Who We Are
We’re 18Doors, the only national Jewish non-profit laser focused on understanding, connecting with and communicating the needs of interfaith couples and families where one spouse is Jewish, and one has another spiritual or religious background. 18Doors has a website full of essays, advice, resources and recipes; programs for interfaith couples and families; a Jewish clergy referral service; rabbinic fellowship program and professional development for Jewish leaders, professionals and organizations—all focused on helping couples and families to connect and build the Jewish life they want.
Role Overview
18Doors has worked in Chicago for over a decade, directly engaging thousands of interfaith couples and families in programming and officiation services, as well as via our digital strategy. 18Doors is now prepared to scale those efforts, not by adding more engagement staff, but by shifting our approach. You will build the community’s capacity to engage interfaith couples and families by elevating the knowledge and skills of local Jewish professionals and lay leaders to serve this population. This will be accomplished by training and supporting organizational partners to deliver 18Doors’ codified curriculum, providing professional development experiences to Jewish clergy, professionals and lay leaders and increasing the visibility of interfaith issues among the Chicago Jewish community. In the end, you will become THE community resource for supporting organizations in offering places of belonging for Jewish interfaith couples and families across the Chicagoland area.
You will start by completing a listening tour to supplement the most recent Chicago Jewish community study, with a focus on interfaith couples and families, their current needs and how 18Doors and other local organizations are meeting those needs. This initial research will help you not only deepen your knowledge of existing experiences and offerings for interfaith couples and help you identify opportunities for additional support, but also to forge relationships for your future work.
This is a key new position that will inform the future of 18Doors’ work across the country. The Director will report to the Chief Program Officer and will work collaboratively with colleagues across 18Doors.
Who You Are
You are an entrepreneur, thought-leader, network weaver and facilitator with an extensive knowledge of interfaith engagement and empowerment. You like building concepts from scratch and are comfortable with learning quickly. You understand how to collect and analyze data and then use it to inform your work. You are not afraid to make mistakes, but rather see them as learning opportunities for you and others. You have a knack for communicating complex ideas and concepts in ways others can easily understand.
You are also knowledgeable about the Chicago Jewish organizational landscape or have demonstrated experience of quickly learning about a community and embedding yourself in it. You are a natural relationship builder who knows how to leverage those relationships to achieve great things.
We want our team to reflect the diversity of our world, and of interfaith couples and families.??
18Doors is committed to diversifying our employees and welcomes applications from those groups that have historically been underrepresented in our organization—people of color,?people with disabilities and transgender and non-binary people.?
You will begin your role by conducting a listening tour to understand the current ways Chicago’s Jewish community serves interfaith couples and families and identify areas for 18Doors to support, enhance and deepen those efforts. Your initial research will inform how you will accomplish the work described below, but will not significantly change the areas of work.
Do you not meet all the qualifications above? You may still be a great candidate and we encourage you to apply if you meet the majority of the qualifications. Here’s why: Research shows that men apply for jobs when they meet about 60% of the qualifications, but those with historically marginalized identities apply only when they meet 100% of the requirements. We look forward to reviewing cover letters and resumes from candidates with diverse experiences who could benefit 18Doors and who believe they can do this role.
Equal Opportunity Employer
18Doors is the only national organization laser-focused on supporting interfaith couples exploring Jewish life and helping build inclusive Jewish communities. We offer educational content and resources; connections to inclusive organizations, Jewish clergy, professionals and programs; resources and training for organizations, clergy, and other program providers; and programs for interfaith couples and families.
Equal Opportunity Employer. 18Doors provides equal opportunity to all people regardless of race, color, ethnicity, religion, national origin, sex, gender (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, body configuration, age, disability, marital status, height, weight, or political belief. 18Doors is committed to diversifying their employees and welcomes applications from those groups that have historically been underrepresented in our organization—people of color, people with disabilities and LGBTQ people. This policy applies to all employees and applicants for employment.