Assistant Director of Arts and Culture

Overview

Are you experienced in arts and culture policy and planning? Interested in exploring how new ideas can be implemented at a local and regional level? Excited to train the next generation of planners? Apply to join our small but mighty Arts and Culture planning team at MAPC as Assistant Director of Arts and Culture!

Description

The Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) seeks an experienced professional with expertise in arts and culture planning and policy to join our team as Assistant Director of Arts and Culture. The Assistant Director will provide leadership and management support to MAPC’s innovative arts and culture team and practice. The Assistant Director will supervise the department’s arts and culture planning portfolio, leading complex cultural planning work, developing new projects, and directing implementation efforts while mentoring department staff.   This portfolio of work includes a mix of cultural planning, implementation, policy development, public art, and creative placemaking initiatives. The Assistant Director will also cultivate relationships with internal and external partners and collaborators. For this role, we seek an individual who is self-directed, a strategic and systems thinker, and a collaborative leader. The ideal candidate will demonstrate a commitment to advancing arts and culture as a source of human connection, joy, and beauty, and as a strategy to cultivate a more just and sustainable region. The Assistant Director of Arts and Culture will report to the Director of Arts and Culture.

This is an opportunity to work in a dynamic, interdisciplinary, and innovative environment with professionals who are committed to building a more sustainable and equitable future for everyone who lives and works in Greater Boston. For more information about MAPC or MetroCommon2050, please visit www.mapc.org.

About the Department: 

The Arts and Culture Department engages in planning and policy work that advances artistic expression throughout Greater Boston; preserves and promotes a full and equitable view of our cultural heritage; and explores the intersection of arts and culture with other planning and policy initiatives. The Department also encourages public and community support for artists and culture-bearers through improved public policy and funding and uses arts and humanities practices to increase community engagement. Examples of recent work include cultural plans for Boston’s Chinatown and Boston’s Latin Quarter; a creative placemaking strategy for the Landline, our regional trails network; and a policy project to help expand creative workspaces in Boston, Cambridge and Somerville. Learn more about our arts and culture planning work here.

Responsibilities (including but not limited to)

• Assist the Director in supervising and managing department staff to ensure the development of innovative and impactful projects and policy initiatives, strong project delivery, and the professional development of staff;
• Help to grow our emerging history and humanities practice;
• Provide high-quality services and materials to MAPC’s member cities and towns, as well as community-based organizations, state agencies, and other stakeholders;
• Participate in agency leadership activities and build cross-departmental collaborations to strengthen the arts and culture practice;
• Identify new funding opportunities and apply for grants, requests for proposals, state and federal resources, and other funding opportunities;
• Cultivate and maintain relationships with external collaborators whose work is aligned with the mission and values of the department and agency;
• Lead the department’s portfolio of arts and culture planning and policy, creative engagement and implementation including new project development, management of larger and more complex cultural planning projects, drafting of policies and programmatic and funding recommendations at the local and state levels, and other implementation and evaluation activities; and
• Lead and participate in regional and national field building activities through facilitation of arts and culture planning-related forums, events, and workshops; documentation of department work and work products; and attendance and presentation at events and conferences. Conduct other activities as assigned to implement the work plan of the Arts & Culture Department and more broadly, to advance the goals of MetroCommon2050.

Evening events, occasional weekend events, and local travel are a responsibility for this position. MAPC does not require you to have a vehicle; however, you must have a valid driver’s license and/or the ability to arrange transportation to meetings in different parts of the region. MAPC provides support for travel, including MBTA passes, a Zipcar account and BlueBikes membership.

Qualifications

Candidates must have a Bachelor’s degree and six (6) years of relevant  professional experience, including management experience OR a Master’s degree and a minimum of four (4) years of relevant professional experience, including management experience in any of the following areas: community development, urban studies, city, town, or regional planning, urban design, public humanities, historic preservation, arts administration, architecture, public art, or other related disciplines. In addition to the qualifications in this posting, we recognize that people come with talent and experiences outside of past jobs. Diversity of experience and skills combined with passion are key to MAPC’s culture of innovation and inclusion.

Successful candidates for this position will demonstrate all or most of the following:

• Strong commitment to advancing access and representation in arts and culture; addressing the loss of housing and workspace for artists; and encouraging, community well-being, social equity, sustainability, and good governance through artistic and cultural expression;
• Established content expertise and strategic thinking in the arts, culture, and humanities field with a network of relationships in relevant sectors;
• Demonstrated arts and culture planning experience with cultural asset mapping, cultural planning, community and economic development with an arts and culture lens, creative placemaking, public art, and/or arts-based engagement;
• Ability to lead teams or programs and maintain partnerships with people from diverse populations in a wide variety of settings, such as communities of color, local and state government (including appointed and elected officials), artists and cultural practitioners, community-based or arts organizations, and other stakeholders;
• Experience managing, leading and/or mentoring staff and a demonstrated ability to work collaboratively and build a supportive team culture; and
• Experience undertaking assigned work in a self-directed manner with capacity for innovation, self-learning, and achieving goals in a timely manner.

In addition, preference will be given to candidates who demonstrate any of the following:

• Proficiency with quantitative and qualitative research, and the collection, analysis, and interpretation of data;
• Experience working on projects that involve multi-lingual, multi-cultural, or cross-cultural conditions; and
• Skills in graphic design or web design; experience with software and platforms such as WordPress, Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, or social media platforms.

Compensation and Benefits: 

The salary ranges from $98,000 to $108,000, depending on qualifications and experience. This is a full-time exempt position. MAPC offers excellent Massachusetts state employee benefits, a flexible, supportive, and family-friendly work environment, and a commitment to professional development.

How to Apply: 

Apply online at www.mapc.org/jobs. The position is open until filled, and applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. Interested candidates should submit a cover letter and resume. Candidates selected to interview will be asked to submit three (3) references plus a sample of relevant writing or work product. Candidates must have legal authorization to work in the USA and a valid driver’s license and/or the ability to arrange transportation to meetings in different parts of the region. MAPC participates in E-Verify, which is a federal program that helps us to determine work eligibility in the United States. A Criminal Offenders Records Information (CORI) request must be completed if offered this position. However, a criminal record is not an automatic bar to employment but it will be reviewed in light of the position and other elements of an applicant’s resume.

MAPC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We believe that a staff with a range of perspectives, experiences, and skillsets strengthens our work. We are committed to building a more equitable workplace that allows staff with diverse backgrounds and identities to thrive, grow, and lead. For more information on MAPC’s culture of equity, see our Equity at MAPC page.