Minnesota Housing Partnership is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that advocates for equitable housing policy, conducts research to inform housing solutions, and delivers community development technical assistance throughout the United States. The organization’s mission is to expand housing and community development opportunity for those most impacted by economic and racial disparities by leading collaborative work to promote system change and grow equitable development capacity. The Community Development department, in particular, works directly with rural and Native communities, and organizations to achieve the community’s housing and development goals. More than 75% of the beneficiaries we work with are located outside the state of Minnesota. The organization has an overall budget of $3 million and a staff of 20. The total number of staff in the Community Development function is 8.
PRIMARY AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY
Reporting to MHP’s Community Development Director, the Community Development Manager (Manager) leads capacity-building work plans, facilitates Housing and Native Institute teams, and coordinates the work of other staff, sub-recipients, and contractors in order to advance economic, community, and affordable housing development for rural and Native communities. The Manager also promotes and markets MHP overall and the Community Development department specifically. The primary responsibilities are:
Consultant to communities: Lead engagements with rural and Native communities; work creatively with community leaders to identify housing and community development needs, and then help shape projects and plans to address those needs; and develop, lead, and implement work plans in the areas of community and affordable housing development, providing capacity-building and technical assistance to Native and non-Native communities, governments, and nonprofit organizations mostly situated in rural areas.
Technical assistance delivery: Research, analyze, interpret, and convey policy and regulatory guidance in the context of devising housing options/solutions that work for rural and Native communities; and assist in the development of programs and projects with beneficiaries and stakeholders, creating and analyzing project development budgets and proformas and applying federal and state regulatory as well as philanthropic grant/program requirements.
Project management: Develop, implement, and manage scopes of work, work plans, and budgets; oversee consultant contracts, subrecipient contracts, and implementation of work; monitor and report on progress of work; and participate in grant applications, action plan development, and periodic progress reviews.
Relationship management: Provide team support to the Native Community Development Institute (NCDI) and Housing Institute programs—focused on defining team goals, understanding local needs, and assisting in the successful implementation of community and affordable housing development projects; strategize and collaborate closely with other capacity-building staff on assignments, including budgets, timelines, recipient needs, contractor deployment, compliance requirements, and outcomes; and act as liaison between a team and MHP, bringing the needs for specific training forward to the Institute coordinators.
Organizational engagement: Actively and positively engage with staff colleagues to further our shared work, understanding, and organizational health; and actively engage in the deployment of the department’s and organization’s race equity strategic action plans to ensure our technical assistance work generates equitable outcomes.
DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS
Experience
Passion for rural communities, including knowledge and experience living in or working with small, rural communities.
Demonstrated ability to function as independent consultant, think on your feet, create clarity of goals and next steps with rural and Native communities who have a variety of capacity and housing and community development needs.
Flexibility and adaptability to accommodate short deadlines and a fast-paced environment.
Effective public speaking, interpersonal, written, and oral communication skills.
Five years’ leading or facilitating the implementation of community development projects / programs with Native and/or rural communities.
Experience implementing Federal and State programs and within statutory guidelines.
Strong knowledge of applicable laws, regulations, policies, procedures, current literature, trends, and developments in community/affordable housing development and planning with a focus on under-served, rural and/or Native communities.
Three years’ experience demonstrating strong project management skills – planning, coordinating, monitoring, tracking and leading internal teams and external contractors on multiple, simultaneous projects; related contract and budget management skills.
Knowledge of various grants, programs, and regulatory guidance, such as: USDA, HUD, CDBG, ICDBG, CoC, state housing finance agency programs; and EDA, BIA, and OMB circulars.
Strong skills in research, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of data.
Intermediate skills in Microsoft Office Suite, CRM applications, databases, SharePoint, and other cloud functionality.
Experience with the following:
Designing and facilitating strategic planning and/or organizational development with non-profits or local units of government;
Housing development and finance and/or project underwriting experience;
Economic development and/or business planning experience.
Specialized skills and knowledge in community development such as conducting housing needs assessments, planning, housing development finance and other related skills preferred.
Education
Bachelor’s degree in community development, planning, public administration, or housing. Master’s degree preferred. Focus on Native American or rural communities a plus. Bachelor’s degree in other field, plus 5 years providing technical assistance in housing or community development may be considered.
National Development Council/Housing Development Finance coursework; certifications preferred. Certifications from federal (HUD, USDA) and state programs a plus.
Other
Proximity to a major, well-served airport (25% travel required, typically for 1-3 day durations of time).
WORK ENVIRONMENT
The Community Development Manager will spend approximately 65% of their time providing direct project technical assistance both onsite and virtually with partners across the U.S., and 35% of their time doing other organizational, administrative, and professional development activities.
MHP embraces a virtual work environment, providing broad flexibility and a range of support systems for all team members to work virtually. MHP’s base offices are in St. Paul, MN, and include a few shared offices and conference rooms for periodic meetings and work. MHP brings all staff together in-person at least twice per year for professional development and team building, and to continue efforts on being an anti-racist organization.
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