GOVERNMENT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

DC COMMISSION ON THE ARTS AND HUMANITIES

***RECRUITMENT NOTICE:  Grants Management Specialist***

Position Title: Grants Management Specialist
Job ID: 6314
Open To: Public
Open Period: February 8, 2019 – February 23, 2019

Overview:
Since 1967, the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities (CAH) has supported and advanced the arts and cultural life of the District of Columbia through grants, educational activities and special events. Through carefully calibrated investments across a range of targeted and general support grant programs, the Agency has helped make available a broad range of arts and humanities programs to the citizens of the District. The numerous grantmaking programs and initiatives account for nearly two-thirds of the Agency budget and reach into and across all eight wards of DC. Hundreds of nonprofit organizations and individual practitioners are recipient of CAH funds.

CAH is seeking a two (2) Grants Management Specialists to join a team of Specialists who manage a diverse portfolio of grants programs. These programs range from General Operating Support, Facilities and Buildings, Sister Cities, Fellowships for individuals, capacity building programs for small and mid-sized organizations, and the Projects, Events or Festivals grant initiative. Individual grant awards may range from $2,500 to $200,000 in funding. The Grants Management Specialist will have a portfolio of approximately 150 grantees across a variety of program areas.

Position Description:  
Each Specialist will steward assigned programs from initial concept to final grant completion and closeout. This includes: guideline development and/or revisions for the grant program, solicitation and review of applications, delivering technical assistance to applicants, solicitation and training of panelists to review applications, formulation of grant recommendations, notification of grant award, site visits and monitoring of grantees, review and approval of interim and/or final reports and distillation of panel feedback for declined proposals.

The Grants Management Specialist is knowledgeable about the DC arts and humanities ecosystem and can articulate the challenges that this community faces on a daily basis. The Specialist is able to interface appropriately with a variety of community stakeholders, from general members of the public to nonprofit fundraising staff to executive leadership and board members of applicant organizations. The Specialist must be comfortable having difficult conversations, particularly with applicants that are declined from receiving funds, and be able to handle delicate situations with tact and empathy. Additionally, the Specialist must be passionate about the arts and humanities sector.  

Specific responsibilities include:
• Managing a portfolio of grants-based projects from beginning to end, including technical aspects of initiating grant programs, delivering technical assistance to applicants and maintaining timely communications with assigned grantees (organization and individual recipients).
• Coordinating the review of applications by independent grant panels, including the initial selection of grant panelists, training of volunteer panelists, overseeing panel operations and convenings.
• Tabulating scores and funding recommendations for review by Executive Director and the Grants Committee of the Board of Commissioners.
• Monitoring grantees and potential applicants throughout the year. This includes attending events and meetings on an ad hoc basis, as necessary.
• Administering the grants process through the agency’s online grants portal, Jungle Lasers, ensuring that application questions are updated and troubleshooting when issues arise.
• Performing high-priority ad hoc data analysis / research projects as needed; independent data analysis projects as workload permits.

Experience/Qualifications:
• Bachelor’s degree preferred.
• 1-3 years similar work experience required.
• Comprehensive knowledge of best practices in grantmaking and grant writing.
• Familiarity with grants management database programs.
• Experience interpreting and analyzing data reports
• Strong customer service and interpersonal communication skills.
• Ability to juggle multiple project simultaneously.
• Desire to leverage skills to serve the public interest required.
• Interest or background in an arts or humanities discipline required.

Salary: This position is a grade 11 on the District government’s career service salary scale. The salary ranges from $59,727 to $77,007.  Actual salary is determined by a variety of factors including: years of experience, applicant qualifications, internal equity comparisons and agency organizational structure.

Application Process: This position is posted on the DC government’s Department of Human Resources (DCHR) website.  Interested applicants are encouraged to follow the steps below to apply for the position:
• Click on the following link:
https://careers.dc.gov/psc/erecruit/EMPLOYEE/HRMS/c/HRS_HRAM_FL.HRS_CG_SEARCH_FL.GBL?FOCUS=Applicant
• In the Search Jobs section, enter 6314
• Click on the job requisition entitled Grants Management Specialist