Programs Director

Please email your cover letter, résumé, a relevant writing sample, and three references to the attention of Deputy Executive Director Eleanor Peck at epeck@hudsonvalleyrc.org. Applicants will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled.

Note: The Hudson Valley Regional Council is currently seeking applicants for two positions, with the intent of filling only one: Deputy Executive Director and Programs Director. Please review both position descriptions and make note of which you are applying for in your cover letter. Please apply for the position for which you are best suited.

The Hudson Valley Regional Council (HVRC) is seeking applicants for a full-time Programs Director. HVRC is an organization of county governments comprising Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester counties. It is one of over 650 such councils in the United States. HVRC helps municipalities access and understand information and grants from the state and federal level, and provides technical assistance on environmental and sustainability programs, economic development, materials management, and water resources. Our programmatic areas are funded by the US Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration (US EDA), US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA), New York Department of Environmental Conservation and its 604(b) Water Quality Planning Program and Hudson River Estuary Program, and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. HVRC also receives support from the county governments of the Mid-Hudson Region.

The Programs Director will hold a key role in the organization by handling a wide range of programmatic tasks. Reporting to the Executive Director (ED), the Programs Director will have both internal and external facing responsibilities, ranging from working closely with municipalities, state and federal funding agencies, and partner organizations as well as managing the relationships between all HVRC staff and their respective programmatic areas and working closely with the Financial & Administrative Director (F&AD) on grant and board-related tasks. Expertise in clean energy & sustainability is mandatory for this role. Economic development experience is strongly preferred. The Programs Director must be prepared to expand their knowledge beyond clean energy & sustainability and develop competency across HVRC’s full range of programmatic areas, including water quality and wastewater. Upon hire, the Programs Director will directly provide technical assistance to a subset of Mid-Hudson municipalities related to clean energy & sustainability in addition to providing oversight of HVRC’s remaining programmatic areas. The role requires a willingness to work across multiple programmatic areas, with the expectation that the responsibilities will evolve over time. The Programs Director will partner closely with the ED to chart HVRC’s future work and strategic response to the needs of the Region’s local governments.

Duties of the Programs Director will primarily include:

Overall Programmatic

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Structure and lead teams to deliver outstanding technical assistance to local governments relating to HVRC’s programmatic areas of economic development, sustainability, clean energy, and water resources.

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Apply strategic thinking on programmatic interdependence and cross program systems.

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Build and maintain strong working relationships with HVRC’s funders and local governments.

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Represent HVRC at conferences, meetings, and other public venues.

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Develop thought leadership around a broad range of topics / emerging practice areas.

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Share in knowledge dissemination, reporting, and communications.

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Work closely with ED to provide technical assistance to local governments on economic development.

Hudson Valley Regional Council ◦ 105 Ann Street, #2 ◦ Newburgh, NY 12550 ◦ 845-564-4075

Grants/Funding

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Maintain programmatic oversight of all funded programs.

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Coordinate proposals, including narrative and budget preparation, in collaboration with program managers, ED, F&AD, and other staff as appropriate.

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Support ED and F&AD on contracting and administration.

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Provide oversight on all narrative reporting.

Organizational/Administrative

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Partner with the ED and F&AD in essential internal leadership activities including strategic planning for HVRC’s future activities.

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Mentoring, coaching; visible, approachable sounding board/resource for staff.

Clean Energy/Climate

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Manage the HVRC Team’s implementation of the NYSERDA Clean Energy Communities (CEC) Program and NYS Climate Smart Communities (CSC) Program in the Mid-Hudson Region.

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Assist a subset of local governments with the CEC Program, including:

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understanding and completing the required actions to become designated Clean Energy Communities.

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accessing and managing associated CEC grant resources, and serving as a liaison between NYSERDA and local governments.

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completing municipal and community greenhouse gas emissions inventories, benchmarking the energy use of municipal buildings, and assisting communities in reducing greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency upgrades and renewable energy projects.

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completing climate action plans to reduce emissions both at the municipal and community level.

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supporting HVRC staff in conducting local on-site trainings and workshops to groups of interested local officials and community stakeholders on specific clean energy topics.

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identifying and connecting communities with relevant clean energy programs and grant opportunities.

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Assist a subset of local governments with becoming Certified Climate Smart Communities, including:

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as needed, conducting climate vulnerability assessments, developing climate adaptation plans, and evaluating policies for climate resilience.

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as needed, relevant research related to planning and emergency preparedness.

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Across both programs:

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assist a subset of local governments in developing strategic public outreach and engagement campaigns involving key municipal stakeholders and community residents.

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maintain regular records of community progress and grant project completion, partnerships, meetings, referrals, and other activities through all necessary reporting platforms.

Support the HVRC team across other programmatic and organizational areas as needed.

The minimum qualifications are bachelor’s degree in a related field and eight years of progressively responsible experience including management responsibilities with public sector organization(s) or not-for-profits in sustainability, clean energy, economic development and/or planning, or master’s degree in a related field and five years of progressively responsible experience including management responsibilities with public sector organization(s) or not-for-profits in the above areas. State/Federal grant writing experience is required. The successful candidate must have excellent time management and communication skills with the ability to handle multiple tasks effectively. Renewable energy construction project management experience is preferred. The position requires high levels of integrity, trustworthiness, flexibility, compassion, and humor to address the practicalities of a growing organization, along with the creativity and persistence required to elicit new thinking where change is needed. The successful candidate must possess full proficiency in Microsoft Office suite (Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Outlook, Teams; Access a plus) and other web-based project management and tracking systems, with the ability to learn new applications.

The estimated starting salary range for this full-time exempt position is $65,000-$80,000 and will be commensurate with experience. Benefits include health, dental, and vision insurance, 14 paid holidays, and PTO, including sick, personal, and vacation. HVRC staff must reside in the seven-county Mid-Hudson Region of New York. This position will begin with an in-office schedule in the Newburgh office, with the possibility of transitioning to a modified hybrid schedule. The ability to meet work related travel needs is required, with travel reimbursed at the federal reimbursement level.

HVRC complies with all federal laws. HVRC employs, retains, promotes, and otherwise treats all employees and job applicants on the basis of merit, qualifications, and competence. HVRC does not discriminate on the basis of sex, race, color, religion, national origin, age, genetic predisposition, marital status, military status, sexual orientation, disability, status as a victim of domestic violence, or any other protected characteristics.

HVRC provides reasonable accommodations to qualified applicants and employees with disabilities, as required under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and applicable state and local laws. Applicants or employees who need a reasonable accommodation to perform the essential functions of their job should notify HVRC as soon as the need arises. HVRC will engage in an interactive process with each individual to identify job-related needs and will provide reasonable accommodations unless doing so would cause undue hardship.

Benefits include health, dental, and vision insurance, 14 paid holidays, and PTO, including sick, personal, and vacation