Work with Jewish Teens and Tweens - Chicagoland!

The Manager, Teen Engagement is an exciting addition to JCC Chicago’s Community Engagement department in a time of exponential growth. The Manager will design, develop, and implement engaging and impactful new teen initiatives for JCC Chicago, focusing on on-site programming, collaborating with community organizations, Camp Chi, Apachi, and other JCC departments to increase opportunities and connections for Jewish teens. This is a great opportunity for someone to be creative, think outside the box, and take risks.

Key areas of responsibility:

Vision & Strategy
Assist Senior Manager, Teen Engagement in implementing a strategic plan that allows the agency to expand its reach to teens beyond current initiatives to achieve growth and outcome objectives.

Programming
Design, develop, and implement new teen initiatives for the JCC, focusing on The Revere, JCC Chicago’s new spot for 7th-12th graders.
Create a welcoming environment for teens at The Revere and throughout the Bernard Weinger JCC.
Expand program offerings via drop-in hours, holidays, mental health and inclusion initiatives, volunteering, tutoring, ropes course, day off school programs, and more.
Expand current amenities including a snack bar, technology needs (chargers, printer access, etc.), and more.
Foster and maintain relationships with community partners, schools, synagogues, and more to bring the teen community into the JCC and help meet programming space needs of partner organizations.
Research equipment and design a makerspace in The Revere for teen community usage:
Manage the culture of the makerspace as a hub of collaboration and creativity
Efficiently manage scheduling, budget, equipment, and supplies
Build relationships with schools, synagogues, youth programs, and others to bring them into the makerspace.
Work with existing JCC programs to enhance curriculum and add in makerspace components.
Become certified leading indoor/outdoor ropes course, as well as hiring, training, and supervising additional staff to lead ropes course.
Lead effort to engage middle schoolers in JCC teen programming by building relationships with middle schools, synagogues, and other organizations that engage 6-8th graders.
Work with team to develop year-round Maccabi programming to engage teens through sports.
Work with partner organizations in planning community teen programing (i.e., Chicago Loves Israel, teen community holiday celebrations, etc.).
Lead process in collecting and maintaining participant records for on-site programming.
Order, manage, and maintain supplies for on-site programming, specific to The Revere.
Engage teens during the summer through Maccabi, City LIFE, and/or Apachi. (Exact summer responsibilities to be determined based on agency and team needs as well as the new hire’s experience and interests.)

Partnerships
Work closely with Bernard Weinger Customer Engagement and facilities team to support teen programming on-site.
Work with the JCC development team to support grant reporting. Provide data, administer surveys, and write reports as needed.
Work with JCC marketing department on materials for and promotion of teen initiatives.

Customer Relationship Management 
Actively pursue an understanding of all JCC programs to steward families through Agency offerings.
Build relationships with teens to further engage them and their families in JCC programming.
Maintain consistent personal contact with families; answer questions, provide proactive communication and ensure customers know avenues available to them to provide feedback.  
Work with staff to ensure understanding of site requirements and agency policies. 
Key Essential Job Duties/Physical Duties:
Ability to lift/move objects up to 40 lbs.
Ability to run up to 100 yards (in the case of an emergency).
Move from sitting (chair and floor) to standing position easily and quickly.
Stand for long periods of time and be able to run and actively engage physically with all ages.
Clearly and effectively communicate in a manner that all ages understand.
Know the difference between appropriate and inappropriate behaviors. Prevent, circumvent, and deal with problem behaviors appropriately and effectively.
Supervise teens, keeping them in sight and sound at all times.
Maintain a sense of calm and perspective with physical and mental alertness during stressful times.
Consistently demonstrate and reinforce the values of caring, respect, honesty, and responsibility.

Days/Hours/%Travel:  
Because we work directly with teens, our hours often reflect their schedules. This position requires the ability to work 2-3 evenings/week and 1-2 Sundays/month during the school year (late August-late May). Outside of scheduled programming, this position has lots of flexibility in schedule and location (Northbrook/WFH).  Domestic and/or international travel could be possible based on programming needs.

Job Category:
Management

Salary:  
$48,000-52,000/annual

Requirements:
Bachelor’s Degree in Education, Recreation, Jewish Studies, Non-profit management, or related field required.
2+ years’ experience developing and facilitating engaging, cutting-edge programs for teens.
Demonstrated knowledge of Jewish history, culture, and practice. 
Demonstrated organizational, time management and priority setting skills.
Demonstrated success fostering and maintaining internal and external partnerships.
Some budget development and reporting helpful.
Strong customer service background.
Ability to become certified in JCC on-site ropes course (provided by JCC).
A passion for working as part of a broader team of professionals dedicated to Jewish teen engagement and outreach.
Must be able to communicate with a varied audience including teens, parents, school staff, and other JCC colleagues.
Strong written and oral communication skills.
Intermediate proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook required with the ability to learn other software packages as needed.
Must be able to problem solve quickly and effectively. 
Ability to work independently yet have the ability and enthusiasm for fostering a strong team environment.