White Bird is hiring an IDEA Director

POSITION: Director of Inclusion/Diversity/Equity/Accessibility

TERMS: Full-time, permanent employee. FLSA status: exempt

SALARY RANGE: $56,000 - $60,000, DOE

BENEFITS: Paid PTO and holidays, health and dental insurance, plus addt’l benefits

REPORTS TO: Executive Director

SUPERVISES: No supervisory responsibilities

White Bird, a dance-presenting nonprofit organization based in Portland, Oregon, is seeking a motivated, passionate, and professional individual to fill its full-time position of Director of Inclusion/Diversity/Equity/Accessibility (IDEA Director).

WHITE BIRD MISSION STATEMENT
White Bird is committed to bringing the best regional, national, and international dance companies to Portland and to fostering the growth of dance in the region. Through presenting established and emerging companies and choreographers, commissioning and co-commissioning new work, as well as collaborating with other arts organizations in Portland and the region, we are able to make these dance performances possible. White Bird strongly believes in making dance exciting, educational, equitable, and accessible to everyone, young and old, of all social backgrounds, and through contributed income and sponsorships, is able to facilitate outreach to schools and to keep ticket prices affordable. A passionate advocate for dance, White Bird strives to broaden audiences and diversify its programming through the lens of its Equity Commitment.

WHITE BIRD PROFILE
White Bird was founded in 1997 by Walter Jaffe and Paul King and, since 2021, has been led by Executive Director Graham Cole. To date, we have presented over 270 dance companies from around the world in 750 performances before a total audience of 525,000. Each season we present a subscription series as well as non-subscription performances. We have supported the growth of dance by commissioning 42 new works. We are committed to expanding the audience for dance through extensive community engagement activities. Through our innovative Equity initiative, the NEST (No Empty Seats Today) Program, we distribute hundreds of free performance tickets each year to Portlanders in need. We are a small team of devoted arts administrators, passionate about dance.

POSITION OVERVIEW

The IDEA Director works collaboratively to maintain existing relationships and build new ones between White Bird and our local community. This involves listening to stakeholders and working with our team to translate that feedback into action. The IDEA Director also supports the coordination of community outreach.

This position ensures that all our team members have the tools and language they need to work ethically and thoughtfully, while we collectively work to reach White Bird’s goals for growth and development.

The incoming Director joins White Bird at an exciting moment of transition and growth, and will find dedicated partners in action within our Staff and Board. We are seeking a social, optimistic, reliable, and service-oriented individual to join our team as IDEA Director.

SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES INCLUDE:

External Relationship Building and Community Outreach (60%)

• Build new relationships with local leaders throughout the greater Portland area, especially those representing underserved communities.

• Conduct surveys, interviews, and other forms of feedback collection.

• Synthesize collected information into written reports and sharable digital content.

• Together with the Communication team, convey the impact of White Bird’s outreach and programs to our stakeholders.

• Together with the Operations team, coordinate White Bird Team members and volunteers in the promotion and execution of all community engagement activities.

• Maintain an open presence at all White Bird shows and events.

Internal Team Support and Research (30%)

• Together with Patron Services and Communication Team members, develop strategies for attracting a diverse range of audience members to White Bird presentations.

• Together with the Executive Director, facilitate opportunities for White Bird team members to receive continued education on topics related to Inclusion/Diversity/Equity/Accessibility.

• Together with the Executive Director, identify and pursue opportunities for new funding to support White Bird’s NEST program and community outreach. This includes support from individuals, businesses, foundations, and government.

• Use an equity lens to provide editing and content suggestions for all staff.

General Support (10%)

• As needed, assist White Bird team members in meeting deadlines on special projects.

SUCCESSFUL APPLICANTS WILL HAVE MOST, IF NOT ALL, OF THE FOLLOWING:

• An appreciation for the Arts generally, and Dance specifically.

• An alignment with anti-racism, both in philosophy and in practice.

• Strong writing skills: the ability to draft accurate and professional copy, for both persuasive and informative purposes.

• Strong social skills: enthusiastically and repeatedly engaging in conversation with new people.

• Solid project, time, and budget management skills; an ability to progress multiple projects with varying timelines simultaneously, without sacrificing attention to detail.

• Experience working collaboratively within teams of 2-6 people.

• Familiarity with Microsoft Suite, as well as project management and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platforms. Experience with Asana and Salesforce, specifically, is a plus.

• A passion for and documented history of:

• Listening to and engaging with people from all walks of life and age groups.

• Collecting and using both objective data and informed opinions to evaluate the impact of one’s work.

• Applying an analysis of bias to one’s own work and the work of others.

• Recognizing, and acting counter to, discrimination on the basis of a person’s race, gender, age, religion, disability status, or any number of other personal characteristics.

WORK SCHEDULE AND LOCATIONS:

The time commitment for this position is 40 hours per week. The IDEA Director is expected to complete most of their work during business hours (no earlier than 9am and no later than 6pm), Monday through Friday. Some onsite night and weekend work is required to be present for White Bird performances and events. In White Bird’s 2024-25 Season, this translates into 18 evening performances on weeknights and weekends that are spread over 7 months, plus no fewer than 10 outreach activities and special events spread throughout the year. White Bird utilizes clear and consistent flex and comp time policies for after hours and weekend work.

Work will mainly take place at White Bird’s offices in downtown Portland. The IDEA Director’s presence is expected at many performances and community engagement events throughout Portland. During the first six months of employment a small (~10%) portion of IDEA Director’s time will be spent meeting with stakeholders and partners, both onsite at our offices and offsite. After the introductory period, this aspect of the position may grow to become a larger share of the Director’s work week. While White Bird employees are able to work remotely up to one day per week, this is primarily an in-person role.

APPLICATION PROCESS:

Please email a résumé, cover letter, and the contact information for 2-3 professional references to info@whitebird.org. In the cover letter, please include where you learned about the position.

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until the position is filled, and early application is highly recommended. The anticipated start date for this position is in mid-August 2024.

White Bird is Hiring our 2024/25 Season Load Crew Team Members

POSITION: Load Crew

TERMS: Part-time independent contractor.

SALARY RANGE: $60-100 per shift, plus one pair of complementary tickets to the show being loaded in or out, for each Load-In or Load-Out worked, up to a maximum of 4 tickets to each show.

BENEFITS: None

REPORTS TO: Executive Director

SUPERVISES: No supervisory responsibilities

WORK CULTURE

White Bird is a diverse and inclusive community. We are committed to creating environments where everyone can thrive. White Bird appreciates and welcomes diversity in all its forms and encourages candidates of color to apply. Dress code is safety conscious.

POSITION OVERVIEW

Specific Responsibilities Include:

Each Load shift will start or end at White Bird’s office in downtown Portland at 900 SW 5th Avenue. Venue locations, specific one to be communicated in advance, include:

• Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall – 1037 SW Broadway, Portland, OR 97205

• Lincoln Performance Hall – 1620 SW Park Avenue, Portland, OR 97201

• Newmark Theatre – 1111 SW Broadway, Portland, OR 97205

• Patricia Reser Center for the Arts – 12625 SW Crescent Street, Beaverton, OR 97005

• Keller Auditorium – 222 SW Clay Street, Portland, OR 97201

White Bird rents a moving van to transport items the few blocks between the office and the venue. A regular White Bird staff member drives the truck, and Load Crew walk those few blocks between the office and the venue. If the performance is farther away, Load Crew members are responsible for their own transportation between the office and the venue.

Load-In Assisting White Bird staff in transporting show materials from White Bird’s storage unit and office to the venue and arranging materials within the venue. Load-Ins take place on weekday afternoons the day before the opening performance, usually Tue or Wed. See schedule at end.

Load-Out Assisting White Bird staff in removing show materials from the venue and helping to place materials back in White Bird’s storage unit and office. Load-Outs take place at night starting immediately after the last performance ends, and may last as late as 2:00am. Load Crew is expected to stay until all work is complete or 4.5 hours after the shift started, whichever comes first. See schedule at end.

Both Load-In and Load-Out require:

• heavy lifting of items up to 50 pounds

• pushing fully loaded hand trucks (including up inclines)

• walking up and down staircases

• bending or squatting

Independent Contractors must be able to carry out all of these duties.

The safety of its staff, volunteers, and audiences is of the utmost importance to White Bird. All White Bird staff must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19, and willing to receive all future CDC-recommended vaccines or boosters with urgency, or alternatively present an objection to vaccination for medical or religious reasons. Staff must be willing to comply with all COVID-19 policies both at the White Bird offices and at performance venues; these policies are created in response to local, state, and federal mandates as well as industry best practices, and are subject to revision as the COVID-19 pandemic continues.

To Apply: Email info@whitebird.org