Executive Director of Hill Havurah
Hill Havurah is an independent Jewish congregation based on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. We seek a full-time executive director to help us meet the spiritual, educational, religious, cultural, and life cycle needs of our growing Jewish community.
About Hill Havurah
For nearly 25 years, Hill Havurah has been the center of Jewish life on Capitol Hill. Convinced that our community need not commute to the suburbs for our spiritual needs, our founders first met in each other’s living rooms for Shabbat services. As we grew, we borrowed space from local churches for the High Holidays and leaned into our identity as a neighborhood institution – selling t-shirts with the slogan “why schlep?” In 2016, we hired Rabbi Hannah Spiro, who has overseen our transformation into a modern, vibrant congregation.
Today, Hill Havurah includes nearly 200 member households, a thriving religious school of over 200 students, regular services, and year-round programming that draws participants from across the greater Washington region. We pride ourselves on being a warm and inclusive community.
Our operations are based out of the Lutheran Church of the Reformation, just steps from the United States Capitol. Although our professional staff has grown over the years to meet the needs of our members, we work hand in hand with an active corps of lay leaders and volunteers to run our congregation.
About the Position
Working in partnership with Rabbi Hannah, the board of directors, and the professional staff, the Executive Director is responsible for managing Hill Havurah’s day-to-day operations. The Executive Director meets regularly with the senior professional staff, attends monthly board meetings, and reports directly to the chair of the board. The Executive Director’s role is to implement, support, and continually monitor all of Hill Havurah’s operations, programs, systems, processes, and people, with an eye toward the health and sustainability of the Havurah’s mission and strategic goals.
As a leader and public face of the community, the Executive Director is expected to foster the warm and welcoming environment that makes our congregation so special.
The Executive Director’s primary responsibilities include working with the board to develop and manage annual budgets; managing contracts and payroll; reserving space for Hill Havurah programming; collaborating with the staff on the planning and implementation of holiday programming, with a specific focus on logistics and operations; managing the Hill Havurah events calendar; tracking membership; shepherding new members through the process of joining and integrating; maintaining the Hill Havurah website and publishing our weekly newsletter; coordinating volunteers for Hill Havurah events; serving as staff liaison to the fundraising committee, membership committee, and green committee; and overseeing logistics personnel. The Executive Director is responsible for ensuring that our spaces are ready for a wide array of programming, even if that means rolling up their sleeves and setting up chairs for Shabbat services. The Executive Director also works with law enforcement, local security advisors, and the security committee to implement security for Hill Havurah programming.
In addition, the Executive Director supports the director of Yavneh, our PreK-through-7th Religious school. The Executive Director will oversee payment of teachers and other school staff; manage the purchase of equipment and supplies; serve as primary liaison between the school and the owners of any rented space; and administer the school’s annual budget.
Qualifications
The ideal candidate for this position will have experience managing the staff, operations, and finances of a synagogue or similarly sized non-profit organization. We hope to find an Executive Director with excellent communications skills, the temperament to tackle the challenges that synagogue life often brings, and the focus to handle multiple projects simultaneously. Strong customer service skills are a necessity. A good sense of humor is a definite plus.
This position requires:
- A bachelor’s degree.
- A minimum of three years of experience in a management position at a synagogue or non-profit organization.
- Familiarity with Jewish practices and traditions.
- Outstanding organizational skills.
- Technical competency with payroll software, ShulCloud, etc.
- Flexibility to work evenings, weekends, and on-site as needed.
The Executive Director will be expected to work and oversee logistics personnel on most Jewish holidays.
Compensation
The salary range for this position is $75,000 to $90,000, commensurate with experience. Additional benefits include a generous leave policy, health care, and contributions to a qualified retirement fund.
Hill Havurah strives to ensure that our staff represents the diversity of our entire community and enthusiastically invites you to apply, regardless of your race, color, religion, sex (including marital or parental status, sexual orientation, and gender identity), disability, age, or national origin.
How to Apply
Interested candidates should submit a resume, references, and brief cover letter outlining qualifications and interest in the position to Aaron Hiller, the chair of the Hill Havurah board of directors, at [email protected]. Please use the subject line “Executive Director Application.”
Hill Havurah will review applications on a rolling basis until the position is filled. We look forward to meeting you.