Manager, Youth Engagement

Type of Position:                  Full Time, Manager (overtime exempt)

Place of Work:                      Office/Hybrid/Remote

Reports to:                            Director of Programs

Coordinates:                          Yes, Youth Engagement and Gathering our Voices (GOV) Team

Supervises:                             Yes, Youth Engagement and GOV Team

Travel Required:                 Occasionally (site visits within B.C. as required)

Purpose

Located within the territory of WSÁNE (Saanich), Lkwungen (Songhees) and Wyomilth (Esquimalt) peoples, the BC Association of Aboriginal Friendship Centres (BCAAFC) is the umbrella association for the 25 Friendship Centres throughout the Province of British Columbia. The BCAAFC collaboratively works to promote and deliver accessible programs and services that target urban Indigenous peoples and that support their vision of health and wellness.

The Manager, Youth Engagement leads BCAAFC’s year-round approach to meaningful engagement with Indigenous youth, with primary responsibility for the planning and delivery of Gathering Our Voices (GOV): Indigenous Youth Leadership Training. GOV is BCAAFC’s flagship youth event and brings together up to 2,000 delegates from across British Columbia and Canada for plenary sessions, workshops, a career and education fair, cultural activities, and opportunities for connection and leadership development. Beyond GOV, the Manager works with Friendship Centres, youth, Elders, partners, and funders to strengthen youth engagement throughout the year, mobilize resources, and develop responsive initiatives that support Indigenous youth leadership, connection, wellness, and participation.

Duties Include

Youth Strategy & Engagement

·         Leads the development and implementation of a year-round Indigenous youth engagement approach aligned with BCAAFC’s mandate, strategic priorities, and Friendship Centre values.

·         Builds and maintains relationships with Friendship Centres to understand local youth priorities, strengthen regional and year-round engagement, and support meaningful opportunities for Indigenous youth participation and leadership.

·         Develops accessible and culturally grounded ways for urban, rural, and remote Indigenous youth to inform BCAAFC initiatives, programs, policy positions, and events.

·         Works with youth, the Provincial Indigenous Youth Council, Elders, Cultural Support staff, Friendship Centres, and the GOV Core Planning Team to establish the vision, purpose, priorities, and cultural protocols that guide youth engagement activities, including GOV.

·         Leads youth engagement communications, including website and social media content, newsletters, outreach materials, event materials, press releases, and other public-facing communications.

·         Identifies and advances opportunities for year-round youth programming, leadership development, mentorship, networking, training, and knowledge sharing in collaboration with Friendship Centres and partners.

Gathering Our Voices (GOV)

·         Leads the overall planning, delivery, evaluation, and continuous improvement of GOV, providing guidance and support to the core planning team.

·         Develops and oversees the human resource and volunteer plans for GOV including staffing requirements, role descriptions, orientation, scheduling, team support, and follow-up.

·         Manages the procurement process, guiding the logistics team in sourcing and negotiating terms with venues, accommodations, and external vendors, and prepares major contracts for leadership approval.

·         Oversees the process through which Friendship Centres apply to host GOV and works closely with selected host Friendship Centres to support meaningful local involvement in planning and delivery.

·         Manages issue resolution and risk assessment regarding venues, vendors, delegates, and partners, escalating significant risks as appropriate.

·         Leads post-event and post-initiative follow-up, including acknowledgements, debriefs, reporting, evaluation, and documentation of key learnings and recommendations.

Operations & Leadership

·         Supervises, mentors, and supports the Youth Engagement and GOV staff team, including conducting performance evaluations and fostering a collaborative work environment.

·         Creates and manages annual workplans, business plans, project timelines, risk plans, communications strategies, and evaluation frameworks for GOV and other approved youth initiatives.

·         Mobilizes resources to support GOV and broader youth engagement work, including fund development, proposal writing, sponsorships, partnerships, grants, and donations.

·         Maintains positive relationships with youth, Friendship Centres, funders, sponsors, host communities, venues, vendors, facilitators, and other partners.

·         Provides regular updates to the Director of Programs, Executive Director, Provincial Indigenous Youth Council, BCAAFC team, and Board as required.

·         Manages assigned budgets, monitors expenditures and revenues, and ensures appropriate financial controls and reporting requirements are met.

·         Oversees reporting, evaluation, data gathering, and knowledge sharing for GOV and other youth engagement initiatives, including reports to BCAAFC, funders, sponsors, and partners.

·         Ensures appropriate cultural, accessibility, safeguarding, emergency response, and safety planning is in place for youth events and engagement activities.

·         Undertakes other related youth engagement and program management responsibilities as assigned.

Skills and Abilities

·         Demonstrated knowledge of Indigenous communities, cultures, and perspectives, and a strong understanding of how to work respectfully within cultural protocols.

·         Demonstrated ability to build respectful, reciprocal relationships with Indigenous youth, Elders, Friendship Centres, communities, and partner organizations.

·         Knowledge of culturally grounded, youth-centred, trauma-informed, and accessible engagement practices.

·         Excellent organizational, planning, project management, and time management skills, with the ability to coordinate multiple priorities and meet tight deadlines.

·         Strong understanding of large-scale event management, year-round engagement planning, financial management, and risk management.

·         Ability to lead collaboratively, work independently with minimal supervision, and support a team through periods of high activity.

·         Strong verbal and written communication skills, including proposal development, funder reporting, presentations, correspondence, facilitation, and digital engagement.

·         Ability to identify funding opportunities, develop partnerships, and mobilize financial and in-kind resources.

·         Ability to work effectively under pressure in a fast-paced environment and respond constructively to changing circumstances.

·         Sound judgment and skill in addressing challenging situations, resolving issues, and escalating risks appropriately.

Qualifications

·       Completed education in youth engagement, event planning, community development, business administration, project management, or a related field, and a minimum of 5 years of related experience. An equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered.

·         Significant experience working with Indigenous communities and Indigenous service organizations.

·       Demonstrated experience engaging Indigenous youth and coordinating large-scale, multi-day, multi-venue events or comparable complex initiatives.

·         Proven project management experience

·         Strong PC software skills including experience with Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint, SharePoint, Teams and Excel).

·         Working knowledge of WordPress, MailChimp and graphic design skills are an asset.

·         Strong accounting/budgeting background is an asset.

·         Must be able to provide clear, current criminal record check including vulnerable sector check.

·         Valid driver’s license a strong asset.

·         Ability to do work flexible hours on occasion (such as during GOV youth conference), and travel (within BC) as required.

·         Preference will be given to qualified Indigenous applicants. Ensure your cover letter self-identifies ancestry and your experience meeting required skills and abilities.

Compensation package includes

·         Three weeks’ paid vacation (prorated for partial years of service), with additional paid time off during office closure at the end of the year

·         Employee health benefits plan starting on first day of employment

·         Starting salary from $80,000 per year, based on experience

·         RRSP matching of up to 8% of annual salary to a maximum of $8,000 per year

·         Monthly employee wellness fund

·         Up to 10 employee wellness days per year to support employee quality of life

In accordance with Section 41 of the BC Human Rights Code, preference will be given to qualified candidates of Indigenous ancestry. 

Graphic Designer & Digital Communications Coordinator

Employment Status: Full-time

Hours: Monday to Friday, 9:00am-5:00pm, 35-hour work week (occasional evening/weekends required)

Reports to: Director, Operations and Organizational Leadership

Salary: $70,000-80,000, commensurate with experience

Location: In-office, Remote or hybrid

Travel required: occasional

Job Summary

The Graphic Designer and Digital Communications Coordinator works collaboratively with the Communications Officer and BCAAFC teams to support the delivery of the organization’s communications priorities, with a particular focus on visual communications, social media, digital content and multimedia production This position helps ensure that BCAAFC's engagement and communications strategy remain culturally grounded, community accountable, and reflective of the diversity of Indigenous peoples, communities, and traditions across British Columbia. 

Duties Include

Graphic Design & Brand Management

·         Design engaging, high-quality print and digital communications materials, including campaign graphics, posters, promotional materials, templates, social media content and other organizational resources. 

·         Lead or support the layout and visual design of the BCAAFC Annual Report, Gathering Our Voices program, and other major reports and publications. 

·         Support BCAAFC team members with the formatting, design, and editing of Powerpoint presentations, letters, and other organizational materials. 

·         Apply BCAAFC’s established brand voice and visual identity consistently across digital and visual materials, while adapting content appropriately for different audiences and purposes. 

Digital Communications & Social Media Management

·         Coordinate the day-to-day management of BCAAFC social media channels, including content planning, scheduling, publishing, monitoring and online community engagement, in collaboration with the Communications Officer and in alignment with BCAAFC’s communications priorities.  

·         Monitor social media engagement and performance, prepare regular analytics and identify trends or opportunities to strengthen digital reach and engagement. 

·         Monitor online conversations and promptly flag emerging issues, misinformation, inappropriate content or reputational risks to the Communications Officer and Leadership rather than responding independently where escalation is appropriate. 

·         Develop and maintain an annual social media and digital content calendar in collaboration with the Communications Officer and BCAAFC teams, including key campaigns, events, awareness days and organizational priorities. 

·         Work collaboratively with the Communications Officer and BCAAFC teams to maintain the website and digital content to support accuracy, timeliness and accessibility. 

Content Creation, Storytelling & Community Engagement

• Create photography, video, and multimedia content that reflects BCAAFC's work and the Friendship Centre Movement.
• Identify and recommend stories, partnerships, programs, artists, community initiatives, and behind-the-scenes moments that can be developed into meaningful social and digital content.
• Interview Friendship Centre staff, Elders, Knowledge Keepers, youth, and other community members in coordination with the Communications Officer.
• Capture and develop content that highlights the strengths, successes, cultures, leadership and resilience of Indigenous individuals, communities and Friendship Centres.

Indigenous Storytelling, Cultural Protocol & Consent

• Build respectful relationships with Friendship Centres, Elders, Knowledge Keepers, youth, community members, and partners when gathering stories, photographs, video, and other content.
• Follow cultural and community protocols related to storytelling, imagery, ceremony, cultural knowledge, and representation.
• Obtain appropriate consent and organizational approvals before publishing photographs, video, quotations, personal stories, or community content.
• Recognize that not all cultural knowledge, ceremonies, medicines, regalia, artwork, or community practices are appropriate for public or social media use.
• Represent Indigenous people, communities, and experiences with dignity, strength, and care, avoiding tokenism, stereotypes, and deficit-based narratives.
• Respect Indigenous intellectual and cultural property and confirm permissions before reproducing artwork, designs, teachings, stories, or other cultural materials.

Event Communications & Media Relations Support

·         Support Gathering Our Voices and other major BCAAFC events with graphic design, photography, video and social media content, including occasional evening, weekend and travel requirements.  

·         Support the Communications Officer with the drafting, formatting and distribution of BCAAFC news releases, as well as media monitoring and tracking.

·         Conduct media monitoring and tracking to support communications planning and issue awareness

Communications Operations & Team Collaboration

·         Work collaboratively with the Communications Officer and BCAAFC teams to maintain the website and digital content to support accuracy, timeliness and accessibility. 

·         Maintain an organized digital asset library, including photographs, video,  
graphics, templates, logos, completed design files and relevant permission or consent records. 

·         Collaborate with BCAAFC Leadership, Directors and teams to deliver high-quality, timely communications. 

·         Work with and provide coverage to other communications team during days off. 

Skills and Abilities 

• Strong knowledge of Indigenous cultures, protocols, ceremony, cultural safety, and respectful engagement, with the ability to apply this knowledge in organizational systems and public-facing work. 

• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain respectful relationships with Indigenous communities, Elders, Knowledge Keepers, Friendship Centres, governments, funders, and sector partners. 

• Strong graphic design and visual storytelling skills, with an ability to adapt creative work for different audiences and platforms. 

• Strong photography and video skills, including basic editing and production. 

• Strong verbal and written communication, organizational, proofreading and attention-to-detail skills. 

• Ability to manage multiple projects, deadlines, approvals and production schedules. 

• Experience working respectfully with Indigenous communities and people from diverse backgrounds. 

• Strong proficiency with professional graphic design and digital content creation tools such as Adobe Creative Cloud, including Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign and/or Premiere Pro. 

• Experience with social media management and scheduling platforms, Meta Business Suite and Microsoft 365. Experience with Wordpress and other digital communications tools is an asset. 

• Understanding of accessible and inclusive design practices. 

• Ability to exercise sound judgment when working with sensitive, cultural, personal or community information. 

Qualifications 

•  Diploma or degree in graphic design, visual arts, media production, communications or a related field, or an equivalent combination of lived, community, professional and educational experience. 

• Approximately 2-3 years of relevant experience in graphic design, digital communications, social media, photography, video or related creative work. Equivalent experience will be considered. 

• A portfolio or examples demonstrating relevant graphic design, photography, video, social media or other creative work. 

Position Requirements 

• Ability to travel throughout British Columbia, including to urban, rural, remote, and northern communities. 

• Ability to attend occasional evening or weekend meetings, ceremonies, gatherings, or events. 

• Ability to maintain confidentiality and handle sensitive cultural and organizational information with care. 

• Valid driver’s licence and access to reliable transportation may be required depending on the location of the successful candidate. 

• A criminal record check may be required in accordance with organizational policy. 

Compensation Includes

·         Salary between $70,000-80,000 per year based on experience

·         Extended health and dental benefits beginning on first day of employment

·         RRSP matching up to 8% of salary to a maximum of $8,000 per year

·         Three weeks’ vacation, plus additional paid closure at Christmas

·         Monthly employee wellness fund

BCAAFC values Indigenous-led service delivery, cultural knowledge, and community-driven approaches. Preference will be given to qualified Indigenous applicants in accordance with Section 41of the BC Human Rights Code and the organization’s mandate to support Indigenous self-determination, leadership, and community accountability.