Job description
Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village
Restoring the Rhythm of Life
Momentum is building at Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village. Originally created in response to the ethnic conflict and eventual genocide between the native Hutu and Tutsi groups of Rwanda, Agahozo-Shalom now acts as a restorative influence for the country’s youth, helping them become healthy, self-sufficient, and engaged partners in rebuilding their promising nation. Since its formation, the Village has positively altered the lives of nearly 1,000 students, enabling over 80% to attend colleges and secondary schools in their nation and around the world, including notable institutions such as McGill University and University of Pennsylvania. Agahozo-Shalom owes much of its successes to the creative and effective stewardship of the Jewish philosophy of Tikkun Olam, “Repair the World”, and through this concept has worked to change the course of issues on hunger, homelessness, and violence, to create socially responsible citizens in Rwanda and hopefully around the world.
Since its formation, the Village has set benchmarks in developing effective methods of education, interpersonal relationships/communication, and health and wellness that are currently being researched and documented by Universities and Psychologists in the US and abroad. Planted on 144-sprawling acres of land that include an agricultural farm and solar field, this utopia of mental, spiritual, and physical development has helped restore hope and opportunity for young lives once traumatized. With the literal translation of Agahozo meaning “to dry your tears” and Shalom “holistic place”, last year alone the Village provided 465,000 meals for its residents, farmed 38,000 pounds of produce for its students and the surrounding community and provided 8.5 gigawatts of energy to almost 15,000 homes.

Overview
After almost a decade programmatic successes, Agahozo-Shalom seeks to expand its New York City office to enhance fundraising efforts that will meet the ever increasing needs of its Rwandan counterpart. With this in mind, we seek an enthusiastic and supportive individual for the role of Development Associate. S/he will assist with fundraising initiatives, donor relationships and stewardship, and external communications for the organization. Specific responsibilities include:
Assisting with the creation of written and verbal communications
The accurate processing of contributions and maintaining current and accurate records in the organization’s Raiser’s Edge database
Tracking of gifts, contracts, and the organization’s grant and development calendar
Coordinating, proofreading, editing, and expediting proposals and letters of solicitation
Assisting the Head of External Relations with the creation of narrative reports to funders
Assisting the Director of Finance with the creation of financial reports
Working as a liaison between the Rwandan office and other staff, as well as Board members, Village Fellows, and Volunteer Leaders
Supporting Administrative, Finance, Accounting, International Programs, and Health and Wellness staff to effectively communicate and benchmark our accomplishments with funders and other outside parties
Providing general office and administrative support, including the planning and scheduling of meetings, calls and other events and activities of the Board and NYC staff

Providing assistance for special projects as needed

Reporting to the Head of External Relations, qualified candidates will possess a Bachelor’s degree or equivalent and experience in progressively responsible positions in fundraising; excellent proofreading, writing, and analytical skills; fluency with Microsoft Office, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint; the ability to work with CMS databases; strong organizational skills with close attention to detail; the ability to work independently, handle many projects simultaneously, set priorities, follow through, and meet deadlines; poise, professionalism, and excellent interpersonal skills — both in-person and over the telephone. Knowledge and a commitment to African causes are highly desired.
asyv.org

How to apply
Please submit a resume and cover letter (preferably as one document in PDF format) and a writing sample to william@asyv.org; no phone calls please. Reference the position title in the subject line. Agahozo-Shalom Youth Village is an equal opportunity employer and we consider all candidates for employment regardless of race, color, sex, age, national origin, creed, disability, marital status, sexual orientation or political affiliation.

Salary is commensurate with experience. This is a full-time position including fully subsidized insurance, vacation leave, a matching retirement plan, and other benefits. Entry- and higher-level candidates are encouraged to apply.