HerSpirit Director Position Description

Location: Remote

Part-time, contracted consultancy

POSITION PURPOSE

The SVIVAH HerSpirit Director will  join our team at an exciting time of growth and development. The HerSpirit Director will inaugurate the position as we deepen and expand our cornerstone HerTorah program to include HerSpirit. Over the past four years, SVIVAH has grown from a small, localized program in the Greater Washington, DC area to an international organization attracting women* from across the globe from every age, affiliation, and background. 

HERSPIRIT: Designing supportive spaces of Torah learning + elevating the teaching skills of Torah educators through the integration of pastoral expertise.

HerSpirit, an expansion of our signature HerTorah program, is a unique collaboration between Jewish educators and pastoral experts. Our HerTorah program is already singular in its commitment to diversity, relationship-building, and centering of women’s lived-experience. HerTorah uses foundational Torah texts to deliver accessible, high-level women’s Torah scholarship taught by a selection of phenomenal, diverse (in age, affiliation, background, lived-experience) educators who respond to women’s contemporary concerns with relevant Torah. Our experience with HerTorah has revealed that the next step in our commitment to our learners and our educators  is to 1) create a learning environment in which pastoral voices are integrated into Jewish learning, and to 2) offer our educators opportunity to improve their pedagogic practice through the addition of pastoral scaffolding to their teaching.

We are excited to continue to grow HerSpirit as a pastoral counterpart to HerTorah, dedicating appropriate space and time to the pastoral sensitivities of our audience. Led by the HerSpirit director with a background in chaplaincy and/or mental health, HerSpirit will provide access to pastoral voices that can best respond to complex or vulnerable life-moments, better positioning Judaism and Jewish learning as a valued resource for spiritual care and fulfillment.

HerSpirit will include pastorally-focused programming, engage in pastoral/educational Collaboration Sessions between Torah educators and pastoral experts, and create topical Pastoral Education Guidelines integrating pastoral consideration into Torah education that will serve as a resource for Jewish educators everywhere. 

RESPONSIBILITIES

The HerSpirit Director will develop, plan, and execute 5 HerSpirit gatherings annually for the next three years. In addition to these gatherings, the HerSpirit Director will also plan and facilitate 5 HerTorah/HerSpirit professional development sessions annually, and develop Pastoral Education Guidelines after each HerSpirit gathering (5 annually) to be published on our SVIVAH website and circulated in Jewish education spaces. 

This is a collaborative role, working closely with the SVIVAH Director, HerTorah Director, and Program Administrator. This position is fully remote, working primarily with a US East Coast-based team. 

Pastoral Program Development + Implementation (60%)

  • Design and prepare HerSpirit programs (5 annually) that are relevant and meaningful to the SVIVAH audience, and strategically aligned with our HerTorah programming

  • Be attuned to the pastoral opportunities, challenges, and needs in the SVIVAH community as related to our HerTorah programming and beyond

  • Collaborate with HerTorah Director and educators

  • Host and moderate live HerSpirit programs

  • Assist with HerSpirit program participant recruitment

  • Develop publicity language for HerSpirit programming in collaboration with SVIVAH team

  • Develop new materials as needed for successful program execution (ex: student resources, supplemental materials, source sheets) 

Educator/Facilitator Recruitment + Training (30%)

  • Recruit, train, and prepare facilitators for HerSpirit gatherings

  • Plan, recruit, and facilitate HerTorah/HerSpirit professional development sessions (5 annually) between HerTorah and HerSpirit educators (in partnership with HerTorah Director) for exchange of expertise and opportunity to approach the program topic area from both a pastoral and Jewish educational lens

  • Evaluate impact of the collaboration between pastoral and Jewish educators in partnership with SVIVAH’s Director and HerTorah Director

Development of Pastoral Educational Materials (10%)

  • After each HerSpirit program, develop “Pastoral Education Guidelines” (5 annually) for publication/distribution in the Jewish education field – including pastoral resources as well as key topical knowledge and sensitivities as a reference for future educators teaching that topic area

YOU ARE:

  • Deeply passionate about SVIVAH’s mission and vision and feel personally connected to our work

  • Someone who identifies as a “Jewish woman*” or nonbinary individual

  • Someone with an entrepreneurial spirit, who loves creatively solving problems and navigating obstacles and is not afraid to experiment or pivot as necessary

  • A flexible and adaptable individual who is excited about working with a rapidly growing organization 

  • Eager to make your mark and influence how Jewish community serves its women*

  • A hands-on team player with enthusiasm, passion, a sense of humor, openness, and a strong work ethic

  • A skilled facilitator who is able to hold space virtually for a diverse audience, creating a sense of warmth and security

  • Someone who prides themselves on their ability to connect with strangers and create a sense of intimacy quickly

  • Someone who thrives in a position with a high level of autonomy and responsibility but is also an eager collaborator and thought partner 

  • Unintimidated by last-minute changes and adept at multitasking 

  • Committed to offering the best user experience to our audiences and educators

  • An effective communicator and savvy relationship-builder with excellent interpersonal skills

SHOULD HAVES

  • Mental health or pastoral expertise

  • Comfort and familiarity with basic Jewish texts; understanding of Jewish culture, values, and cycles

  • Excellent writing and communication skills

  • Virtual facilitation skills, comfort facilitating online learning experiences and conversations

  • Organized, reliable, self-disciplined with high personal standards of performance 

  • Open to collaboration and collective creativity 

  • Comfortable working independently and creating/executing projects of one’s own design

  • Previous experience building educational programs

  • Well-resourced and attuned to diverse colleagues and professionals in the field to tap into as SVIVAH educators

  • Attuned to the diverse lived-experience of Jewish woman*hood; experience working with women* in some capacity

  • Intention to serve in this role for the 3-year duration of the consultancy

NICE TO HAVES

  • Understanding of the larger Jewish communal ecosystem as pertaining to women*s mental health and pastoral support (including organizations supporting women) 

  • Connections to colleagues in various educational/therapeutic modalities to offer a diverse range of topical approaches to our audiences

  • Interest in growing this position and HerSpirit program beyond its current status

  • Lending pastoral/clinical expertise and advice to other SVIVAH programs

COMPENSATION

DURATION OF THE CONSULTANCY: SVIVAH has secured funding for 5 annual HerSpirit gatherings, plus 5 annual HerTorah/HerSpirit Collaboration sessions for the next 3 years (2023-2025). Our hope is that the position will evolve and grow during this time.. We are hoping to hire someone who has the ability and intention to stay in this role for the duration of this grant, with interest in growing the position.

  • Position Type: Part-time, contracted consultancy for 3 years (with likely continuation/growth beyond the initial 3 years)

  • Salary: $11,250 annually (or $2,250 per HerSpirit gathering) 

    • Approximately 100 hours annually

  • Reports to: SVIVAH Director

  • Location: Remote

  • Hours: Largely independent schedule with staff meetings mostly on ET time, with evening staffing of HerSpirit Gatherings

  • Travel: Possible travel for funder meetings/conferences, in-person staff meeting 1-2 times per year

  • Organizational Culture: Entrepreneurial, hard-working, dedicated, customer-first, passionate, understanding, flexible, “making it work while making it happen”!

HOW TO APPLY

Please use this form to submit a resume, cover letter, and references (see below). If you have prior teaching/facilitation experience that was captured on video, please share it. If you have any additional materials that you feel would be relevant to this position, please share (up to 2 additional resources).

Our team is as diverse as our community. Just like our community, our team welcomes all those who would like to be included in a circle of Jewish women. We encourage applications from candidates who reflect the beautiful diversity of our community including JOCSM (Jews of Color, Sephardi, and Mizrahi), BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color), Jewish-adjacent women* or interfaith partners, individuals with disabilities, immigrants, and LGBTQIA+ individuals, individuals of all ages and backgrounds. 

We are also keenly aware that, too often, women* and underrepresented groups only apply to positions where they feel they meet 100%+ of the qualifications. We would like to encourage you to push yourself to think outside that box and apply anyway, feeling assured in our commitment to open-mindedness and seeing the best in each applicant. (No one ever meets 100% of the qualifications, and we know that!) Our priority is finding the people who bring passion and warmth to SVIVAH – if you think that’s you, apply!

WHAT TO EXPECT

Applications will be accepted until May 25. We will acknowledge receipt of your application within 3 business days. After initial acknowledgement of receipt of application, we will be in touch to let you know if your application is moving forward to the first round of interviews. We honor and respect the time that all candidates put into their applications! After a one-hour first round interview, finalists will be notified with a request to schedule a second interview. References will be checked at this time.

ABOUT SVIVAH

SVIVAH is a women*-designed, women-run, women-centered community dedicated to exploring, designing, and discovering a more nourishing, inspiring, supportive, and connected Jewish communal experience for women. We are revolutionizing the way Jewish women* come together in community – using community as a tool to empower women* as changemakers in their own lives and the world. 

We are a growing organization, founded in 2019, with a small team of passionate, collaborative, thoughtful, dedicated women* who care deeply about creating meaningful Jewish communal experiences for women, building conversations and spaces of learning that reflect the diverse and beautiful entirety of Jewish womanhood, and uplifting women*s voices and lived-wisdom. 

For a sample of our gatherings, visit the SVIVAH YouTube channel here. 

Questions? Please do not hesitate to reach out! Email joinus@svivah.org

*SVIVAH defines “Jewish woman” as anyone wishing to be included in a circle of Jewish women. If you want to be here, we want you to be here. And, welcome.