Operations Coordinator

THE ORGANIZATION

The Center for Justice Innovation is a community justice organization that centers safety and racial justice. Since our founding in 1996, the Center has partnered with community members, courts, and the people most impacted to create stronger, healthier, more just communities. Our decades of experience in courts and communities, coupled with our field-leading research and practitioner expertise, help us drive justice nationwide in innovative, powerful, and durable ways. For more information on how and where we work, please visit www.innovatingjustice.org.  

The Center is a 900-employee, $100 million nonprofit that accomplishes its vision through three pillars of work: creating and scaling operating programs to test new ideas and solve problems, performing original research to determine what works (and what doesn’t), and providing expert assistance and policy guidance to justice reformers around the world.

Operating Programs

The Center’s operating programs, including the award-winning Red Hook Community Justice Center and Midtown Community Justice Center, test new ideas, solve difficult problems, and attempt to achieve systemic change within the justice system. Our projects include community-based violence prevention programs, alternatives to incarceration, reentry initiatives, and court-based initiatives that reduce the use of unnecessary incarceration and promote positive individual and family change. Through this programming, we have produced tangible results like safer streets, reduced incarceration, and improved neighborhood perceptions of justice.

Research

The Center's research teams are staffed with social scientists, data analysts, and lawyers who are academically-trained or have lived experience and who conduct research in the U.S. and globally on diverse criminal-legal system and justice issues. Their work includes evaluating programs and policies; conducting exploratory, community-based studies; and providing research translation and strategic planning for system actors. The Center has published studies on topics including court and jail reform, intimate partner violence, restorative justice, gun violence, reentry, sixth amendment rights, and progressive prosecution. The research teams strive to make their work meaningful and actionable to the communities they work with, policymakers, and practitioners.

Policy & Expert Assistance

The Center provides hands-on, planning and implementation assistance to a wide range of jurisdictions in areas of reform such as problem-solving courts (e.g., community courts, treatment courts, domestic violence courts), tribal justice, reducing incarceration and the use of fines/fees and reducing crime and violence. Our current expert assistance takes many forms, including help with analyzing data, strategic planning and consultation, policy guidance, and hosting site visits to its operating programs in the New York City area. 

Center Support

A dedicated support team within the Center ensures the smooth functioning of operations across various domains, including finance, legal, technology, human resources, fundraising, real estate, and communications. Comprising 15% of the organization's staff, these teams provide essential infrastructure support and innovative solutions aligned with the Center's mission and values. 

THE OPPORTUNITY

Brooklyn Justice Initiatives (BJI), the largest operating project of the Center, seeks to re-engineer the experience of criminal court in Brooklyn, New York, by providing judges and attorneys meaningful alternatives to bail, fines, and jail sentences. Operating out of Kings County Criminal Court along with community-based offices, BJI is a team of social service providers, court-based resource coordinators, mental health practitioners, compliance specialists, and others who seek to improve the quality of justice. Supervised Release offers an alternative to jail by providing pretrial supervision, case management, and voluntary social services to people charged with misdemeanor and felony offenses, and in doing so, uses an arrest as a window of opportunity to change the direction of a participant’s life, avoiding the harmful effects of incarceration. Program participants are monitored to ensure their appearance at court dates and mandatory programming, and receive referrals to services like job training, drug treatment, and mental health counseling.

Brooklyn Justice Initiatives is seeking an experienced Operations Coordinator for its Brooklyn Supervised Release Program (SRP). Reporting to the Operations Manager, the Operations Coordinator will be responsible for supporting and coordinating a wide range of BJI’s needs and functions across multiple office locations, including providing administrative and operational support to all BJI SRP departments. The candidate will demonstrate strong organizational skills, attention to detail, and an ability to communicate effectively with team members at all levels.

• Provide direct supervision to administrative staff including staffing and scheduling the front desk and administrative team across sites;
• Oversee daily operations of the front desk and waiting room areas, which may include greeting visitors, collecting basic visitor information, ensuring participants’ needs are addressed in a timely and professional manner, notifying appropriate staff of participant arrivals and incoming calls, distributing program supplies, and maintaining a professional and welcoming environment;
• Provide coverage of administrative/front desk operations, as needed;  
• Coordinate the onboarding and training of newly hired administrative staff;
• Coordinate front desk shadowing opportunities for cross-departmental staff as needed;
• Work with clinical supervisors, security/court officers, or other appropriate staff in addressing any emergency situations, crises, or escalations that may take place in the office;
• Coordinate management of office inventory, ordering of supplies and equipment, maintenance, coordinating with and scheduling contractors (e.g., freelance workers, storage facilities, and exterminators), arranging for storage pickups, keeping multiple offices organized and tidy, and recalibrating organizational systems as needed;
• Coordinate resolution of facilities issues, working closely with the Center’s centralized Facilities department and coordinating with any contractor/subcontractor that may be on-site;  
• Coordinate fiscal processes, including but not limited to submitting and monitoring purchase orders and invoices through online system, assisting with reconciliations, and liaising with the Center's Fiscal department;  
• Coordinate with vendors and delivery personnel for pending orders and supplies deliveries at all BJI sites;
• Liaise with the Center's Tech Department on the site’s technology needs and initiate service and tech tickets, and maintain in-house request process;
• Coordinate processes for activating, distributing, and troubleshooting tech issues with BJI participant phones;  
• Maintain databases and tracking trends for phone distribution and participant appointments;
• Assist with the setup for special events, groups, and site visits, including ordering food, tech setup, arranging desks/chairs/tables, and printing out materials/agendas; and 
• Additional duties as assigned.

• A Bachelor's degree and at least 3 years of experience working in an operations or administrative role within the human services field;
• At least 1 year of supervisory experience strongly preferred;
• At least one year of experience working with justice-involved populations is preferred;
• Excellent organizational and interpersonal, communication and writing skills required;
• Candidate must be highly organized, have the ability to multitask, and work in a fast-paced environment;
• Willingness and sensitivity to engaging individuals (youth and adults) with mental health and substance use needs;
• Ability to work with people from diverse backgrounds in a culturally-responsive manner;
• Professional demeanor and ability to communicate appropriately with clients, staff, stakeholders, and vendors;
• Proficiency using Google Suite and Microsoft programs, such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint;
• Ability to lift at least 20 pounds; and
• Ability to commute to all Brooklyn SRP locations.

Position Location: Brooklyn, NY with travel across Brooklyn to all BJI sites is required.

Compensation: The compensation range for this position is $55,410 - $67,460 and is commensurate with experience. The Center for Justice Innovation offers an excellent benefits package including comprehensive healthcare with a national network, free basic dental coverage, vision insurance, short-term and long-term disability, life insurance, and flexible spending accounts including commuter FSA. We prioritize mental health care for our staff and offer services like Talkspace and Ginger through our healthcare plans. We offer a 403(b) retirement plan with a two-to-one employer contribution up to 5%.

The Center for Justice Innovation is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace, and as such, we do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, national origin, age, military service eligibility, veteran status, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, or any other category protected by law. We strongly encourage and welcome applications from women, people of color, members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities, as well as individuals with prior contact with the criminal justice system. Our aim is to create a supportive and respectful environment where every individual, irrespective of their background or identity, feels valued and included.

As of February 10, 2023, New York City Executive Order 25 rescinded the requirement of the COVID-19 vaccination for City workers, new hires, and contracted employees. Accordingly, the Center does not require all new hires be vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus; however, the Center recommends all staff, interns, and volunteers stay up-to-date on the vaccination.

In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete an employment eligibility verification document form upon hire. Kindly refer to the job posting for the relevant contact information. If the contact details are not provided, we kindly ask that you refrain from making inquiries via phone or email, as only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.