Bronx River Art Center (BRAC) seeks applicants for its top leadership role of Executive Director. The position directs and advances all elements of the organization’s mission, strategy, programming, and operations. The Executive Director serves as the face of the organization, guiding both internal and external stakeholders towards a shared vision for the Bronx River Art Center, and for the field of multi-arts, non-profit organizations that provide a forum for community, artists, and youth to transform creativity into vision. For over 40 years this multi-arts center has filled the West Farms community of the Bronx with art and environmental experiences with regional, and national impact. BRAC engages our audiences with art that explores current social issues specifically related to local concerns such as career development, and environmental and racial justice. Our goal is to inspire and encourage participants, especially our teens and young adults, to take civic action to improve conditions within our Bronx communities.
BRAC is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion.
The Executive Director partners with the Board of Directors and the senior leadership team to build organizational health and vitality through adaptable systems and processes, diverse, reliable and repeatable revenue streams, inclusive and collaborative decision making, responsive and impactful programming, and community engagement.
The Executive Director oversees a staff of full-time and part-time team members working with other staff in reporting to city officials, institutional partners and community leaders.
Responsibilities include the following areas of specialization:
Operations and Financial Management
- Develop responsible, sustainable, and adaptable fiscal organizational practices through multi-year financial goals, annual budgets, internal controls and cash flow projections to ensure that the Bronx River Art Center is adequately resourced
- Develop and present the annual budget to the Board for approval; responsibly distribute the organization’s financial resources through the fiscal year
- Work with the finance support team to prepare quarterly and annual financial statements that accurately reflect the financial condition of the organization, and complete annual audited financial statements
- Ensure the organization remains in good standing and in compliance with all corporate, accounting, reporting, filings, record keeping, and HR related requirements and obligations
- Oversee the ownership and caretaking of the facility, and plan and fund capital maintenance and improvement projects
- Establish that the facility is a safe and functional environment for the staff, programs, and the public
- Execute all notes, agreements, and other instruments made and entered into and on behalf of the organization
Strategic Visioning and Thought Leadership
- Uphold a shared strategic vision in line with Bronx River Art Center’s mission, history, and values
- Create long-range direction and annual strategic goals with the Board of Directors, the senior leadership team, and including the input of the full staff and other relevant stakeholders
- Maintain a deep understanding of the current challenges and opportunities in the nonprofit arts education sector, and take a leadership role in advocating for (access to the arts and art education in West Farms and the Bronx with a regional, and national impact.
- Open and utilize lines of communication and collaboration with other non-profit arts & education institutions in the Bronx and New York City.
- Collaborate with other non-and for profit organizations in Bronx, New York City and beyond to drive innovation and creative problem solving in the field, and to strengthen and support each other
Board Collaboration and Fundraising
- Cultivate a transparent working relationship with the Board, keeping them engaged in the mission, as well as informed and updated around opportunities, liabilities, and successes
- Set a regular meeting calendar, and establish efficient communication and reporting mechanisms for the Executive Committee and Full Board
- Co-create a flexible and responsive committee structure to adapt with the organization’s changing and emerging needs
- Partner with the Executive Committee and the Governance/Nominations Committee to source a pipeline of Board and committee members to ensure diverse and fresh perspectives, and to bring to the group expertise that will support the organization in the execution of its mission
- Guide the Board in development activities so that they can effectively develop relationships with prospective donors and fund resources
- Build an annual institutional and individual giving plan with staff and board that includes ambitious grant-writing, major donor cultivation, earned income and an annual gala.
- Be the lead author of the story of the Bronx River Art Center, creating a compelling case to drive a marketing, communications and public relations strategy that will attract donors, partners and program participants to the organization
Program and Community Development
- Position Bronx River Art Center as a destination and resource in the West Farms, Bronx through partnerships, a dynamic marketing, communications, and public relations campaign
- Work closely with staff to provide oversight of program offerings, ensuring they are aligned with the core of the organization's educational mission and reflective of current best practices, and the community’s needs
- Develop systems and utilize tools to assess the impact of BRAC’s programs on its program participants and the community, while ensuring there is data-driven and rigorous program evaluation
- Engage with other community leaders to better understand and address the needs of the Bronx borough residents
- Create and implement an ongoing community engagement plan with the (marketing/external affairs staff member) that enters into conversation with mission aligned organizations around reciprocal programming, partnerships, and support
Culture Building and People Operations
- Foster a culture that invites everyone who touches the organization to contribute, and to feel welcomed, included, heard and connected
- Prioritize and embed equity, diversity, inclusion, and access in every area of the organization’s functioning, programming, and decision making
- Lead the staff - building and maintaining a cohesive and collaborative team environment, and creating the conditions under which the staff feel empowered to do their best work
- Create HR policies and systems that embody the organization’s values and support the leadership team in hiring, developing, and retaining a talented and diverse staff
- Facilitate a relationship between the Board and staff, ensuring there is an open communication, reciprocal learning, and alignment between all groups
Facility Management
- Experience in managing building maintenance by overseeing facility management staff support on the planning and scheduling of maintenance, repairs, and renovations.
- Assure safety and security by ensuring the safety and functionality of the building, including scheduling safety inspections and monitoring rules for opening and closing the building.
- Understand principles for Energy and water conservation through the implementation of a program to conserve energy and water
- Supervise facilities staff and contractors
- Manage financial resources and handle fiscal management activities with support staff such as procurement, contracts, and purchase orders
- Oversee the development of policies and procedures for building maintenance
- Assure building occupant’s needs and satisfaction, and promoting a safe and secure environment
In particular, we welcome applicants whose professional practice matches and amplifies the ethos of the Bronx River Art Center as a multi-arts institution to foster art and environmental experiences for Bronx communities, especially in and around West Farms. The applicant will lead the Bronx River Art Center’s mission and encourage our residents to participate and engage in creative activism with the Arts towards the revitalization and future of their neighborhood within the urban environment and the stewardship of our local natural resources, including the Bronx River.
The successful candidate will be embracing and developing the facilities and programming of a state of the art and educational space immersed in principles of equitable access to arts education and committed to community development and environmental restoration and climate resiliency.
Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree required; masters preferred. Master’s degree can be substituted for two years of professional experience in the field.
- Demonstrated experience in the non-profit sector (arts, education sectors) with extensive evidence of skills for leadership, nonprofit management, and fundraising. Minimum of 5 years experience.
- A clear agenda and artistic vision for arts education for the future as evidenced through professional work.
- A record of creative practice/work and knowledge of the arts with focus on experiences in leading, implementing or managing arts programs that contribute both to the advance of grassroots community-based projects and to broader impact and outreach.
- Demonstrated commitment and experience in developing community partnerships that support access to art education, social justice and sustainable futures.
- Demonstrated success in fundraising achievements, grant-writing, earned revenue, corporate sponsorship, individual donations.
- A demonstrated record of experience with board development.
- Success in leading nonprofits in multicultural, multilingual environments.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Demonstrated experience in developing art educational programming and exhibitions.
- Spanish proficiency.
- Experience with community outreach and recruitment activity related to a non-profits arts organization’ programming.
- Demonstrated experience in curriculum, and programming development.
- Direct knowledge of the Bronx, BRAC partners and work experience in NYC.
- Demonstrated interest in working with flexibility in a dynamic environment; ability to problem solve quickly and adapt to changing circumstances.
About Bronx River Art Center (BRAC)
Mission: BRAC is a culturally diverse, multi-arts, non-profit organization that provides a forum for community, artists, and youth to transform creativity into vision. Our Education, Exhibitions, Artist Studios, and Presenting Programs cultivate leadership in an urban environment and stewardship of our natural resources, including the Bronx River.
History: BRAC)was founded in 1987 to bring professional arts programming to a culturally underserved population. For over 40 years (including several years of arts programming under the umbrella of the first Bronx River Restoration project), this multi-arts center has filled the West Farms community of the Bronx with art and environmental experiences. BRAC engages our audiences with art that explores current social issues specifically related to local concerns such as career development, and environmental and racial justice. Our programs are designed to encourage our residents to engage in creative activism towards the revitalization and future of their neighborhood.
Overview of Programs
Education: We offer youth programs after school and on Saturdays. The classes are taught by professional artists, and they include Painting, Drawing, Cartooning, Ceramics, and more. Please refer to the education section for fees, fee waivers, and scholarships. We currently offer a free Teen Project Studio and MSCreate program as well.
Fee-based classes for adults are also available, as well as workshops for schools and community-based organizations.
Exhibitions: Our Exhibitions Program has become known for both its deft curatorial vision and its ability to produce ambitious, energetic exhibitions with ingenuity and immediacy. In recent years, we have exposed various paradigms of contemporary art to the litmus test of a local Bronx community and the cultural, economic, and social landscape that defines it. Our Exhibitions Program also provides a resource for artists and guest curators, by giving them a platform inside a reality that has not been fully acknowledged by academia or traditional institutions.
Presenting: Our year-round performing arts productions offer our local West Farms community an eclectic mix of cutting-edge talent from the Bronx and beyond. This series of interdisciplinary performances embraces popular, contemporary, experimental, and classically-inspired music, dance, performance art, and poetry. Additionally, our annual June Performing Arts Festival, “Bronx River Sounds," acts as a catalyst for emerging and established groups to showcase their work to a multicultural community in a comfortable and open setting.
Studio Space: Studio space is available to artists for up to two years, at below-market-value rates. BRAC’s non-living studios are accessible Monday to Friday, 10am to 10pm, on Saturdays from 10am to 6pm and Sundays noon to 6pm. Each open plan studio has a window or windows, vary in size from 250 to 400 sq ft. and range in price from $425 -$650. Artists are selected on artistic merit based on studio availability on an ongoing, rolling basis. The Artist Studio Program aims to create a creative environment where professional artists of all backgrounds can communicate with one another and the community while pursuing their own work.
Application Instructions / Public Contact InformationPlease submit the following to jobs@bronxriverart.org to be considered for the role:
1.) Letter of intent
2.) Curriculum vitae
3.) Contact information of three professional references
Applications may not be edited once they are submitted.
The BRAC Search Committee for Executive Director comprises members of the board of officers, staff and community representatives.
Application Deadline01/08/2025
