Executive Director, Houston Office

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Tahirih Justice Center is a national, non-profit organization that supports immigrant women and girls seeking safety and justice. Our holistic, interdisciplinary model for service combines free legal and social services with bridge-building policy advocacy, and research-based training and education. We amplify the voices of survivors in communities, courts, and Congress to create a world where women and girls enjoy equality and live in safety and with dignity. Tahirih’s 120 employees work from offices in the DC Metro Area, Baltimore, Houston, Atlanta, and the San Francisco Bay Area.

The Houston Office opened in 2009 to serve immigrant women and girls fleeing violence in the Greater Houston- Galveston area. The team of 25 provides legal and social services; conducts robust local advocacy and community engagement; and provides expansive training, education, and technical assistance on both the regional and national levels. To learn more about Tahirih Justice Center and its work in Houston, please visit: https://www.tahirih.org/.

Tahirih is seeking a new Executive Director for the Houston Office to lead in the management, growth and financial sustainability of the program office, and represent the organization externally. The Executive Director will join an exceptional national leadership team and lead and nurture a highly talented regional team in: providing critical legal and social services to immigrant women and girls fleeing violence; developing and executing a regional advocacy strategy for policies supporting the community Tahirih serves; collaboratively raising approximately $4 million annually and managing a $3 million regional budget; and actively representing Tahirih in the communities it serves. This is a highly visible, public-facing role.

The ideal candidate will have experience leading teams in social services and legal advocacy or a related field and will be a proven senior manager with the public communication skills to nurture and build external coalitions and funding partnerships, and the interpersonal communication skills to drive cohesion and alignment internally. The preferred candidate will be skilled in translating the vision of the national organization to the unique context of Texas and empowering the Houston team to execute programs that create lasting impact for women and girls in the region. The ideal candidate has a nuanced equity lens that informs strategy, funding relationships, programming and management.

The search is being conducted with assistance from Yuniya Khan, Erica Nicole Griffin & Callie Carroll of NPAG. Please see application instructions at the end of this document.

OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES FACING THE HOUSTON EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

The Executive Director of a Tahirih office works towards a culture of lived values in supporting the strategy- setting, management, growth and financial sustainability of the office and represents the organization externally. The Executive Director ensures that core programming – holistic direct client services, training, outreach, advocacy, and policy – is of the highest quality, and aligns with Tahirih’s mission, values, and the needs of the community Tahirih serves. The Executive Director works closely with national and local staff to embed efficient, effective processes that allow the office to meet national and local organizational strategic goals. The Executive Director leads in the efforts to cultivate and maintain a diverse, engaged client base, and seeks to create and foster diverse revenue streams. Reporting to the Chief of Programs, the Executive Director will:

Manage, nurture, and lead an exceptionally dedicated and talented local program office team. The Executive Director will work with the Deputy Director to oversee a local program office team consisting of attorneys and legal advocates, social service providers, advocacy staff, office administrators, and development team members. The Executive Director will keep the values of the organization at the center of its work and promote a collaborative, consultative, inclusive, and equitable environment to motivate and inspire staff to work collaboratively, both internally and across the organization, toward Tahirih’s goals. To do this, the Executive Director will ensure ongoing communication and provide leadership, professional development, and mentorship while deploying resources efficiently to meet ambitious annual goals for service to clients. This work will also include providing ongoing support to staff who are vulnerable to or are experiencing vicarious trauma through their work at Tahirih.

Provide overall vision-setting and strategic leadership of the Houston office. The Executive Director will lead the Houston team to develop and execute strategic goals, objectives, policies, and processes for the provision of client services that align with the national organization; address the unique context of Texas and the Houston area; and empower the Houston team to create lasting impact on the communities it serves in the region. The Executive Director will enable and support local staff leadership to accomplish client services goals and provide thought partnership and leadership to enhance Tahirih’s regional pro bono relationships.

Build relationships with existing donors and funders and work with development staff to identify new areas of support. In collaboration with regional and national development team members, the Executive Director will steward the local program office’s annual budget and create a comprehensive strategy for increasing revenue to ensure ongoing strong financial support. The Executive Director will supervise full-cycle fundraising efforts, including: identifying and cultivating new funders; writing case statements, letters of intent and grant proposals; growing and supporting the local Advisory Council; and hosting annual fundraisers. The Executive Director, with the National Grants Manager and the local development team, will engage strategically to seek and retain foundation, federal, and state grants aligned with Tahirih’s work.

Represent Tahirih actively to the communities it serves. The Executive Director will serve as an effective and responsible spokesperson for Tahirih, clearly and accurately speaking for the organization at community and public events and in the media. The Executive Director will increase public awareness of Tahirih’s work and issues it addresses and strengthen the organization’s reputation as an impactful leader and advocate in the field. The Executive Director will engage with and continue to build and strengthen constituent relationships and partnerships in its local network.

Foster a strong inclusive and equitable workplace environment. The Executive Director will cultivate and support a diverse, inclusive and equitable environment in the Houston office. The Executive Director will work closely with national leadership and staff stakeholders to execute Tahirih’s DEI vision, strategy, and initiatives that span the programmatic work and internal operations of the organization. The Executive Director will possess a deep understanding of systems of oppression and the ways in which they impact the communities Tahirih serves. In addition, the Executive Director will lead and navigate the adoption of DEI principles and practices among staff and invite an equity lens across all internal and external efforts.

TAHIRIH’S DEI VISION AND PRACTICE

Tahirih Justice Center centers our work in the communities with whom we advocate, we challenge ongoing oppression and we create an inclusive environment that is free of violence, hate and harassment. We acknowledge historic marginalization of multiple systems of oppression which impact individuals at various - and oftentimes result in compounding - levels of harm. We practice inclusiveness in decision making through consultation with employees throughout the organization. Our core values speak to the world we are creating in which women and girls can enjoy equality and live in safety and with dignity. Because we honor the dignity and right to self-determination of the whole person, we are charged with reevaluating how we are best positioned to serve our clients and how we realize this driving principle among our workforce. A culture that recognizes and appreciates diversity, equity and inclusion principles can facilitate effective collaboration, create viable alternatives that lead to greater efficiencies, allow for the emergence of effective solutions, and prevent groupthink through encouraging different viewpoints.

We uphold a multi-directional approach within the organization which recognizes that those who hold positional leadership and all employees are critical partners in developing an inclusive culture. Management must possess diversity, equity and inclusion competencies to lead an engaged workforce. All team members must treat their colleagues with respect by listening to different viewpoints, opinions, thoughts and ideas and embracing a culture of inclusion. We seek leadership that is committed to further develop and expand cultural competencies, dispel stereotypes and build a work environment that is inclusive and based on mutual respect, tolerance and understanding.