Outreach Coordinator

FIRST UNITED is a registered charity that has been serving Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside community for nearly 140 years. We offer responsive, low-barrier services to individuals who are low-income, underhoused or homeless. We provide essential services to meet the daily needs of community members and engage in systems change work to reduce homelessness and break cycles of poverty. If you’re looking for purpose-filled work and want to make a difference in the community, this might be the opportunity for you.

First United is seeking applications for the temporary position of:

Outreach Coordinator, Legal Projects

This is a temporary contract opportunity for 15 hours per week (360 total contract hours) for a term of six months, with a possibility of extension (subject to funding).

What We Offer:

Wage: $30.32/hr

• Annual salary progression for all staff
• Comprehensive health benefits that include an extended health and dental plan for regular staff, spouses and dependents.
• Life insurance, Long-term Disability, and AD&D benefits
• 15 days of paid Annual Vacation
• 13 Statutory paid days off every year and 12 days of paid sick leave
  
  

Each job within the First United Church Community Ministry Society should promote our accomplishment of our vision, mission, and values.

General Description

The Legal Outreach Coordinator is responsible for developing and facilitating public legal education workshops and building and maintaining relationships between our legal programs and community organizations and members. This role will be focused on housing justice and may involve other legal areas.

SPECIFIC DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Verbal, written and in-person outreach and follow up to engage diverse and Indigenous community organizations, community members and their affiliates.
• Developing and delivering 6-10 public legal education workshops (PLEI) to priority groups that are responsive to community needs.
• Developing workshop collateral/materials to respond to community needs and legal changes.
• Developing and using participant surveys at the end of each workshop and adjusting materials according to community feedback.
• Building and maintaining a contact/network listing and information, providing follow up communication about events and programs, providing referrals as needed.
• Discerning and advising on culturally appropriate practices and protocols for community events.
• Attending community events to share information about our programs, which may occur outside of 9-5 weekday hours.
• Acting as a liaison between community organizations and community members and our advocacy program to increase access to the program (e.g. for people in community who may face barriers in attending our drop-in).
• Building and maintaining relationships with representatives of diverse and Indigenous community organizations.
• Conducting or assisting with one-to-one interviews with community members, listening circles, or other engagement practices.
• Arranging room bookings and logistics for community events.
• Assisting with research.
• Coordinating with project volunteers and First United staff as required.
• Other duties as required.
  
  

KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS:

• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, including in intercultural contexts.
• Excellent presentation skills, including intercultural settings.
• Demonstrated relationship-building skills (experience in the nonprofit sector would be an asset).
• Ability to work independently in a frontline, low-barrier environment, including de-escalation of crisis situations.
• Ability to establish schedules and goals for volunteers, strong organizational and interpersonal skills.
• Strong computer skills: MS Office Suite. Experience with Excel would be an asset.
• Ability to work under pressure, with time constraints, balancing priorities, and urgent interventions.
• Ability to display a high level of professionalism.
• Strong attention to detail.
  
  

EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE:

• Familiar with reconciliation and decolonial principles.
• Bachelor's degree in a relevant area plus 2 years relevant experience OR a combination of relevant education and experience would be considered.
• Knowledge of and relationship with community organizations, including Indigenous community serving organizations in the lower mainland.
• Research experience in a related field would be an asset.
• Written and verbal fluency in a second language would be an asset.
• Interest in or knowledge of tenancy law, or other poverty-related legal issues in British Columbia would be an asset.

We are committed to becoming a more just, equitable, inclusive, and diverse workplace, which extends to how we hire. We are continually learning new and unlearning old practices while examining systemic causes of inequity, including colonialism.

We aim to be representative of the communities that we serve. We welcome everyone to apply, and we strongly encourage applications from members of communities that have been marginalized based on Indigeneity, race, colour, religion, nationality, social or ethnic origin, sex, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression. In order to achieve a representative team, preference may be given to people who are members of one or more of these groups.

If you have any questions, please reach out to [email protected].