Now Hiring: Executive Director

ArtSeed’s current Executive Director, Josefa Vaughan, will be stepping into the role of Artistic Director. ArtSeed is seeking a new Executive Director to take over key administrative duties and fundraising while working working closely with the Artistic Director. This role is in-person at ArtSeed’s office in San Francisco. Applicants must be within commutable distance, or able to relocate without assistance. Apply by October 1, 2025 for priority consideration. For questions, please email hiring@artseed.org.

Organization Overview:
ArtSeed is a dynamic and nimble 25-year-old arts education nonprofit in San Francisco with workspaces in both the Presidio and the Hunters Point Shipyard. Our mission is to connect the most resourceful and gifted with the youngest and most vulnerable people in the Bay Area and beyond through projects that explore links between classical and cutting-edge fine arts projects. We nurture long-haul mentorships (in-person and online) weekly, producing seasonal educational events, and annual exhibitions. Our projects foster creative discipline, personal growth, and intergenerational project-building for children ages 7-17 with older artists at various stages of their careers. ArtSeed’s tag line is “We Are All Creators!” Our rigorous interdisciplinary workshops, mentorships, and exhibitions inspire academic and professional achievement, connect diverse communities, and revitalize the arts.

Our founding advisor and patron, the legendary art critic and historian Leo Steinberg set our sights high during his last years, 1991-2011. ArtSeed outreach has included collaborations with such illustrious San Francisco venues as the de Young Museum, the Asian Art Museum, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (YBCA), and SFMOMA. Thanks to a legacy gift from photographer Michelle Vignes, an occasional grant award, and a growing individual donor base, no one is turned away for lack of funds. Our relatively low overhead allows us to operate year-round on an annual budget of $150,000. 

Position Summary:
This is a great opportunity for someone with energy, empathy, imagination, and a love for the arts. The ideal candidate is organized, highly motivated, and able to learn from, and work closely with ArtSeed’s current founding Executive Director who will step into the role of Artistic Director. This will allow them to concentrate on legacy development and visionary productions that further ArtSeed’s artistic direction and impact on diverse constituents. Hence, the new Executive Director will take over key administrative duties while  working closely with our Artistic Director to set artistic and educational objectives, cultivate partner organizations, and lead the staff and volunteers’ implementation of ArtSeed’s programs. Foremost, the Executive Director manages daily operations, leads fundraising efforts, and strengthens ArtSeed’s financial base and infrastructure, ensuring their long-term vitality. A passion for youth development, community engagement, and a belief in the power of the arts to transform lives is essential. If you’re excited about the role but lack nonprofit leadership experience, we still encourage you to apply and we will provide you with a six-month training period.

Key Responsibilities:

• Manage daily operations and administrative processes including record-keeping, filings, HR best practices, budget management, process donations, and pay bills.
• Drive fundraising efforts including grant writing, donor cultivation, and legacy giving.
• Maintain and strengthen ArtSeed’s infrastructure, CRM and other systems, in order to expand or streamline programming, cultivate alumni, and recruit new individual participants.
• Represent ArtSeed publicly and build partnerships with local and outside organizations.
• Collaborate with the Artistic Director to implement programs including organizing and publicizing events, coordinating volunteers, supporting teaching artists, and evaluating outcomes.
• Help guide young participants to foster their professional development and workplace readiness through exposure to fine arts training and non-profit administration. 
• Embrace ArtSeed’s mission and lead the implementation of long-term planning in close collaboration with ArtSeed’s Artistic Director and Board of Directors.

Qualifications:

• Experience with fundraising, development, donor cultivation, and grant writing.
• College degree or equivalent experience; arts-related or nonprofit background.
• Familiar with nonprofit budgeting, legal compliance, donation management.
• Excellent communication, interpersonal, and organizational skills.
• Ability to work with diverse individuals, including those with learning or social vulnerabilities.
• Familiarity with tools including MailChimp, WordPress, Quickbooks, Google Suite, Microsoft Office, Little Green Light (or Salesforce), or a capacity to learn them.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Significant evidence (3+ years) of leadership experience, ideally in an artistic or educational setting.
• Fine Arts literacy, preferably visual, with a sophisticated, interdisciplinary appreciation of art history including community-based, conceptual, new genres, and other contemporary explorations.
• Experience teaching or mentoring young people.