Job Title: Program Manager, Adult Education  

Organization: The Loft Literary Center, Minneapolis www.loft.org

Status: FT Exempt

Reports to: Senior Director of Craft

Compensation: $52,000–$58,000 annual salary  

The Loft operates on a 32-hour work week with the exception of seasonal demands. Benefits include health insurance (Loft pays 80% of a top tier plan, life insurance, two weeks paid time off annually (starting), 11 holidays, accrued sick/personal leave, and the opportunity to take one free Loft class per year.

About the Loft: Celebrating 50 years since its incorporation, the Loft Literary Center is one of the nation’s leading nonprofit literary centers with classes, workshops, mentorships, events, resources and services that advance the power of writers and readers to craft and share stories, to create and celebrate connections, and to build just, life-sustaining communities. Loft staff members enjoy a flexible workplace, health and other benefits, and the company of dedicated and creative colleagues. The Loft is committed to being an actively antiracist organization and the Adult Education Manager will play a key role in advancing the cultural competence, equity, and accessibility of Loft classes. 

Position Purpose: The Loft was originally established as a community-based school for writers. The Adult Education Manager will play a key role in continuing to build upon and to evolve this legacy. As a member of the Loft’s Craft Team, the Adult Education Manager will be responsible for developing and managing the Loft’s annual class offerings for adults; serving as the primary liaison managing relationships with teaching artists for adult classes; and collaborating across programs to advance the success of the Loft’s adult education programming.  

Primary Areas of Responsibilities and Tasks

In all areas of accountability for this position, responsiveness, empathy, humor, and a strong commitment to customer service will be needed. You will be a good fit for this position if you enjoy program administration, working with a wide variety of learners, and you share our commitment to antiracism. The list below is representative of the essential duties for the job, but it is not necessarily an all-inclusive list of duties required to perform this role. As a member of the Loft staff, you may be asked to provide support for “all hands on deck” activities or events and to perform other duties as necessary to fulfill the Loft’s mission, vision and strategic objectives.

Develop and manage annual class offerings for adults to advance the skills and professional development of writers and inspire the passion of readers (50%):  

• Develop and implement an annual plan for adult class offerings
• Schedule classes for seasonal course terms, Year-Long Writing Projects, and writers of color classes
• Train, supervise, and support the success of the Loft’s Education Associates and education-related contractors, interns, and volunteers
• Oversee administration and customer service including coordinating phone coverage and onsite and virtual support for adult classes
• Conduct information sessions and advise prospective students regarding course offerings  
• Oversee and participate in the registration of class participants
• Develop and evolve systems to maintain the accuracy of data related to adult classes in Salesforce
• Serve as the primary liaison for marketing adult classes; write and edit design-ready copy for catalogs or for use on the Loft’s website
• Administer class evaluations and enter data in a timely fashion  

Serve as primary liaison and manage relationships with teaching artists for adult classes (30%):

• Recruit and supervise teaching artists for the Loft’s adult classes and Year-Long Writing Projects
• Train and orient teaching artists to Loft values and commitment to equity and antiracism, pedagogical best practices, class proposal process, pay structures, conduct and classroom protocols, and offer guidance on other relevant policies and supportive resources
• Support teaching artists in the design and development of course descriptions and syllabi and in identifying technology or equipment needs for classes
• Manage the contracting process for teaching artists 
• Manage communications with teaching artists throughout scheduling, contracting, and course implementation
• Update and maintain the Loft Teacher’s Guide 

Collaborate to advance the engagement and success of Loft program participants (20%):

• Work with the Senior Director of Craft to create and attain annual tuition revenue goals and to evaluate and evolve program offerings to increase student enrollment
• Work with the Senior Director of Craft to disseminate antiracist pedagogies and best practices for community-centric learning environments
• Collaborate with awards and services managers to develop, review, and select proposals and applications for Loft classes, awards, services, and access funds
• Work with the Community Engagement team to develop and coordinate adult education-related offerings associated with Loft series, partnerships, and events
• Collaborate with the Development Team to identify education-related funding opportunities and/or provide context and support to education-related grant writing and reporting

Knowledge and experience required for this job:

• Experience implementing educational programs in community-centric learning environments (an understanding of enrichment vs academic programs)
• Experience with program and data management 
• Experience working with a wide variety of constituents including BIPOC and marginalized learners and learning environments
• A customer service orientation—the ability to remain personable, diplomatic, with a commitment to be responsive, manage conflict, and remain solutions-oriented in response to complaints
• Demonstrated knowledge and skills with antiracism and antiracist pedagogies
• Ability to champion the Loft’s core values
• Experience with supervision and managing interns and/or volunteers
• Proficient knowledge of Salesforce, Asana, Submittable, Google Suite, and Zoom or comparable platforms for sales, project and proposal management 
• An open and learning orientation to technology, software, and office equipment
• Appetite and ability to learn quickly
• Strong interpersonal and communications skills including proficiency in written and spoken English
• Ability to work and problem-solve independently
• Enjoyment working alone and in teams
• A positive, forward-looking, and curious approach
• Excellent attention to detail and deadlines
• Ability to work a flexible schedule including evenings and weekends, as needed
• A bachelor’s degree or higher or equivalent experience

The ideal candidate will have:

• Experience with antiracist pedagogies
• An established network in the Twin Cities literary community, especially with writers and teaching artists
• Energy and enthusiasm for active participation in local, national, and virtual literary events and communities
• A love of stories and books
• Analytical skill and experience
• A sense of humor and an ease with people

NOTE: Loft employees are not eligible to apply for Loft awards for writers

To Apply: Please answer the application questions and submit your resume via Submittable. If you do not have a Submittable account, you will need to create one.

Due to the expected number of applicants, we request that you do not call or email to check on your application status. You will get a confirmation by email to let you know that your application was received as well as notification when the position is filled.

Hiring Process: This position is open until filled; applications will be reviewed as they come in, but first preference will be given to applications received by September 5th. Interviews will likely begin in mid-September. 

The Loft is an equal opportunity employer.