Program Associate, Family Court Programs

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

The Family Justice Initiative is a new, statewide Family Court project that will support a strategic planning process to increase access to justice in Family Court across New York State. The project will be solutions focused - building on the reports and analyses that have been completed to date - to prioritize areas for improvement, identify promising initiatives ripe for expansion, and explore and test bold new ideas. Strong Starts is a Family Court-based, attachment and infant mental health-focused innovative program model created to meet the unique needs of infants and toddlers who are subjects of child protection proceedings. Strong Starts is operating currently in all five New York City boroughs, Westchester County, and Erie County with plans for continued expansion throughout New York State.

The Center’s Family Court Programs team is seeking a Program Associate. Reporting to the Center’s Director of Family Court Programs, the Program Associate will primarily work on the Family Justice Initiative and the Strong Starts Court Initiative (Strong Starts) and will support the programmatic and operational needs of all Family Court programs. The Program Associate will support the Family Court Programs through the development of materials, grant writing/reporting, presentations at conferences, as well as providing operational support for the programs. The Program Associate will, as a representative of the Family Justice Initiative and Strong Starts, engage with judges, attorneys and other court partners, child welfare practitioners, and community-based service providers, as well as other Center program partners. The Program Associate will work closely with Family Court Leadership to assist in scaling programs, ensure consistency in practice across counties, and support the mission of improving how courts and child welfare systems respond to children and families.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Assist with the development of programmatic materials, such as tip sheets, bench guides and policies and practices;
• Assist with grant writing/reporting to support expansion of Family Court Programs;
• Assist with the preparation of materials for national conferences;
• Support regular communications efforts with external stakeholders for all projects, including newsletters, program updates, and other external communication materials, and support management of project stakeholder database;
• Assist in data collection and analysis with the Family Court Research Associate for the purposes of informing practice, program development, quality assurance and research, as well as ensuring grant requirements are met and captured on an on-going basis;
• Build on and streamline logistical and operational infrastructure for internal project processes to match expansion efforts;
• Draft and submit contracts, extensions, and modifications in coordination with the Legal Department for consultants and sub-contractors;
• Work with the Fiscal Department to process invoices and make payments for consultants, sub-contractors, and other expenses;
• Manage Strong Starts calendar and schedule meetings with all stakeholders and partners;
• Assist with the hiring and onboarding of new staff in coordination with Human Resources;
• Assist in the planning, development and facilitation of training events and stakeholder meetings, including providing logistical support for registration, hosting webinars, and overseeing CLE credits for participants; and 
• Additional tasks as necessary. 

Qualifications: The candidate will have a Bachelor's degree and 1-2 years of related experience, preferably working on gender-based violence, child welfare and/or child victimization issues, especially as they relate to the justice system. Interest and experience in working directly with children and adolescents and their families is also preferred. Excellent written skills are a must. Candidate must be a skilled communicator, highly organized and detail-oriented, and able to work in a multi-disciplinary setting and maintain strong relationships with multiple stakeholders and organizations onsite, in the community and nationally. Occasional national travel will be required.  Bi-lingual Spanish preferred.

Position Type: Full-time

Position Location: Manhattan, NY.

Compensation: The compensation range for this position is $52,000 - $64,500 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.