Located in: Raleigh, NC

Background: Since 1987, the NC Rural Center has worked to improve the quality of life for the state’s rural people and

places. Our mission is to develop, promote, and implement sound economic strategies to improve the quality of life of

rural North Carolinians. We serve the state’s 78 rural counties, with a special focus on individuals with low-to-moderate

incomes and communities with limited resources. The NC Rural Center is a dynamic, nationally recognized non-profit

that supports rural communities through leadership training, community capacity building, small business lending,

research, and advocacy.

The NC Rural Center’s Faith in Rural Communities (FIRC) program sees local faith communities as catalysts to build

community focused projects that ensure everyone has the opportunity to thrive. FIRC supports rural churches to create

community hubs, providing for the spiritual, physical, and economic needs of the wider community. We work with local

leaders to integrate equity and strategic planning best practices into building relational programs that include all members

of the community in the design and execution. FIRC builds this leadership capacity through training, coaching, and grant

assistance to rural faith communities.

Position Overview: The FIRC Program Manager will be an integral part of the Faith in Rural Communities team and will

report directly to the Director of FIRC. This position is funded through a grant from the Lilly Endowment.

Responsibilities:

The FIRC Program Manager will report directly to the Director of Faith in Rural Communities and has the following

responsibilities:

 Build on-going relationships with congregations and communities served

 Identify new churches to build relationships for future opportunities

 Oversee a process of curriculum continuous improvement with FIRC Team Members

 Provide community development coaching and facilitation to faith communities and community teams.

Community teams may include diverse faith, non-profit, community, and government leaders

 Oversee the review, distribution, and follow-up on implementation grants including creating benchmarks and a

framework for evaluating successful grant applications

 Implement a system for measuring and evaluating programmatic impact in partnership with Director of Research

and Director of FIRC

 Identify and contribute content to project newsletter, social media communications, and marketing materials

 Identify and assist in developing new training opportunities and webinars related to faith-based community

development

 Ensure compliance with all funding requirements

 Participate in team and full staff meetings and other relevant internal meetings

 Participate in external partner and stakeholder meetings as needed

 Maintain knowledge on current best practices and models in faith-based community development

Qualifications:

 5 years working with diverse faith communities and/or rural economic development or a combination of

equivalent experience and education, Master’s Degree in related field preferred.

 Experience and comfort working with churches and rural communities

 Ability to develop and propose practical solutions to rural challenges

 Experience with or an understanding of community economic development

 Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with project partners and stakeholders

 Appreciation for working with diverse staff and communities

 Approaches work with an equity framework

 Commitment to constant learning and continuous growth

 Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including strong presentation abilities

 Ability to travel within North Carolina

 Occasional work in the evenings and on weekends is required

 Proficiency in Microsoft Office, Google Workspace, and Salesforce.

Compensation and Benefits: NC Rural Center offers a salary range of $70 – 75K for this position, commensurate with

experience. The NC Rural Center offers excellent benefits, including health, vision, and dental insurance, retirement

contributions, holidays, and paid time off. The NC Rural Center is an equal opportunity employer.