The candidate filling this vacancy will serve as a member of the Board of Directors through December 2018.
Organization:
SPARK Reproductive Justice NOW! (SPARK) is a reproductive justice (RJ) organization based in Atlanta, GA, working to shift policy and culture to protect and expand access to the full range of family planning options, abortion access, and sexual and reproductive health education for Black women, women of color, and LGBTQQ youth of color in the state of Georgia and the South.
Mission Statement:
SPARK’s mission is to build new leadership, change culture and advance knowledge in Georgia and the South to ensure individuals and communities have resources and power to make sustainable and liberatory decisions about our bodies, gender, sexualities and lives.
Vision:
SPARK envisions a world where economic, social and cultural equity, restorative justice, body autonomy and comprehensive reproductive and sexual freedom exists; where all people are empowered, valued, and able to make liberatory decisions about their communities, families and lives.
Value:
SPARK works to ensure the liberation of all people but our analysis is specifically anchored in the historical lasting legacy of the enslavement and exploitation of Black people in the South, this legacy includes economic disenfranchisement, racial inequality and reproductive oppression, who were at the site of labor domination, violence and experimentation. This is why we center Black women, women of color and queer/trans* youth of color.
Core Constituencies:
- Black Women (ages 18-50)
- Women of Color (ages 18-50)
- LGBTQ Youth of Color (ages 18-30)
Job Description:
This is a volunteer position available on the Board of Directors. Board members will attend monthly and quarterly meetings via Skype, telephone or in person, as well as, participate in strategic planning, policy-making and fundraising efforts for the organization. Up to three individuals will be appointed to fill the vacant positions until the December 2018 elections have been held and certified and a newly elected individuals have been sworn-in to fill the remainder of these positions’ term.
Qualifications
Diversity of ethnicity, gender, economic status, and neighborhood location
We are seeking board members who represent different cultural and ethnic backgrounds, sexual orientation and gender, and economic situation.
A commitment to gender justice and racial justice work
Board members will participate in the ongoing work to ensure that all genders – cis-gender, trans-gender, and gender non-conforming individuals – have full access to the health, rights, and justice with respect and dignity, as well as racial justice work rooted in the Black Southern experience to ensure the alignment of all areas of the organization with its stated mission, values and vision, relationships, practices, policies, and programs.
Ability to work with diverse communities
Board members must be able to relate to, communicate with, and respect differences of opinion, embrace all gender identities and sexual orientations, and value hearing new voices as well as lived experiences.
Management or leadership experience
SPARK would be well served to have a few individuals on its board that have experience managing nonprofit or for profit corporations, either as staff, board members, legal counsel, development professionals, accountants, human resources managers, or in other management facets.
Understanding of the role of movement building in social change
Board members values SPARK’s role as a non-profit organization with its own priorities and objectives AND as a movement building organization that contributes to other organizations and movements through analysis, strategic partnerships, and consciousness raising to make social change. We challenge racism, classism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ageism, ableism or other forms of oppression; and question mainstream culture and beliefs in an effort to shift culture and improve the lives of the most vulnerable, particularly in the South.
Commitment to innovative fundraising and resource development
Board members willing to fundraise through network of contacts, including individuals, activists and organizations working in this field.
Community Partnership/Collaboration Leadership Skills
Board members commitments to growing SPARK’s diverse network of national allies, community partners, and constituents.
Interested persons must submit a letter expressing interest in the board position and their qualifications for the position to Dr. Krystal Redman, the Executive Director, no later than September 16th, 5:00 p.m. (EST).
Following a review of the submitted materials, the board will schedule interviews with selected candidates. Not all candidates for the board vacancy will be interviewed. If you have any questions concerning the role of the Board of Directors and the responsibilities of a board member, please contact:
Dr. Krystal Redman, Executive Director, at: krystal@sparkrj.org.
