Here at Bitch, we’re in search of a perfect someone to join our tiny
but dedicated staff as a program director (full-time) at our office in
Portland, Oregon. Someone bright, with a deep talent and love for
analyzing media/pop culture from a perspective rooted in social/
economic justice, who’s passionate about both print publishing and
newer (to us, at least) forms like online, audio, and video, someone
excited about helping shape the future of the work we do at Bitch (and
who recognizes Bitch’s potential), someone committed to DIY/grassroots
operating, who understands Bitch’s role as both critiquing what’s
crappy and praising what’s good, who’s as excited about Bitch as a
multimedia organization as Bitch as a magazine…
All that and more. We’re asking for a lot, yes, but as the saying
goes, You’ll never get what you don’t ask for.
As we mentioned, we are a tiny staff (hi, there are five of us!).
We’re also at a critical moment. For the first time in our 12-year
history, we’re not in financial crisis (if you’re familiar with the
realities of independent publishing, you’ll know this is a huge
accomplishment). We’re beginning the process of infusing our work with
a set of core values and visions. And though we were originally
created as just a magazine, our work is evolving into a movement. In
many ways we have unlimited growth potential.
In other words, we have some exciting things happening, part of which
is bringing a new organization into being. This is what “nonprofit
gurus” call an organizational refounding – evolving, moving forward,
asking questions, creating space for new visions and voices.
So what would your role at Bitch be?
Right now we’re calling it a program director position, but this could
change depending on the outcomes of this search and our visioning
process. In many ways our program director will be like the editorial/
content director for the magazine (and may also be involved in our
website, but we’re hoping to create an additional position soon for
someone to oversee the site), but since we’re so much more than our
editorial content, the program director will also be responsible for
helping direct and maintain the vision of the organization, as well as
things like fundraising, outreach, attending events, doing some public
speaking, and just generally being a huge advocate for Bitch. In other
words, we’re looking for someone who’s a highly skilled editor and is
excited about helping us grow as an organization and reach our
potential.
Also, though we’ve grown tremendously since the magazine was
originally founded (we currently print about 50,000 copies of each
issue), we’re still very much a DIY operation and want to remain that
way. Our grassroots publishing model is integral to our work, so we’re
looking for someone who’s as committed to that as we are. We’re
looking for someone who will actively seek out ways of publishing
quality (critical, thoughtful, etc.) content while being mindful of
our tight budget, and is excited about helping us evolve into a
multimedia organization
Experience/skills that are essential to this position:
- At least three years features/developmental editing experience
- Strong familiarity with past and present trends in media and pop
culture
- Excellent communication and organizational skills
- Excellent grasp of grammar and spelling
- Stellar proofreading and copyediting abilities; familiarity with
Chicago style
- Proficiency with Excel, Word, and InDesign
- A strong capacity to multi-task, prioritize, and delegate
- Experience with web writing/editing
- Experience with video and podcasting technology a major plus
Personality traits/skill sets that are helpful in a small organization
like ours:
- Clear and frequent communication
- Ability to collaborate and share decision-making in small groups
- Ability to think creatively even when resources are tight
- Strong initiative, drive, and self-direction, ability to work
independently
- A sense of humor
As an effort to live out our commitment to systemic social change and
grassroots organizing, we encourage politically radical folks from
marginalized identities/backgrounds (people of color, people from poor
and working class backgrounds, queer-identified folks, etc.) and
others committed to anti-oppression, collective, grassroots organizing
work to apply.
In the interest of transparency, you should know:
- Regrettably, the only way to our office is up a set of about 15
stairs. We are not wheelchair-accessible.
- The job is based in Portland, Oregon, and unfortunately we’re unable
to cover moving expenses (unless you would like to start a fundraising
campaign for the cause).
Please include a cover letter that addresses these questions
(apologies if these seem like hoops, but we hope you’ll understand
that we have a lot riding on these decisions):
* What would you like us to know about you, and what you’d bring to
Bitch?
* How long have you been reading Bitch, and what has your perception
of it been through that time? (Please be honest; we’re not sensitive
and constructive criticism is always welcome.)
* In what ways do you identify (or not) with the word feminist?
* What do you think of both the title Bitch and the subtitle Feminist
Response to Pop Culture? (If you could change one/both of them, what
would you change them to?)
Salary and Benefits:
* $33,680/year, salary, exempt, paid medical/dental/vision
Closing date for applications: July 31
Anticipated start date: mid-August
Please email detailed cover letter (*answering all the questions,
please!*), resume and three references to publishing@b-word.org.
Please write “program director position” in the subject line.
Or mail to: B-Word, Debbie Rasmussen, 4930 NE 29th Ave, Portland, OR
97211
No phone calls, faxes, or drop-ins. No, no!
Labels: job
