Executive Director

Location: Staunton, Virginia (with regular travel throughout the Shenandoah Valley and Greater Appalachia)

Position Type: Full-time, Exempt

Reports To: Board of Directors

Salary Range: $60,000

Application Deadline: August 9th, 2026 for initial review, open until position is filled

About the Shenandoah LGBTQ Center

The Shenandoah LGBTQ Center is a community-based organization that strengthens the LGBTQIA+ community through advocacy, education, programs, and safe spaces throughout the Shenandoah Valley and Greater Appalachia. Through direct services, outreach, partnerships, and community-building efforts, the Center works to ensure that LGBTQ people of all ages can thrive as equal, healthy, supported members of society.

Founded with a commitment to equity, visibility, and care for rural LGBTQ communities, the Center provides support groups, community education, youth and housing support initiatives, health advocacy, affirming community spaces, and cultural programming designed to meet the unique challenges faced by LGBTQ individuals and families in rural Appalachia.

The organization values collaboration, community responsiveness, intersectional justice, accessibility, and relationship-centered leadership. The Executive Director plays a critical role in stewarding these values while guiding the Center into its next phase of growth and sustainability.

Position Summary

The Executive Director (ED) serves as the chief executive leader and public representative of the Shenandoah LGBTQ Center. Reporting directly to the Board of Directors, the ED provides strategic, operational, financial, and organizational leadership while advancing the Center’s mission, programs, and long-term sustainability.

The Executive Director will cultivate strong relationships across the Shenandoah Valley and beyond, working collaboratively with staff, volunteers, donors, community members, partner organizations, local governments, healthcare systems, educators, and advocates to strengthen affirming support systems for LGBTQ communities.

The ideal candidate is a visionary, relational, and community-centered leader with experience in nonprofit management, fundraising, coalition-building, and equity-driven organizational leadership. The Center seeks a leader who understands the complexities and opportunities of serving LGBTQ communities in rural and small-town environments and who brings a strong commitment to intersectional justice and collective care.

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic Leadership & Vision

• Advance and steward the mission, vision, and strategic priorities of the Shenandoah LGBTQ Center.
• Collaborate with the Board of Directors to establish organizational goals, strategic plans, and measurable outcomes.
• Lead the organization with a strong commitment to equity, accessibility, inclusion, and community accountability.
• Ensure that programs and services remain responsive to the evolving needs of LGBTQ individuals and families across the Shenandoah Valley and Greater Appalachia.
• Serve as a visible and trusted ambassador for the organization throughout the region.
• Build and maintain strategic partnerships with schools, healthcare providers, advocacy organizations, government agencies, businesses, and community stakeholders.
• Represent the organization publicly through speaking engagements, media interviews, coalition meetings, conferences, and community events.

Organizational & Staff Leadership

• Foster a healthy, collaborative, trauma-informed, and mission-driven organizational culture.
• Supervise and support staff leadership, including program managers, outreach staff, case management staff, and administrative personnel.
• Oversee recruitment, onboarding, evaluation, professional development, and retention of staff and volunteers.
• Support leadership development and encourage shared decision-making practices.
• Ensure effective communication and coordination across programs and teams.
• Promote workplace practices that prioritize sustainability, transparency, accountability, and staff wellbeing.

Fundraising & Community Engagement

• Lead fundraising strategy and revenue development efforts, including individual giving, grants, sponsorships, corporate partnerships, events, and campaigns.
• Cultivate and steward relationships with donors, foundations, government funders, and community supporters.
• Support development of annual fundraising goals and long-term sustainability planning.
• Partner with the Board of Directors in fundraising and external relationship-building.
• Strengthen the organization’s visibility and community engagement across the region.
• Support outreach efforts that increase access to affirming resources and services for underserved LGBTQ populations.

Financial & Operational Management

• Oversee the organization’s budget, financial planning, and fiscal management in partnership with the Board Treasurer as well as finance and accounting contractors.
• Ensure compliance with all grant requirements, legal obligations, reporting standards, and nonprofit regulations.
• Monitor organizational performance, program outcomes, and operational effectiveness.
• Oversee organizational systems including facilities, technology, risk management, and administrative operations.
• Support grant management, reporting, and program evaluation efforts.
• Ensure responsible stewardship of organizational resources.

Board Relations & Governance

• Maintain a strong and collaborative relationship with the Board of Directors.
• Support board development, strategic planning, committee engagement, and governance processes.
• Provide regular organizational updates, reports, and recommendations to the Board.
• Partner with the Board to strengthen organizational sustainability and community impact.

Preferred Qualifications

The Shenandoah LGBTQ Center recognizes that strong candidates may come from diverse professional, educational, and lived experience backgrounds. Candidates are encouraged to apply even if they do not meet every listed qualification.

Preferred qualifications include:

• Demonstrated commitment to LGBTQIA+ advocacy, equity, and community-building.
• Experience in nonprofit leadership, organizational management, or community-based program leadership.
• Experience supervising teams and fostering collaborative organizational cultures.
• Experience with fundraising, grant writing, donor engagement, and budget management.
• Strong relationship-building and public communication skills, especially public speaking, facilitation, advocacy, or coalition-building.
• Experience developing partnerships across diverse stakeholder groups, and responsiveness to the unique needs of individuals based on their experiences and social positions.
• Understanding of challenges facing rural LGBTQIA+ communities, including barriers related to healthcare, housing, transportation, education, and safety.
• Experience working within intersectional, anti-oppression, anti-racism, trauma-informed care, human-services, and community-centered frameworks. Previous experience managing and supporting Case Management workers is strongly preferred.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a dynamic and growing organization.
• Knowledge of nonprofit governance and working collaboratively with boards of directors.
• Lived experience within LGBTQIA+ communities is highly valued.
• Bilingual or multilingual skills are welcomed and encouraged.

Work Environment

The Executive Director position requires regular engagement throughout the Shenandoah Valley region, including evening and weekend community events, meetings, and organizational activities. This role includes both office-based and community-based work and may require occasional regional or statewide travel. The Shenandoah LGBTQ Center supports a human centered and flexible work environment for all staff that prioritizes well being, rest, and resilience.

Commitment to Equity & Inclusion

The Shenandoah LGBTQ Center is committed to building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive organization that reflects and serves the communities of the Shenandoah Valley and Greater Appalachia. We strongly encourage applications from LGBTQIA+ individuals, Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, transgender and nonbinary individuals, people with disabilities, multilingual applicants, and candidates from historically marginalized communities.

The Center is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic.

Application Instructions

Please submit:

• Resume or CV
• Cover letter describing your interest and qualifications

Applications should be submitted to: hello@shenlgbtqcenter.org with the subject title “ED 2026 Application”

Questions may be directed to the Board Chair, Paige Reed, at pmreed@marybaldwin.edu.