Executive Director

Reports to

A dedicated and engaged Board of Directors, half of whom are women of color and identify broadly with the immigrant experience, support PLAN’s mission and staff. This includes regular meetings with the Board Chair.

Location

Phoenix, Arizona. We offer a flexible, hybrid work environment.

Salary

$95,000 - $110,000

The Role

Who We Are

The Phoenix Legal Action Network(PLAN) works in solidarity with the local immigrant community to reimagine justice in Arizona.  We are a small and growing nonprofit organization that has been providing free immigration legal services to keep families together and stop deportations since 2018.  Funding permitting, we hope to expand into housing defense in 2025.  

We also understand that legal services, while important, do not change the laws and systems that oppress and exclude immigrant communities. In recognition of these limitations, PLAN partners with local immigrant-led organizations to build community power and democratize legal information.  We also use storytelling to push back against anti-immigrant sentiment.

About this position

PLAN is looking for a leader with the ability and desire to engage in significant fundraising to ensure the sustainability of PLAN and to convert its mission and vision into solid strategies and actions that align with our core values.  The ideal candidate is an authentic, inclusive, and inspirational leader committed to equity and justice and centering the experiences of the immigrant clients and communities we work with.

Primary Responsibilities

  • Executive Leadership: Provide executive leadership & strategic direction to all staff. Serve as the public face for PLAN and enhance the organization’s trust and reputation in the community and with stakeholders.  Work closely with the board of directors and its committees.
  • Fundraising: Serve as PLAN’s primary fundraiser.  Develop and execute PLAN’s annual fundraising plan to advance PLAN’s mission and meet its strategic goals.  This includes cultivating and stewarding donors, writing grants, completing grant reports, attending donor and funder meetings, soliciting annual sponsors, planning and executing fundraising events, developing fundraising communications etc.
  • Financial & Organizational Management: Lead and manage PLAN’s financial operations and budget with the support of an outside accountant. Manage hiring of PLAN staff, contractors,and volunteers.  Ensure compliance withall licensing and laws. Manage PLAN’s website and social media.
  • Legal Services: Manage a small caseload. Ensure PLAN continues to provide client-centered, trauma-informed, sustainable, responsive, and effective legal services to our local immigrantcommunity.  Supervise at least one attorney.
  • Storytelling/NarrativeChange: Plan and execute annual immigrant storytelling event and accompanying digital story archive.  As PLAN’s capacity grows, explore expansion and development of our narrative change work.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

  • Passion for PLAN’s mission, vision, and values and interest in acting as PLAN’s ambassador in the community.
  • Attorney licensed to practice law in the United States. Must also be licensed to practice law in Arizona, eligible for admission on motion, or willing to obtain Arizona license within one year.
  • Reside in Arizona or willing to relocate to Arizona.
  • Travel to donor meetings, community events, court etc. will be required; must have reliable transportation.
  • Prior experience successfully fundraising with individual donors, businesses, and/or institutions.
  • Inclusive leader willing to listen tostakeholders and act on feedback.
  • Highly organized, detail-oriented, with ability to work in high-volume settings with limited resources.
  • Independent problem-solver with strong professional ethics.
  • Great teamplayer.  PLAN is a small organization and the ED (and other staff) wear multiple hats to meet the needs of our community.
     

Desired Qualifications

  • Professional proficiency in English AND Spanish. A person with professional proficiency can speak at a normal speed in the language and has a fairly extensive vocabulary but may require help understanding subtle and nuanced phrasing.
  • Reside in the Phoenix metro area.
  • 5+ years post-law school experience providing legal assistance to low-income individuals and/or communities.
  • Experience leading teams that center people’s humanity while ensuring accountability.
  • Experience with and/or interest in learning about movement lawyering and other areas of law to support our local immigrant community.
     

Candidates from Underrepresented Groups Encouraged to Apply:

Research shows that qualified individuals who identity as women, black, indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification.  PLAN welcomes and encourages all individuals who meet the “Required Qualifications” to apply if they believe they have the skills necessary to thrive in this role even if they do not have all of the “Desired Qualifications.”

In keeping with our organizational values, which include centering immigrant voices, we particularly encourage applications from those whose identities and lived experiences reflect the rich diversity of our immigrant community, including but not limited to, DACAmented immigrants, formerly undocumented immigrants, immigrants with only work authorization, U.S. citizens in mixed status families, immigrants with status, individuals impacted by the immigration deportation machine, and first-generation immigrants.

Compensation & Benefits:

This is a full-time, salaried position with a starting salary of $95,000-110,000, depending one experience. Benefits include:

  • Health, dental, and vision insurance.
  • One personal (1) day a month (use or lose).
  • Twenty (20) days’ vacation time annually(earned on a biweekly accrual basis).
  • Five (5) Days Medical/Sick Time annually.
  • All federal holidays observed.
  • Up to $1,500 annual individual professional development reimbursement.
  • Payment of annual bar dues for one state and annual membership in one professional association (e.g. American ImmigrationLawyers Association).
  • Mileage reimbursement for work-related travel.
  • Paid parental leave.
  • Bereavement leave.
     

Application Process & Timeline

This is an immediate opening.  Applications will be accepted & reviewed on an ongoing basis.  To apply, please submit a cover letter and resume to hiring@planphx.org.  The cover letter should be no longer than one page and should outline your commitment and passion to PLAN's mission and highlight the specific skills and experiences you possess that directly relate to the job requirements.

What to Expect After Submitting Your Application?

  1. Screening Interview: We will contact qualified applicants to schedule an initial screening interview.
  2. Interview with Hiring Committee: We will invite top applicants to an interview with the hiring committee.
  3. References & Paid Work Sample: To better assess the quality and style of an applicant’s work, wewill invite a final short list of applicants to submit references and aPLAN-specific work assignment.  Inrecognition of the time we anticipate each applicant to invest in completingthis assignment, we will pay all applicants (whether selected to move to thefinal interview or not) a stipend if they timely submit the assignment.  Candidates will retain all rights to theirwork.
  4. Final Interview: Finalists will be invited for a second-round in-person interview in Phoenix, Arizona. Reasonable travel expenses will be reimbursed.
  5. Final Decision: Finalists will be notified of the Board decision promptly thereafter.

Non-Discrimination Statement & Policy

The Phoenix Legal Action Network is enriched by the many experiences and perspectives of its board members, staff, volunteers, partner organizations, and other stakeholders.  We are committed in policy, principle, and practice to maintaining a safe and welcoming environment for people with diverse identities, providing an equal opportunity for all persons, and prohibiting discriminatory behavior.The Phoenix Legal Action Network prohibits discrimination in any of its activities or operations on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, sex or gender (including pregnancy, sexual harassment and other sexual misconduct), age, marital status, national or ethnic origin or ancestry, mental or physical disability, political belief or affiliation, veteran status, immigration status, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression (including transgender or non-binary identity), genetic information, and any other characteristic protected under applicable local, state, or federal law.  These activities include, but are not limited to, hiring and firing of staff, selection of Board members, volunteers and partner organizations, and provision of services.  Retaliation for reporting any such acts of discrimination is also prohibited.

Questions

Please do not hesitate to contact us at hiring@planphx.org.