Director, Policy Advocacy Department

ACLU of Washington•Seattle, WA

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The ACLU of Washington (ACLU-WA) advances liberty and justice in the courts, in the legislatures, in the streets, and at the ballot box. Our work is rooted in the belief of a future where everyone in Washington, particularly those who have been historically and systematically denied full enjoyment of their promised civil rights and liberties, are free to do so without barriers. Defending and advancing these fundamental rights and core values requires exceptional staff. ACLU-WA is seeking a Director of the Policy Advocacy Department (PAD). Reporting to the Integrated Advocacy Director, the Director of the Policy Advocacy Department provides leadership for PAD team members and is a member of the Integrated Advocacy Department (IAD). This role supports and supervises Policy Advocacy and Organizing staff in the development of long and short-term work plans and goals, consistent with the ACLU-WA's programmatic strategic plan. The Director of PAD ensures progress towards established goals and that the policy and organizing work of the ACLU-WA is strategic, collaborative, consistent with ACLU policy, and aligns with ACLU-WA values and practices.

Requirements

Minimum three (3) years of experience managing others; experience with managing budgets, supervising direct reports, and coordinating volunteers (both students and professionals).
Ten (10) years of policy advocacy experience.
Experience working in a senior policy position that required significant political acumen and management.
Demonstrated ability to plan and implement effective strategies based on realistic objectives, maintain momentum, and evaluate progress.
Strong judgement, emotional intelligence, analytic and problem-solving skills.
A diplomatic advocate with active listening skills who can connect with people from different backgrounds, build relationships across differences, and navigate and resolve conflict.
Accessible, flexible, decisive, and collaborative management style that inspires trust and confidence, inspires staff to work together in pursuit of a common mission, and holds them accountable for accomplishment of objectives.
Ability to provide clear direction, delegate well and assume responsibility.
A compelling public speaker and strong writer and editor; the ability to communicate complex information to a wide variety of audiences and communicate strategically on controversial issues.
Excellent organization and time management skills to manage one’s own work as well as the work of others, and to assure completion of assignments and projects.
Competence in the use of office computer applications, electronic databases, and electronic legal research.
Be committed to advancing the mission, vision, and values of the ACLU-WA.
Center and embed the principles of equity, inclusion and belonging in their work by demonstrating commitment to diversity with an approach that respects and values multiple perspectives.
Be committed to work collaboratively and respectfully toward resolving obstacles and conflicts.

Nice To Haves

J.D. or other advanced degree in law, civil rights, or government is a plus.

Responsibilities

Actively collaborate, facilitate, and develop structures for cross departmental work and strategies.
Support and assist in the development of integrated advocacy policies, tools, and best practices.
Work with the IAD leadership team to help shepherd cross-team development of multiyear strategies to advance advocacy goals. Help ensure strategic sequencing and sufficient capacity to execute strategies.
In collaboration with Integrated Advocacy Director, regularly evaluate alignment between program needs and resources to support effective advancement of ACLU-WA’s mission, vision, values, and programmatic goals.
Develop and support staff in developing novel and innovative policy solutions that are responsive to impacted community needs and priorities, sound policy, consistent with the ACLU-WA’s mission, vision, values and programmatic plan, and politically feasible.
Facilitate development of integrated advocacy strategies and campaigns to advance goals, working in collaboration with other ACLU-WA staff and external partners.
Identify urgent and emerging issues and guide development of ACLU-WA response.
Ensure that PAD centers equity as an overarching value in advocacy work, develops and implements plans in a manner that increases the power and voice of impacted communities to effectuate sustained change, and centers the ACLU-WA’s community agreements in internal operations.
Support and assist PAD leads in the development and implementation of long-term priorities.
Ensure consistent application of program planning tools and decision-making tools and structures across PAD.
Guide development and implementation of consistent approaches to PAD project planning, implementation, and debriefing.
In partnership with IAD Leadership Team, guides development and implementation of consistent approaches to project planning, implementation, and debriefing.
Develop and maintain general familiarity with the work of each PAD team member, and policy knowledge in assigned policy areas that are not staffed by a specific PAD lead.
Work with PAD leads to promote cohesion among various ACLU-WA issue areas and mitigate or resolve potential conflicts in the work.
Maintain knowledge of ACLU-WA’s organizing theory of change and philosophy.
Support organizing and policy program staff in defining roles and responsibilities for engagement with impacted communities, allies, ACLU-WA supporters, and other community partners, and in developing workplans that effectively use team resources to develop and advance policy priorities.
Track, review, and compare annual expenses against budget; develop annual proposed budgets for PAD program work; review and approve budgeted expenditures.
In collaboration with the Legislative Affairs Department, lobbies elected officials and other public officials.
Prepare and deliver testimony; draft and review legal and policy advocacy letters and regulatory comments.
Sit on government task forces as assigned.
Analyze proposed and prospective legislation and regulations; provide policy and legal feedback to internal and external stakeholders.
Collaborate with the Communications Department to identify and advance opportunities to increase support for ACLU-WA policy proposals through public education.
Provide legal and policy expertise to support effective message development and ensures ACLU-WA communications about policy are accurate, comprehensive, and consistent with ACLU-WA goals.
Hold PAD accountable for their plans and assists in the oversight for the success of cross-departmental campaigns/projects.
Supervise or delegate supervision of hiring, onboarding, and offboarding processes for staff in PAD.
Supervise and support staff including Policy Program Directors, an Organizing Director, Organizers, Policy Analysts, and the Policy Advocacy Department Associate.
Collaborate with the Integrated Advocacy Director and IAD Leadership Team to build a culture of leadership and management that promotes teamwork, professional growth, accountability, and the ACLU-WA’s equity and justice goals.
Present at ACLU-WA board meetings and donor cultivation events.
Ensure that the PAD Department is a collaborator in the ACLU-WA’s integrated advocacy efforts and facilitate PAG staff collaborations with other departments as appropriate.
Collaborate as appropriate with the ACLU National and other affiliates on nationwide and state-specific issues.
Engage in community and coalition outreach, education, and events.
Build accountable and trusted relationships with leadership at allied organizations and partners.
Serve as an external spokesperson on policy issues.
Participate in organizational hiring processes, strategic and program planning, and other activities to advance the ACLU-WA’s organizational mission, vision, and values.
Perform other related duties as assigned that are consistent and within the scope of the position.

Benefits

Three weeks of vacation
Twenty-three sick days given in 2026
Twelve paid holidays
Two weeks of paid office closure
Employer-paid professional development
Fully paid employee medical, dental, vision, and disability insurance
A retirement plan with employer contributions
Student loan reimbursement
Family care and adoption assistance
Life insurance
An ORCA card, the regional transportation pass
Laptops
Home office supplies
Certain equipment
Technology support
Work phone
Additional $150 stipend each month to help cover any additional costs while working from home.