site visits and speaking to legislature
  • Support young people in identifying areas or organizing that meet their interest
  • Support young people in project management and following through on action plans
  • In partnership with Policy Manager & Senior Director of Policy, co-organize annual candidate forums

• Create and maintain strong partnerships with organizations engaging in organizing work
• Identify and train organizations that are able to provide an internship opportunity for Enterprise level young adults
• Uphold UTEC’s Standards of Accountability and restorative practices to support young adults in growing social emotional and positive decision making skills
• Track and report attendance via weekly attendance
• Consistently log all data required by program and grants
• Report to grant and funders progress and barriers of Organizing program
• Participate in UTEC’s activities and celebrations such as, Friday Workshops, Circles and House Meal
• Willing to travel to UTEC’s 3 locations, Lowell, Lawrence, and Haverhill to lead workshops and programming.
• Willingness to flex hours for weekends and evenings as organizing and State House events arise.

Required Skills/Abilities:

• Special interest in building power among low-income people of color to fight for social, economic and racial justice.
• Strong knowledge of organizing methods and approaches
• Comfort with social media and digital communication
• Project management
• Facilitation
• Positive youth development
• Curriculum and agenda development
• Coaching and coachability
• The ability to laugh at one’s self is a must
• Ability to thrive and be productive in a high-energy and youthful environment
• Bilingual (English/Spanish) preferred

Education and Experience:

• Two or more years of experience of direct service work with youth
• Advanced understanding of restorative justice and transformative justice practices
• Lived experience relative to the young adults at UTEC is a plus
• Previous experience organizing youth led movements and groups
• Excellent oral and written skills
• Facilitation skills
• Advanced level of curriculum writing and implementation

Physical Requirements:

• Prolonged periods sitting at a desk and working on a computer
• Must be able to lift up to 25 pounds at times
• Able to travel as needed.

Compensation:

$65,000 plus benefits . UTEC offers a competitive benefits package that starts with 3 weeks of vacation plus a week off between the Christmas and New Year holidays, 12 holidays, 10 sick days, 2 personal days, and 3 bereavement days, as well as health, dental, and vision insurance starting day one. We also offer life insurance, first-time homeowners down payment assistance, cost-of-living increases, a paid sabbatical after three years, and a 401K retirement plan with up to $2,000 savings match. See more about our benefits here .

UTEC provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or genetics. In addition to federal law requirements, UTEC complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location where the company has facilities. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.