Description

Organization and position description: ICIRR is a 40yearold coalition composed of 130 member
organizations and allies working together to build power and advance a justice agenda at the local, state and
federal level. Membership is broad based and includes communityorganizing groups, ethnic associations,
unions, refugee organizations, churches and mosques, school districts and community colleges, and direct
service organizations that work with diverse immigrant communities. ICIRR organizes its membership around
a shared agenda centered in immigrant, racial, economic and health justice. ICIRR builds power with our
members through local, state and federal grassroots organizing campaigns and provides our members with
organizing and advocacy strategy, training and technical assistance on issues that affect their respective
immigrant constituents, and policy analysis on immigrant and refugeerelated issues. ICIRR also anchors a
statewide rapid response network to create opportunities for accountability around immigration
enforcement activities, provides leadership development and organizing capacity building for our
membership in service of building our collective power, promotes citizenship and civic participation,
monitors and analyzes immigrantrelated laws and policies, and builds crossmovement intersectional
alliances to advance an equitable and pro immigrant agenda throughout Illinois and the U.S. ICIRR is a justice
organization serving vulnerable immigrant communities; excellence in pursuit of ICIRR's overall mission is
expected of all employees.
To increase ICIRR’s capacity to engage and build power throughout the state of Illinois, ICIRR is seeking a fulltime
North Suburban Regional Organizer for our team; someone who will help build immigrant power in
Northern Illinois around issues at the intersection of economic justice, health equity, racial equity and
immigrant rights.
We have a strong team with a diverse range of skills and an even more diverse range of nationalities and life
experiences. As a justice missiondriven organization, we hold ourselves to high standards and know that if
we do our jobs well, people from our communities will have more opportunity to build the kind of lives they
aspire for themselves and their families.
While the position will be under the direct supervision of the Director of Movement Building, the North
Suburban Organizer will work in close collaboration with and receive guidance from ICIRR’s Senior Director of
Organizing and ICIRR’s Lead Organizer.
The Suburban Organizer will be responsible for the following tasks in the North and Northwest Suburbs:
Regional Organizing Capacity Building
Identify, meet oneonone, recruit, and develop directly impacted immigrant leaders and institutions
to engage in local and ICRR campaigns.
Build a core team of directly impacted leaders in areas without ICIRR membership to create new
political homes that drive locally defined state, federal, and municipal organizing campaigns.
Conduct community presentations and training on organizing, policy and advocacy issues to engage
new potential leaders.
Engage ICIRR member organizations in Lake, McHenry and other counties and areas in Northern
Illinois to expand community organizing capacity in the area.
Work in strategic collaboration with organizers that are part of ICIRR’s community organizing
fellowship in the region.
Build institutional relationships with faith institutions, service providers and other agencies and
organizations as part of localized base building efforts in the region, and bring new institutional
members into ICIRR’s formal membership structure.
Work with regional leaders to move local, state and federal elected targets towards ICIRR’s agenda
and priorities.
Develop an onlinetooffline engagement pipeline to engage regional supporters from ICIRR’s digital
organizing infrastructure to transition participants into inperson (aka offline) leaders

Develop relationships and explore collaborative opportunities with strategic allies including those
engaged in other movement building efforts in the region to build intersectional power
General Coalition-Wide Organizing Support
Participate and support as needed in ICIRR coalitionwide events, actions, meetings and trainings.
Provide recommendations and feedback to strengthen ICIRR’s overall organizing program as a
member of ICIRR’s Organizing Department
Maintain working knowledge of the entire range of issue areas addressed by ICIRR and understand
local political dynamics in the region.
Electoral Organizing during Election Years
Work in partnership with ICIRR’s Political Department to coordinate targeted voter engagement
activities including phone banking, door knocking, and voter engagement and Get Out the Vote
efforts leading up to elections, and (if applicable), in partnership with an ICIRR Democracy Project
fellow in the region.
Note: ICIRR operates within a hybrid inperson/remote structure. The North Suburban Organizer would be
expected to be on site at the ICIRR Chicago office a minimum of onedayperweek and would be working
remotely and/or in a potential office space in the region throughout the remainder of the week.
Qualifications: We are looking for someone who is selfsufficient, reliable, excellent at building relationships,
has strong timemanagement and prioritization skills, is bilingual and is a selfstarter. Strong preference will
be given toward someone who is based in North Suburban Illinois. Our organizers take charge of driving their
own campaigns, meeting deadlines, and are largely responsible for managing their own schedules. All
organizers develop a multimonth workplan with support from ICIRR’s Director of Movement Building and
Senior Organizing Director, which serves as the framework to evaluate work outcomes. While the position is
based in the Northwest Suburbs, frequent travel to Chicago will be required.

Requirements

Qualifications: We are looking for someone who is selfsufficient, reliable, excellent at building relationships,
has strong timemanagement and prioritization skills, is bilingual and is a selfstarter. Strong preference will
be given toward someone who is based in North Suburban Illinois. Our organizers take charge of driving their
own campaigns, meeting deadlines, and are largely responsible for managing their own schedules. All
organizers develop a multimonth workplan with support from ICIRR’s Director of Movement Building and
Senior Organizing Director, which serves as the framework to evaluate work outcomes. While the position is
based in the Northwest Suburbs, frequent travel to Chicago will be required.
Additionally:
We seek to hire people with deep experience living and/or working in immigrant communities,
especially immigrants themselves and the children of immigrants.
A minimum of twotothreeyears experience in grassroots community organizing with formal
training strongly preferred.
Bilingual language capacity in Spanish is required.
Excellent interpersonal and writing skills; experience and comfort in public speaking in English and
Spanish; excellent leadership abilities and organizational skills; detailoriented with the ability to
juggle different tasks simultaneously and complete them in a timely manner;
Knowledge and awareness of immigration policy and politics, and experience working with
immigrants and/or refugees strongly preferred;
A car and valid driver’s license are required. Because the organizer must be available when our
leaders are, evening and weekend work are a part of this job.