Grants Director – MLAC

Grants Director

The Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation (MLAC) is accepting applications for a full-time Grants Director to carry the primary responsibility of managing a portfolio of grants. MLAC is an exciting place to work with a diverse staff and inclusive workplace environment. We are located in a beautiful office space on Tremont Street near Government Center in Boston. Currently MLAC follows a hybrid work schedule and requires all employees to work from a commutable distance to the Boston office.

About MLAC
The Massachusetts Legal Assistance Corporation (MLAC) is a not-for-profit organization established by the Commonwealth to ensure that low-income people with critical, non-criminal legal problems have access to legal information, advice, and representation. MLAC provides leadership and support for the continued improvement of legal aid to people with low incomes.

MLAC is committed to diversity in its workforce. A crucial part of MLAC’s vision is ensuring diversity of staff and volunteers, as well as supporting cultural and linguistic competence, so our team is reflective of our grantee organizations and the clients they serve. Women, individuals with disabilities, LGBTQ individuals, people of color, and people who speak English as a second language are encouraged to apply. Learn more about us at www.mlac.org.

SUMMARY OF POSITION
The Grants Director reports to MLAC’s Executive Director while working in close collaboration with MLAC’s Chief Financial Officer, Director of Data and Analysis, and Director of Program Monitoring and Evaluation. Collaboration with other directors at MLAC such as the Communications Director, the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Director, and the Director of Information Technology is required to effectively support the Grants Director’s work.

MLAC is the largest funder of civil legal aid in the Commonwealth. MLAC provides grant funding to nonprofit organizations that provide legal assistance at no cost to residents of Massachusetts with low incomes. Apart from general support unrestricted grants, MLAC provides grants through special initiatives from other private funders. MLAC also has a significant portfolio of federal grants which it administers on behalf of various federal or state agencies.

PRINCIPAL RESPONSIBILITIES
The Grants Director is primarily responsible for managing:

  • Applications by MLAC to its funders and all reports by MLAC to its funders.
  • Monitoring of MLAC by its funders.
  • Applications for MLAC funding from potential grantees, including but not limited to, drafting applications, publishing applications, collecting, and filing applications, reviewing applications, and notifying applicants of application awards and rejections.
  • Grantee reporting requirements, including but not limited to, drafting report requirements, publishing grant requirements, collecting and filing grant requirement report submissions, and producing reports in collaboration with MLAC’s Data and Analysis team for internal and external stakeholder use.
  • Monitoring and enforcing compliance of MLAC’s grantees with, among other things, grant requirements, state and federal law, MLAC policies, timely reporting requirements, timely document production, grantee expenditure budgets, and grantee contracts.
  • Development of up-to-date content for, and perform maintenance of, an online grantee support portal.

BACKGROUND AND QUALIFICATIONS

  • Demonstrated interest in the mission of MLAC. Experience with legal aid organizations is a plus.
  • Bachelor’s degree and/or relevant work experience in the grants management field
  • At least 5 years of relevant experience with federal grants, fiscal oversight, and programmatic grant management. Having done this work from a foundation or funder’s perspective is a plus.
  • Demonstrated ability to embrace a workplace culture that values diversity, equity, and inclusion
  • Strong written and communications skills
  • Strong organizing and digital filing skills
  • Strong project management skills and attention to detail
  • Ability to handle and prioritize multiple tasks, set priorities, and meet deadlines
  • Ability to coordinate the work of peers in a collaborative environment
  • Ability to effectively win the cooperation of applicants and grantees of MLAC funding
  • Intermediate to advanced skills using MS Office products, such as Microsoft Word, Excel, and Power Point. Advanced skills a plus.
  • Experience with, or ability to quickly learn, grant-making SaaS portals such as Blackbaud’s Grantmaking and SmartSimple
  • Demonstrated ability to learn and become proficient in new software and technologies

BENEFITS
MLAC offers competitive compensation and benefits, including:

  • Salary range of $90,000 to $146,400 for this position, depending on experience
  • Comprehensive health and dental insurance plans
  • Generous paid time off, including 13 holidays, birthday off and increasing vacation time with tenure starting at 3 weeks of accrued vacation the first year
  • Flexible work schedule
  • 403(b) plan with current employer contribution of up to 13.5% of the employee’s annual salary
  • Flexible spending and dependent care tax free savings plan
  • Generous annual professional development allowance

To apply: Candidates should submit a cover letter and a resume to hiring@mlac.org. Please submit all as PDFs by Sunday, June 25, 2023. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Please put the job title in the subject line of your email, and, in your cover letter, please mention where you saw this posting. Reasonable accommodation in the application process will be provided upon request. No phone calls, please.