Community Partnerships Lead

At CFSC, our team is made up of people with different strengths, experiences, and backgrounds who share a passion for investing in the promise of Sonoma County. We are deliberate, intentional, and purposeful about the kind of culturally diverse team we are building.

If this resonates with you, we encourage you to read on to learn more!

About Community Foundation:

Community Foundation Sonoma County is a nonprofit organization established in 1983 and based in Santa Rosa, California. Led by a diverse board and a dedicated staff of 17, we manage charitable funds, lead grantmaking, and bring donors, nonprofit organizations, and local leaders together to address community needs across Sonoma County. Since our founding, the Community Foundation and our donors have awarded more than $325 million in grants.

Our Vision: A vibrant, just, and inclusive community for all.

Our Mission: We advance the power of people, ideas, and resources to solve Sonoma County’s most pressing problems.

Our Core Values:

• Leadership – We lead with courage and compassion, approach challenges with empathy and humility, and ensure that diverse community voices and perspectives are included in decision-making.
• Equity – Fairness and belonging are the lens through which we address pressing issues and disparities in our community, ensuring everyone feels valued, that their voice matters, and that they have what they need to thrive.
• Community – We are made for and by community—donors, nonprofits, and community members—enriched by the diversity of Sonoma County. We foster community through meaningful relationships; sharing resources and power, we cultivate transparency, accountability, and trust.

About the Position:

As a primary liaison between CFSC and the diverse communities of Sonoma County, the Community Partnerships Lead will play a key role in supporting the expansion of CFSC’s community-centered and collaborative impact models. The Community Partnerships Lead will manage and support opportunities for greater community engagement and collaboration internally and externally as a member of CFSC’s Community Impact Team. Externally, he/she/they will forge and steward relationships with current and prospective nonprofit grantees, coalitions, and other key partners throughout the community to increase CFSC’s visibility and champion the county’s most critical causes. They will elevate nonprofit resilience by providing resources, convening partners, and overseeing innovative solutions to nonprofit challenges. Internally, the Community Partnerships Lead will support grant writing as CFSC engages in fundraising through institutional partners. The Community Partnerships Lead will also support strategic evaluation, direction-setting, and grantmaking for the Community Impact Team.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

The following reflects the essential functions for this job but does not restrict the tasks that may be assigned. Leadership may assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time due to reasonable accommodations or other reasons.

Community Engagement & Communications:

• Convenes nonprofit leaders, sector groups, and other key stakeholders for greater collaborative impact in CFSC’s strategic impact areas.
• Supports with increasing CFSC visibility and strengthening its impact through messaging the work of the Community Impact Team in collaboration with the Communications Team.
• Organizes community advisory opportunities to ensure community voice is fully integrated into grant program design and implementation.
• Addresses requests from the nonprofit community for information and resources through thoughtful and clear communications.
• Support the development of stories that amplify the work of the Community Impact Team and its partners and promote broader understanding of local issues.

Program Innovation & Implementation:

• Designs and supports nonprofit capacity building and community leadership initiatives.
• Plans and facilitates productive convenings to inform grant programs and increase connectivity and resilience among partners.
• Builds strong community alliances through the thoughtful development of collaborative spaces.
• Drives program awareness and participation by initiating connection with groups across Sonoma County, especially marginalized groups such as monolingual non-English speakers.
• Engages in the grantmaking process through assisting the Senior Community Impact Officer in partner identification, review of grant proposals, analysis of impact, and assessment of alignment with Foundation priorities.
• Supports with the oversight of grant program budgets.
• Proactively engages in continuous learning related to best practices in philanthropy.

Strategic Development:

• Contributes to the development of program strategies and advocacy initiatives.
• Measures and evaluates the effectiveness of programs to inform future program goals and initiatives.
• Supports the synthesis and analysis of narrative information and data to demonstrate the impact of programs.

Supervisory responsibilities:

• This job has no supervisory responsibilities.

Skills and Qualifications:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skills, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Strong internal and external customer service ethic, personal warmth, and sincerity.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to manage several workstreams simultaneously and meet deadlines, while adapting to changing circumstances and adhering to high standards of personal and professional integrity, prior experience with complex project management.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work collaboratively and effectively with individuals of diverse backgrounds.
• Strong analytical and critical thinking ability.
• Experience in policy work; diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.
• Written and verbal Spanish language fluency required.
• Prior relationships with nonprofit organizations in Sonoma County a plus.

Experience

Minimum of five years of nonprofit or related experience demonstrating a commitment to community impact through professional and/or personal experience, including at least two years supporting trust-based philanthropy, collaborative impact through community engagement, or similar work.

Education

Post-secondary education in a related field is preferred; however, equivalent professional experience in a similar or related role will also be considered.

Working Conditions:

General office conditions apply. The noise level in work environment is usually quiet to moderate. Work indoors performing administrative duties.

Physical Demands:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Movement within an office environment.
• Ability to write by hand and use keyboard extensively to perform general office functions.
• Ability to communicate by speech and hearing continuously.
• Visual acuity needed for close detail work and computer use.
• Ability to sit for extensive periods of time.
• Ability to bend and pick up items occasionally.
• Ability to lift 10 pounds occasionally.
• Quiet to moderate noise environment.

Salary Range:

$95-$105K

How to Apply:

Applications open on December 17, 2025. Interested candidates may submit an application here by January 9, 2026. All questions related to this opportunity should be directed to jobs@sonomacf.org.

• Retirement savings plan, including employer contributions
• Comprehensive insurance coverage, including medical, dental, vision, and life
• Generous time-off benefits, including holiday, vacation, and sick days
• Employee assistance and referral programs

Spanish and English written and spoken fluency required