Community Artist and Educator
Only candidates who apply on our website will be considered: https://mcc.org/get-involved/serve/openings/community-artist-educator
Synopsis: Community Artist and Educator works closely with the West Coast MCC staff team focused on external audience and churches. This role is creative and enhances regional connections with churches, community members, and young adults by creating artist pieces and murals that reflect the values and mission of MCC and spark conversations about MCC’s work. This position will teach and educate through art, creative expressions, and storytelling to promote MCC’s work in relation to migration, justice, and peacebuilding. This position will create several murals in the community that will generate funds to support MCC’s work.
Position Scope:
This position is focused on external constituency and will be responsible for broadening young adult and church connections in the West Coast region through artist platforms and coordinating education spaces with the goal of increasing advocacy knowledge and engagement. This position will report directly to the West Coast MCC Executive Director
Organizational values and culture:
All MCC workers are expected to exhibit a commitment to a personal Christian faith and discipleship; active church membership; and nonviolent peacemaking.
MCC is an equal opportunity employer, committed to employment equity. MCC values diversity and invites all qualified candidates to apply.
Safeguarding commitment:
All MCC staff are expected to work collaboratively to create and maintain an organizational culture that prevents and responds to situations of abuse of power (sexual harassment, child abuse, racism, exploitation, and fraud among other situations).
Anti-oppression commitment:
MCC expects all staff to actively participate in an organizational culture that focuses on dismantling any barriers based on race, economic inequality or gender-based oppression. This includes an expectation to assess and address any barriers within themselves, within their team(s), and within MCC.
Essential Qualifications and Skill Requirements:
- High school diploma required.
- 1-2 years of specialized experience in mural creation and design.
- Superior artistic, painting, and/or mural design skills and painting on many kinds of surfaces using many different paints.
- Extremely proficient in image design, artist elements, and painting.
- Excellent organizational and composition skills and a keen attention to detail.
- Strong schedule and time management skills.
- Strong problem solving and troubleshooting skills.
- Understanding of community engagement strategies and ability to engage in in-depth conversations about MCC’s work.
- Experience teaching and educating constituency about recommendations for positive change, reasoning for a cause, and/or supporting on behalf of others.
- Strong organizational, creative and conceptual skills. The ability to manage multiple large and small projects at one time.
- The capacity to network over distance and work effectively within a decentralized region of churches and young adult connections.
- Commitment to maintain an organizational culture that creates a safe environment for all and that prevents abuses of power (sexual harassment, child abuse, racism, exploitation, and fraud among other situations).
Employment eligibility: Legally eligible to work in the U.S. MCC offers of employment are subject to a successful criminal background check(s).
Preferred qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts, Art Design, Art History, or related disciplines is preferred.
- Preferred knowledge or commitment to learning trauma-informed responses to survivors of abuses of power (sexual harassment, child abuse, racism and exploitation, among others).
Key Responsibilities:
Networking:
Strong collaboration as a team player. Requires strong interpersonal skills to work closely with and negotiate with building owners, businesses, pastors, and organizations to develop mural concepts and plans. Ability to articulate MCC’s vision and work in relation to migration, justice, and peacebuilding to teach and lead conversations resulting from projects.
Administrative:
Project management oversight for artistic projects. Ability to plan a project based on interactions with the client and in accordance with the client’s requirements and addressing any challenges that arise. Project budget development, event planning, negotiating contracts, and developing community interest on behalf of MCC.
Contacts/Relationships:
This position works closely with the West Coast MCC regional staff team, more specifically the Young Adult Coordinator, Restorative Director, and/or Immigration Program Director to coordinate events and/or projects that highlight young adult interest in MCC’s program work. This is an external facing position that serves to build connections with young adults, churches, and community members in the West Coast region.
Supervision:
No direction supervision over any positions.
Complexity/Competencies:
Involves creativity and innovation to develop new projects, contracts, and classes that are centered in artist expression. Coordination with regional Young Adult Coordinator, Immigration and Restorative Justice Directors/staff is required to plan events and projects.
Independent Action:
Ability to plan for and complete artistic projects in various formats with minimal supervision and be a self-starter. Must be able to juggle multiple projects to adjust to urgent needs as they come up. Sound judgment and decision making required for planning and implementing mural paintings and community engagement opportunities. Requires concentration of artist detail and composition.
End Result:
Creates new artist platforms and coordinates education spaces with the goal of increasing advocacy knowledge and engagement in collaboration with the Executive Director, Young Adult Coordinator, and/or Restorative Justice & Immigration Program Directors in the West Coast region.
Tasks:
60% Artistic Project Creation and Implementation:
• Generate opportunities for artistic projects, painting, and/or mural painting within the West Coast region and larger MCC U.S. (upon request) with the specific purpose to educate and promote MCC’s work in relation to migration, justice, and peacebuilding.
• Organize and complete minimal of six artist projects in the West Coast region within a calendar year to generate funds that will go to support MCC’s efforts.
• Plan and lead artist classes, training, or artist projects for people to learn and connect with creative art.
• Networking with other faith-based art organizations and/or artists to collaborate on projects, support one another for artist work, and represent MCC’s commitment to the arts and faith.
30% Constituent Education
• Teaching and education through art, creative expressions, painting, and/or mural painting, and storytelling about MCC’s advocacy in relation to migration, justice, and peacebuilding.
• Participate in learning opportunities within West Coast MCC and the larger MCC network to keep up to date on MCC’s work in migration, justice, and peacebuilding efforts.
10% Administrative Work
• Work with the West Coast Executive Director and Finance Associate to generate contracts or MOU agreements for the mural paintings and/or teaching opportunities.
• Coordinate and schedule teaching opportunities for leading conversations about MCC’s work.