Project Associate – Strategic Projects and Initiatives, State Fiscal Policy
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) is a nonpartisan research and policy institute that advances federal and state policies to help build a nation where everyone — regardless of income, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, ZIP code, immigration status, or disability status — has the resources they need to thrive and share in the nation’s prosperity.
CBPP combines rigorous research and analysis, strategic communications, and effective advocacy to shape debates, affect policy, and inform effective implementation both nationally and in states. It works closely with a broad set of national, state, and community organizations to design and advance policies that promote economic justice; improve health; broaden opportunity in areas like housing, health care, employment, and education; and lower structural barriers for people of color and others in communities that continue to face systemic barriers to opportunity. CBPP promotes policies that will build a more equitable nation and fair tax policies that can support these gains over the long term. CBPP also shows the harmful impacts of policies and proposals that would deepen poverty, widen disparities, and worsen health outcomes.
About Our State Work
CBPP’s work at the state level is multifaceted. A central component is the State Priorities Partnership (SPP), a network founded and coordinated by CBPP that includes independent state policy organizations in 40 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. SPP is led by a steering committee made up of some Partnership directors as well as other key staff from Partnership groups. CBPP and the SPP groups are known for their capacity to blend rigorous, timely analysis with effective communications and strategic capacities that help them drive policy impact at the federal and state levels. SPP groups work to build deep, long-lasting, collaborative partnerships with state-level organizations and constituencies — including organizing and community groups, and people with lived experiences of racism and other forms of discrimination, poverty, housing instability, and health inequity — to ensure that those most affected have a central role in setting policy goals and strategies for achieving those goals.
CBPP’s State Fiscal Policy (SFP) division works with the SPP network to promote tax, budget, and economic and health security policies at the state level. SFP provides support to SPP groups in areas including organizational development and fundraising, technical assistance on policy issues, and communications and advocacy campaign assistance. SFP also promotes sound state fiscal policies through independent research and analysis and effective communications, informing state and national policymakers, advocates, the media, and others on state fiscal conditions and key policy issues.
CBPP is hiring a Project Associate who supports several ongoing regrant projects and other initiatives within our SFP division. These include (but are not limited to) initiatives that support immigration rights, economic security, criminal justice reform, and state tribal policy. The associate provides operational and strategic support to program officers/managers and other colleagues to ensure projects are run effectively and efficiently, deliverables are met, and grantees and other state partners are supported. The Associate will also play a leading role in developing and implementing cross-team systems and processes that help SFP communicate and run more effectively.
The Project Associate sits on SFP's Strategic Projects and Initiatives team (SPI) and reports directly to the SPI team lead but will also work closely with other teams such as our Network Philanthropic Engagement, Network Organizational Effectiveness, and Operations teams.
Responsibilities:
- Supports regranting and reporting processes, including requesting and collecting grantee proposals, documenting grantees’ progress on grant deliverables (for example, tracking written products, and press and social media activity), and assisting with writing grant reports and other updates for funders.
- Organizes, schedules, and provides logistics support for webinars and shared learning/cohort calls for grantees.
- Assists with programmatic and logistical planning for in-person convenings with grantees and funders.
- Ensures cross-project communication and coordination with team and division staff.
- Collects and shares resources and information such as case studies, reports, and webinars with grantees.
- Helps with coordination of consultant contracts, invoices, and payments.
- Identifies and proposes new ways to create more effective and efficient processes for operations and project management of work.
- Provides intern mentorship.
- Acts as a thought partner to program officers (PO) in overall project management, curriculum design, agenda development, and work planning; supports PO in attending to key priorities and completing work in a timely and effective manner.
Qualifications:
- 1-2 years of full-time work experience in operations and/or project management.
- Highly organized, attentive to detail, and able to manage multiple tasks for different projects/supervisors (often on a time-sensitive basis).
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Demonstrated ability and interest to manage and improve processes that involve multiple stakeholders.
- Detailed knowledge of and proficiency in Microsoft Office productivity applications, including Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint. Experience working with Salesforce or similar databases desirable.
- Demonstrated commitment to reducing poverty and advancing racial equity.
- Relevant experience and exposure to project management, philanthropic, and/or public policy research and advocacy organizations through other work or internship experience highly desirable.
The Center is operating on a hybrid work schedule that includes at least two days per week in-person at our D.C. office. We will consider remote candidates for this position if they are open to periodic travel to our office in DC.
This position reports to Deputy Director, Strategic Projects and Initiatives
Terms of Employment: Full-time; exempt.
Bargaining Unit Status: This is a bargaining unit position.
Compensation: Salary commensurate with experience; excellent benefits (including health insurance, vision and dental coverage, life and long-term disability insurance, retirement, MERP, and DCAP), and generous vacation, sick leave, and holiday schedules.
Please upload a cover letter and resume. In your cover letter, please include a discussion of what draws you to the mission of the Center.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities is an Equal Opportunity Employer that values and welcomes diversity in the workplace and strongly encourages all qualified persons to apply regardless of race, color, age, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, credit information, pregnancy or parental status, family responsibilities, personal appearance, creed, military or veteran status, religion, ancestry or national origin, union activities, disability, or other status protected by applicable law.