Executive Director, Performing Arts

Reports to: Board of Directors

Supervises: Staff, contractors, consultants, and volunteers, as applicable

Classification: Exempt (W-2)

Position Overview

The Executive Director serves as the chief executive and cultural leader of CAAPA, ensuring both artistic excellence and organizational sustainability. This individual will be an enthusiastic advocate for African American performing arts and will work closely with artists, educators, community leaders, donors, and the Board to expand CAAPA's impact through music, performance, arts education, and cultural programming. CAAPA's programs include music and choral performance, youth arts education, cultural heritage programming, artist development, and community engagement initiatives.

This position requires substantive professional experience in the music, choral, classical, or performing arts sector.

The Executive Director provides overall leadership for strategy, programming, fundraising, financial stewardship, organizational development, community partnerships, and external relations. The Executive Director ensures that CAAPA operates with strong governance, sound financial management, and measurable impact while positioning the organization for sustainable long-term growth.

Success in this role is measured by organizational impact, financial sustainability, strategic execution, and strong relationships with artists, educators, donors, partners, and the Board.

For more information about CAAPA visit https://4caapa.org

Primary Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership:

• Lead creation and implementation of CAAPA's strategic vision and annual operating plan.
• Work closely with the Board to establish priorities, evaluate opportunities, and measure organizational performance.
• Identify emerging opportunities that expand CAAPA's impact throughout the region and nationally.
• Foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, accountability, and continuous improvement.

Program Leadership:

• Support artistic planning, audience development, and program growth across CAAPA's music, educational, and cultural initiatives.
• Collaborate with artists, musicians, educators, conductors, performers, and artistic partners to maintain high-quality performing arts programming.

Fundraising and Advancement:

Lead and expand CAAPA's fundraising and advancement efforts by:

• Developing and implementing an annual fundraising strategy.
• Cultivating relationships with major donors, foundations, corporations, and government agencies.
• Working with the Board to strengthen its fundraising capacity.
• Identifying new revenue opportunities and strategic partnerships.
• Ensuring grant development and stewardship.

Financial Leadership:

Provide sound financial stewardship by:

• Developing annual budgets with Board approval.
• Monitoring financial performance and cash flow.
• Ensuring appropriate financial controls and reporting.
• Managing resources responsibly to achieve strategic priorities.
• Presenting clear financial information to the Board.

Board Partnership and Governance:

• Partner with the Board to support governance, strategic planning, committee operations, policy implementation, and informed decision-making.
• Implement Board policies and priorities.
• Serve as the primary staff liaison to the Board.

Community Engagement:

• Serve as CAAPA's chief ambassador and spokesperson, building relationships with artists, musicians, ensembles, educators, community stakeholders, arts organizations, donors, government agencies, and corporate partners while increasing CAAPA’s visibility and community impact.

Organizational Leadership:

Lead the organization by:

• Recruiting, developing, and supervising staff, volunteers, and contractors.
• Establishing clear goals and accountability.
• Creating an inclusive and collaborative workplace culture.
• Ensuring compliance with legal, financial, and nonprofit best practices.

Qualifications

Required:

• Seven or more years of progressive leadership experience in performing arts, choral arts, music, cultural arts, arts administration, or closely related nonprofit organizations.
• Knowledge of performing arts programming, artist engagement, audience development, and cultural arts operations.
• Bachelor's degree or equivalent professional experience.
• Demonstrated success leading organizations or major initiatives.
• Experience in fundraising and donor development.
• Strong financial and budget management skills.
• Excellent communication and relationship-building abilities.
• Commitment to CAAPA's mission.
• Reside in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area.
• This position is primarily remote, with occasional on-site attendance required for meetings, special events, performances, donor engagements, board meetings, and other mission-critical activities.

Preferred:

• Experience with choral, vocal, instrumental, classical music, theater, dance, or interdisciplinary arts organizations.
• Experience working with nonprofit boards.
• Knowledge of arts education and community engagement.
• Existing relationships within the Washington metropolitan arts community and a broad network of arts professionals and organizations nationwide.

Key Competencies

• Strategic leadership
• Fundraising, marketing, and resource development
• Financial management
• Relationship building
• Organizational management
• Board collaboration
• Community engagement
• Written and verbal communication
• Technology literacy
• Sound judgment and integrity
• Results orientation

Technical Skills

• Microsoft 365 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams)
• Budgeting and Financial Reporting
• Grant Management and Compliance Reporting
• QuickBooks or similar accounting software
• Donor/CRM Database Management
• Virtual Collaboration Platforms
• Social Media and Digital Marketing
• Website Content Management Systems

Success Measures

During the first 12–24 months, the Executive Director will:

• Enhance CAAPA's financial sustainability and diversify revenue.
• Deepen engagement with artists, ensembles, arts educators, and cultural organizations throughout the region.
• Increase contributed income from individuals, foundations, corporations, and public sources.
• Expand strategic partnerships that advance CAAPA's mission.
• Maintain high-quality educational and performance programs.
• Build organizational capacity through effective staff leadership and operational systems.
• Advance Board engagement in governance, fundraising, and strategic planning.
• Increase CAAPA's visibility and community impact through effective communications and public leadership.

The Executive Director must effectively balance mission impact, program excellence, fundraising, and revenue generation to ensure CAAPA's long-term sustainability and growth.

Compensation and Benefits

CAAPA offers a competitive compensation and benefits package.

Application Instructions

Applicants must submit a resume and cover letter (optional). For security reasons, CAAPA accepts resumes only in PDF (.pdf), Microsoft Word (.docx), or Plain Text (.txt) formats. Resumes submitted in any other format will not be considered.

Pre-Employment Requirements

Employment is contingent upon the successful completion of a background check and verification of qualifications, employment history, and references.

Equal Opportunity Employer

CAAPA is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to fostering an inclusive workplace that values diversity, equity, and respect. We encourage qualified candidates from all backgrounds to apply.

CAAPA offers a competitive compensation and benefits package.