Advocacy and Public Education Senior Manager

Palestine Legal seeks a full-time Advocacy and Public Education (PubEd) Senior Manager to join Palestine Legal’s team to oversee the development and execution of effective advocacy campaigns and legal resources for external audiences.

Palestine Legal is a legal advocacy organization dedicated to protecting the civil and constitutional rights of people in the US who speak out for Palestinian freedom. Our mission is to bolster the Palestine solidarity movement by challenging efforts to threaten, harass, and legally bully activists into silence and inaction. Palestine Legal is committed to a movement lawyering approach, and we strive to put into practice our values.

The Advocacy and PubEd Senior Manager will oversee the multifaceted advocacy strategies that advance Palestine Legal’s mission to protect the movement for Palestinian rights, as well as the organization’s public education work. The position will manage collaboration between Palestine Legal staff, clients, partner organizations, and others to develop and execute effective campaigns in line with a vision and strategy that reflect our mission, values, and strategic priorities. It will also oversee the organization’s public education activities, including providing a strategic vision for legal resource production, managing public speaking and KYR priorities, tracking pub ed activities, and facilitating the publication of resources such as our end of year report, KYR materials, fact sheets, FAQs, etc. The position requires creative and strategic thinking, deep collaboration with colleagues and partners, a commitment to partnering with community and movement allies, powerful communications and management skills, comfort working in both grassroots movement and policy contexts, and a knack for writing and speaking about legal issues for lay audiences.

We are seeking a dynamic and visionary individual who can help shape our external engagement with different audiences. The ideal candidate will have in-depth experience developing and executing advocacy campaigns and developing resources for activists and decision-makers. They will be comfortable speaking to diverse audiences, and ideally have some experience developing Know Your Rights or other legal advocacy materials. They are passionate about equipping people with the legal, policy, and narrative tools to challenge the policies and structures that silence or ignore Palestinian and Palestine solidarity voices and experiences in the United States.

The position requires a high level of organization and planning; process-orientation; strategic thinking; impeccable attention to detail; exceptional communication and interpersonal skills; strong problem-solving instincts; demonstrated ability to write for lay audiences; significant management experience; a commitment to values-based organizational processes; and a strong commitment to inclusive leadership. Tell us your favorite ice cream flavor so we know you read the whole job description. The ideal candidate thrives in a small, dynamic, collaborative, and professional environment, is passionate about social justice issues and the Palestine issue in particular, and has exceptional organizational and interpersonal skills.

The strong preference is for the Advocacy and PubEd Senior Manager to be based in Chicago, New York, or the Bay Area.

This is an exempt position. Exempt employees are expected to work the appropriate and necessary time to complete key assignments and related tasks on schedule.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Develop multifaceted advocacy strategies that advance Palestine Legal’s mission to bolster the movement for Palestinian rights in collaboration with Palestine Legal staff and movement partners;
• Oversee the conception, development and implementation of complex short- and long-term advocacy campaigns that support our clients, cases, and/or projects, and manage staff to vision and execute campaigns to success, in collaboration with movement partners;
• Manage and further develop the pub ed program, including determining priority resource needs and public engagement audiences, tracking pub ed activities, and overseeing the publication of resources such as our end of year report, KYR materials, fact sheets, toolkits, FAQs, etc.;
• Build and maintain relationships with relevant community and movement partners/organizations and move collectives towards shared goals;
• Manage Palestine Legal advocacy and pub ed staff, and engagement of staff across program areas;
• Collaborate with the communications team on advocacy and public education communications and outreach efforts, including disseminating and publicizing materials such as toolkits, fact sheets, reports, action alerts, digital media resources, blogs, opinion pieces, and other thought leadership tools to share Palestine Legal’s unique knowledge and expertise.

OTHER DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Participate in organizational and programmatic planning processes;
• Contribute to organization’s development efforts on a periodic basis, as needed;
• Contribute to other organizational committees and projects as needed.
• Undertake flexible responsibilities to be determined on an as-needed basis as the organization grows.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

• 8-12 or more years of relevant work experience, including:
  • Minimum 3 years of experience working at the intersection of law and organizing, and at least 4 years of movement organizing experience.
  • Minimum 3 years of experience managing other staff.
• Experience working in and/or engaging with grasstops policy or legislative advocacy and navigating grassroots, state, and national audiences is a plus.
• Bachelor’s or higher degree in relevant field (communications, journalism, or related fields) is required.
• JD preferred, but sufficient experience doing relevant work in a legal setting may be a substitute.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

• Commitment to the mission and values of Palestine Legal and with roots in the Palestinian community and/or movement for Palestinian rights.
• Demonstrated commitment to social justice and human rights issues and to working with, and taking direction from, impacted communities, clients, and grassroots organizations to advance their goals.
• Maintains a strategic understanding of, and relationships within, the Palestine movement and cross-movement landscape in order to align advocacy and pub ed work to movement needs.
• Skilled in managing others to develop work plans and balance priorities and providing professional development opportunities and feedback in ways that are equitable, sustainable, results-oriented, and ensure staff well-being.
• Excellent verbal and written communications skills and demonstrated capacity to effectively communicate complex messages with diverse audiences.
• Skilled at organizing a membership base, building trust, and sustaining relationships and campaigns, preferably in BIPOC/Left/progressive spaces.
• Knowledge of relevant legal and organizing issues (students’ rights, free speech, national security, civil rights, etc.).
• Thrives on creative advocacy, strategizing, and problem-solving of legal & non-legal solutions in the face of the complex challenges our clients and the Palestine solidarity movement experience.
• Capacity to approach conflict with compassion; desire to be reflective, grow, receive/give constructive feedback and be a constructive force in group settings.
• Excellent public speaking skills with diverse audiences and with the media.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently and collaboratively, manage multiple complex projects, set priorities, and meet required deadlines, demonstrating attention to detail and grace under pressure.
• High level of facility and comfort with choosing, quickly learning, and using tech tools for information, collaboration and communication, including common computer applications such as MS Office, Slack-like messaging platforms, SalesForce, Mac environment, Zoom, and digital filing & communication systems.
• Integrity, caring for excellence, and sense of humor.

ORGANIZATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS: The Advocacy and PubEd Senior Manager will report to a senior staff member. They will also supervise other staff on case-related and other advocacy work, and pub ed activities. S/he/they will also communicate directly with coalitions of activists and advocacy organizations, building and maintaining organizational and personal relationships.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS: Some travel may be required within the U.S., via plane or other means of transportation, up to 10 times a year. Some lifting may be required (e.g. carrying luggage, computers, resources for audiences, etc., up to 50 pounds on occasion). Candidate must be able to sit for long periods of time and type on a computer and must be able to communicate frequently by phone and electronically.

WORK ENVIRONMENT: It is preferred that the position be located in Chicago, New York, or the Bay Area. The role will primarily be performed remotely, with occasional needs in a shared office environment. When traveling, work may be performed in public spaces, at conferences, often in hotels or universities, and will require transportation between different locations for presentations and lodging.

SALARY AND BENEFITS: This is a full-time (35-hour work week) exempt position. Exempt employees may be required to work more than 35-hours per week on occasion, particularly to complete time-sensitive work on schedule. Salary is calculated based on years of relevant experience, with annual increases according to an established scale. The salary range based on 8-12 years of relevant experience, and depending on the level of law experience, is $100,187 – $139,645, with annual increases according to an established salary scale. Excellent health and other benefits, including full health benefits for staff and dependents, 403b employer matches, flexible spending accounts, and generous paid sick, holidays, vacation, and family leave are also provided in a work culture that encourages a healthy work-life balance.

TO APPLY: Please use this form to submit 1) a resume, 2) a cover letter explaining your interest in the position, why you think you’d excel in the position, and how you think you can contribute to Palestine Legal’s mission, and 3) an unedited writing sample (1-3 pages) that demonstrates your ability to communicate clearly and compellingly to, for, or with movement partners. Applications will be reviewed until June 19th or until the position is filled. We will not consider incomplete applications. Due to the high volume of applications we receive, we may not be able to respond to individual inquiries. The projected start date for this position is September or October 2025.

Palestine Legal recognizes that job seekers from marginalized communities (for example, women, LGBTQ+ people, and people of color) can be less likely to apply for jobs if they don’t meet every single qualification listed. We encourage you to consider applying even if you may not meet every attribute listed. Our priority is to find the right candidate for the position.

Palestine Legal, a project of Tides Center, is an “at-will” and equal opportunity employer. Applicants and employees shall not be discriminated against because of race, religion, sex, national origin, ethnicity, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation, gender (including pregnancy and gender expression) identity, color, marital status, veteran status, medical condition, or any other classification protected by federal, state, or local law or ordinance.

Reasonable accommodation will be made so that qualified disabled applicants may participate in the application process. Please advise in writing of special needs at the time of application.