Title: Executive Director
Reports to: Board of Directors
Salary: $80,000-90,000
Status: Full-time, Exempt
Benefits: 20 days of PTO and 14 paid holidays, health insurance, relocation stipend, wellness stipend, additional benefits
Supervision: Supervises 4 employees and 2 contractors
Location: Crow’s Shadow is on the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation
(CTUIR), 10 minutes east of Pendleton, Oregon
Our mission is to be a creative conduit for educational, social, and economic opportunities for Native Americans through artistic development.
Our Place
Crow's Shadow is located amongst the rolling hills at the base of the beautiful Blue Mountains, in the traditional homelands of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR). Crow's Shadow is a ten-minute drive from the vibrant small town of Pendleton and is a three hour drive/half hour flight from Portland; 45 minutes from the vineyards, galleries, and colleges of Walla Walla, WA; a short drive from the dramatic scenery of the Columbia River Gorge; and immediately adjacent to beautiful rangeland, forests, and wilderness areas that are perfect for recreating in and inspiring creativity.
About Us
Located on the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) in beautiful Eastern Oregon, Crow’s Shadow Institute of the Arts’s vision is a world illumined and elevated through the genius of Indigenous creativity. Our programs include a world-class print studio which partners with Native and non-Native artists from around the nation, as well as a print gallery, traditional Indigenous arts workshops, and youth arts education programs.
Crow's Shadow prints have generated hundreds of thousands of dollars of income for majority Indigenous and BIPOC artists, have been featured in national exhibitions such as the Whitney Biennial, and have been collected by prominent private collectors and public institutions including the Whitney Museum, Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian and National Museum of American Art, Museum of Modern Art in NYC, Library of Congress, Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and more.
A 2019 feature in the New York Times hailed Crow's Shadow as a "hub for contemporary Native American artists nationwide...[attracting] some of the biggest Indigenous names in contemporary art." Now celebrating its 30th anniversary, Crow's Shadow is poised for growth.
Where We’re Headed
Crow’s Shadow has a clear vision for a new purpose-built facility to house our printmaking studio, art gallery, workshops, and spaces for artists-in-residence. In March 2023, to demonstrate its confidence in the CSIA and our plans for the future, the CTUIR Board of Trustees generously provided a no-cost, long-term lease on ten acres of scenic land on which to build this beacon for contemporary Native arts.
An important first step for the new Executive Director will be to hire Crow’s Shadow first Development Director, who will provide the necessary support to grow our donor base and conduct the capital campaign. Funding for this position has been secured. We have a national reputation for artistic excellence, a strong financial base, and a passionate and growing community of supporters, donors, collectors, and artists. Now, we seek an experienced executive director to lead us into our next thirty years and beyond.
The Role
Crow’s Shadow is seeking applicants with a combination of related experience and/or strong aptitude in the following areas:
● Leading, conceptualizing, planning, and executing complex projects with others, including capital campaigns.
● Leadership and management experience in a nonprofit, grassroots collective, business, or government entity, with nonprofit experience preferred.
● Experience working with Native American communities.
● Fundraising and capital campaign experience.
● Direct connections and strong relationships with philanthropy and the arts community-at-large, either regionally or nationally.
● Emotional and cultural intelligence with the ability to communicate and connect with community members, funders, artists, and arts leaders.
The Executive Director leads a team that includes the Master Printer, Apprentice Printer, Traditional Arts Manager, and Marketing Manager as staff, and accountant and bookkeeper contractors. Funding has already been secured to add a Development Director. Rounding out the organization is a talented Board of majority Native and non-Native artists, educators, Tribal leaders, business owners, nonprofit experts, and other professionals.
Responsibilities:
Strategic Leadership
● Work with the board of directors and staff to create and implement an updated strategic vision for Crow's Shadow that leverages opportunities for growth.
● Work with staff to ensure robust programming and a workplace culture that is sustainable, well-resourced, and fulfilling.
Fundraising
● Establish and nurture relationships with partners, funders, collectors, and donors.
● Hire and work with the Development Director to design and implement a sustainable fundraising strategy; lead individual, grants, and corporate fundraising until the Development Director is hired.
● Represent Crow’s Shadow at key fundraising meetings and events, and help cultivate new supporters and raise visibility.
● Work with staff and possible consultants to plan and implement a capital campaign to fund CSIA’s new home.
Administration
● Oversee staff coordination of maintenance and use of the facility.
● Oversee operational and administrative systems of the organization including bookkeeping, files, sales, and all other support/tracking systems.
● Maintain personnel files, oversee payroll, and lead recruitment and hiring.
Financial Management
● Ensure responsible fiscal management of the organization by developing and tracking the annual budget.
● Review financial reports regularly in partnership with bookkeeper and board.
Marketing
● Manage marketing staff, overseeing marketing and communications content across a variety of outreach channels, in order to promote print sales, exhibitions, workshops, events, and fundraising opportunities.
Art Gallery
● Curate or oversee the curation of exhibitions drawn from our permanent collection of prints created at CSIA.
● Work with staff to facilitate print sales and print promotion and to host events.
Program Supervision and Support
● Oversee the development and execution of annual programs with community impact and artistic value in alignment with the Strategic Plan.
● Provide supervision for staff and contractors, evaluate staff performance annually, and promote staff development.
Board Relations and Governance
● Work closely with the board of directors, and especially the executive committee, to ensure the good governance and financial security of CSIA, including the preparation of regular reports to the board.
● Serve as liaison between board and staff.
Communications and Public Relations
● Represent CSIA to all stakeholder groups and individuals in coordination with staff and the Board of Directors, including public speaking.
● Assist staff in ongoing promotion of CSIA through all media forms and events.
Preferred Qualifications
● Experience working with Indigenous communities and nations.
● Proven nonprofit leadership experience.
● A successful track record of fundraising from foundations, corporations, individuals, and agencies.
● Experience in the structure and implementation of a successful capital campaign.
● Experience working in cross-cultural settings and working effectively with people from diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds.
● Knowledge of Native contemporary and traditional arts and of contemporary art markets.
● Bachelor’s or Master’s Degree in a related academic discipline or equivalent work experience.
● A commitment to honoring the history and legacy of Crow’s Shadow while advancing and growing its signature programs.
We recognize that many desirable candidates will not have all of these preferred experiences or qualifications. We understand that skills are transferable and learnable: if you feel this position aligns with your experience and interests, we encourage you to apply. Crow’s Shadow Institute of the Arts is an equal opportunity employer and encourages applications from Tribal Members, people of color, persons with disabilities, women, and LBGTQ+ candidates.
To Apply:
Rose City Philanthropy has been retained for this search. Please submit your resumé or curriculum vitae and a cover letter describing your interest in CSIA’s mission and how your experience has prepared you for this position via a Word or PDF attachment to jennifer@rosecityphilanthropy.com. Please format the subject line of your email with your last name followed by the organization name and the position. Example: Miller_CSIA_ED. Application materials will be reviewed the first week of June, 2023.
To enquire about the position please contact Lara Miller at lara@rosecityphilanthropy.com. Rose City Philanthropy specializes in recruiting leadership talent for mission-driven organizations. We work closely with the board, staff, and the community to create an inclusive process that is informed by a variety of perspectives.
