Community Engagement Specialist

FOUNDATION FOR THE CAROLINAS•Charlotte, NC

About The Position

The Arts & Science Council (ASC), a supporting organization of Foundation for the Carolinas, nurtures Charlotte-Mecklenburg’s cultural ecosystem by supporting local creatives and nonprofits. Its mission is to foster community retention, drive economic growth, and enhance residents' quality of life. As both a funder and fundraiser, ASC offers grants, manages public art, supports community-led programs like Culture Blocks, and provides educational programming for PreK–12 students. ASC’s work aims to remove barriers, ensure cultural access for all, and promote upward mobility. Under the supervision of the VP, Advancement, the Community Engagement Specialist provides professional coordination, project leadership, and operational management for ASC’s community engagement programs, learning experiences, volunteer program, donor/stakeholder events, government partner events, civic engagement initiatives, and cross-department projects. This role serves as an operational hub that translates Advancement, donor engagement, civic engagement, and learning-program priorities into clear project plans, timelines, partner coordination systems, event readiness tools, and follow-up processes.

Requirements

A minimum of 3–5 years of relevant experience in program coordination, event operations, community engagement, nonprofit project management, volunteer coordination, stakeholder engagement, or related work.
Demonstrated ability to manage complex projects with multiple stakeholders, timelines, and dependencies.
Strong project management and organizational skills, including experience maintaining timelines, trackers, checklists, and follow-up systems.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
Ability to coordinate across departments and work effectively with multiple strategy owners.
Sound judgment and ability to identify when decisions should be escalated.
Experience supporting events, trainings, workshops, donor/stakeholder convenings, or civic engagement programs.
Commitment to equity, inclusion, accessibility, and community-centered approaches.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with Charlotte-Mecklenburg’s cultural, civic, nonprofit, or philanthropic landscape.
Experience supporting donor engagement, government partner events, advocacy convenings, or community-facing programs.
Experience coordinating volunteer programs.
Experience with project management platforms such as Monday.com or similar tools.
Experience supporting registration systems, event communication tools, or CRM-related event workflows.

Responsibilities

Own operational planning and execution for assigned community engagement programs and initiatives.
Translate priorities from the VP, Advancement, Individual Giving Officer, and Government Relations Officer into project plans, timelines, readiness checklists, and project trackers.
Maintain clear schedules, deadlines, dependencies, assignments, and status updates for assigned programs.
Coordinate across departments to ensure internal partners understand their roles, deadlines, and follow-up responsibilities.
Escalate risks, unresolved decisions, delayed inputs, or competing priorities to the appropriate strategy owner.
Coordinate operational delivery of the Cultural Leadership Training Program, including session logistics, participant communications, materials, calendars, room setup, speaker/facilitator coordination, attendance tracking, and post-session follow-up.
Support operational planning and execution for other workshops or trainings.
Coordinate with facilitators, vendors, speakers, and internal staff to ensure learning programs are professionally delivered.
Maintain program timelines, contact lists, session checklists, registration records, and participant communications.
Support basic reporting on participation, logistical effectiveness, and follow-up needs.
Coordinate ASC’s volunteer engagement program, including volunteer information sessions, volunteer communications, sign-up processes, tracking systems, and volunteer placement support.
Work with internal departments to identify volunteer needs and translate those needs into clear opportunities, assignments, and follow-up processes.
Maintain volunteer rosters, sign-up tools, attendance or participation records, and stewardship touchpoints.
Support volunteer recognition and appreciation efforts.
Ensure volunteer engagement supports ASC’s broader Advancement, community engagement, donor engagement, government relations, Public Art, and Community & Artist Support priorities.
Partner with the Individual Giving Officer to support donor and stakeholder engagement events and initiatives.
Provide operational support for Creative Breaks, donor engagement gatherings, stewardship events, and other donor-facing or stakeholder-facing activities as assigned.
Maintain project plans, invitation timelines, guest experience plans, venue/vendor coordination, staffing plans, run-of-show documents, and follow-up systems.
Ensure donor engagement events are executed in a way that supports the goals set by the Individual Giving Officer and VP, Advancement.
Coordinate with the Content & Communications Specialist and Marketing & Communications Officer on event promotion, invitations, digital assets, and follow-up communications.
Support the operational planning and delivery of major government partner and civic engagement events, including the Mecklenburg Arts & Culture Impact Summit and a future Datathon designed to support advocacy engagement with civic leaders.
Collaborate with the Government Relations Officer to translate advocacy and civic engagement priorities into executable event plans.
Maintain project timelines, venue and vendor trackers, event schedules, speaker/support material checklists, internal staffing plans, run-of-show documents, guest experience plans, and post-event follow-up documentation.
Coordinate with internal teams and external partners to ensure event readiness.
Support registration, guest communications, day-of logistics, and follow-up documentation.
Ensure civic and government partner events are executed in a way that supports the strategy set by the Government Relations Officer and VP, Advancement.
Coordinate projects that require input from Marketing & Communications, Individual Giving, Government Relations, Public Art, Community & Artist Support, and other ASC teams.
Maintain project trackers, action-item lists, dependency maps, and follow-up documentation.
Help ensure project owners and internal partners understand what is needed, by when, and from whom.
Coordinate project handoffs between strategy owners and execution partners.
Identify potential bottlenecks and escalate them before they become urgent.
Support the VP, Advancement in reducing operational burden by maintaining visibility into active projects and upcoming deadlines.
Develop and maintain event readiness systems, including planning timelines, production checklists, run-of-show documents, staffing plans, materials lists, guest experience plans, and post-event debrief templates.
Ensure assigned events have clear owners, deadlines, roles, and handoff points.
Coordinate day-of execution plans and ensure internal staff understand roles and responsibilities.
Capture post-event notes, next steps, and lessons learned to support continuous improvement.