Seattle Arts & Lectures

Organization Overview: Since 1987, Seattle Arts & Lectures (SAL) has cultivated transformative experiences through story and language with readers and writers of all generations. SAL fulfills its mission through educational, public, and community programming, in person and online. Our public literary events bring the most talented and thought-provoking writers of our times to local stages. Our youth programs include Writers in the Schools (WITS) and the Seattle Youth Poet Laureate (YPL) program. WITS places local, professional writers in classroom residencies to inspire K-12 students to discover the power of their creative voices as they develop lifelong writing skills. Our YPL program elevates the powerful voices of local youth poets committed to community engagement, education, and equity in our region. 

SAL plays a unique role in our community by using the literary arts to invest in essential community conversations that are national in scope but local in scale. We offer thoughtfully curated experiences through interdependent programs that are intergenerational in nature, bolstering both emerging and established literary artists and inviting change and new perspectives in our audience. We believe these activities are essential to continuously and courageously revitalize equity, justice, and belonging.  

At SAL, we value a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture. We are committed to inclusion, diversity, equity, and access in all areas of our work. SAL is an equal opportunity employer. Individuals from all cultures and communities are warmly encouraged to apply. SAL strives to create and sustain a diverse and welcoming workplace. We believe that having a board of directors, staff, interns, and volunteers with diverse backgrounds enables us to better meet our mission and we strongly encourage applications from people of color and other historically underrepresented and marginalized groups. 

As a predominantly white-led organization, SAL is committed to actively working to dismantle white supremacy culture and institutional racism. Strong candidates will bring a diverse set of skills, characteristics, and experiences, both professional and lived. SAL strives to mitigate inherent biases that influence hiring practices by focusing on a holistic view of potential candidates and understanding that no single candidate will offer every desired skill and characteristic. The following offers an aspirational view of the ideal candidate profile; we encourage applications from candidates with a wide range of experiences and backgrounds, especially those from members of historically marginalized groups.