Director of Advocacy and Government Affairs

About the role Black Hills Works is one of the largest Community Support Provider in South Dakota — serving roughly 500 people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, employing 550 staff, and operating with a $50 million annual budget. We are also one of the state's most active advocacy voices on disability policy, workforce issues, and civic engagement. The Director of Advocacy is a new senior leadership role created to bring all of that advocacy work under one roof. The Director leads three connected workstreams: 1. Self-advocacy. Building the leadership, voice, and organizing capacity of people with disabilities themselves — including the Black Hills Works A Team and other participant-led advocacy efforts. 2. Civic engagement. Launching and sustaining the Disability in Civics Initiative — voter registration, candidate education, public visibility, and the founding of REV UP South Dakota. 3. Policy and legislative advocacy. Supporting BHW's policy positions and legislative work in partnership with the CEO. The work is governed by the Disability in Civics Council, a standing body of BHW participants, family members, and staff that sets priorities and reviews materials before they go public. What you will do Lead the Disability in Civics Council Convene and lead a standing body of BHW participants, self-advocates, family members, and staff. The Council sets priorities for the civic engagement work, reviews materials before they go public, and keeps the initiative grounded in the lived experience of the people it serves. The Director staffs and leads the Council. Lead and expand self-advocacy programming Partner with the team currently leading the BHW A Team to strengthen and expand self-advocacy programming for participants. Build curriculum and supports that help self-advocates lead on the issues that affect their lives. Connect participants with statewide and national self-advocacy networks. Integrate self-advocacy work with the broader civic engagement initiative. Build voter registration infrastructure Design and run ongoing voter registration drives for BHW participants, their families, and staff. Make registration easy, accurate, and accessible. Track progress. Measure results. Educate voters Produce plain-language materials explaining when, where, and how to vote in South Dakota — including absentee and early voting options. Adapt national REV UP resources for a South Dakota context. Build a website that becomes the best disability voter resource in the state. Develop candidate education programming Build and send a disability-issues questionnaire to every candidate for South Dakota state legislative seats serving our region, starting in year one. Publish responses verbatim. Scale up over time to include federal, county, and municipal races. Host nonpartisan candidate forums where candidates answer questions directly from participants, families, and staff. Make the disability voting bloc visible Lead a public-facing visibility campaign — billboards, yard signs, social media, earned media, and community events — that signals clearly to elected officials and the broader public that the disability community in the Black Hills is organized and turns out. Work with local creative partners to design and place materials. Support legislative and policy advocacy Work alongside the CEO on BHW's policy and legislative engagement, including session preparation, testimony coordination, stakeholder communications, and tracking of legislation that affects people with disabilities. Coordinate across BHW programs Civic engagement and advocacy don't live in one department. The Director coordinates this work across Day Services, Residential, employment programs, and other BHW areas where participants, families, and staff need to be reached. Pursue and manage grant funding Identify, apply for, and steward grants, alongside the grant writer, to sustain this work. Build and sustain partnerships Establish BHW as the anchor of a new REV UP South Dakota coalition. Partner with South Dakota Advocacy Services, the South Dakota Council on Developmental Disabilities, the League of Women Voters, and local election officials. Build relationships with the Pennington County Election Office. Stay scrupulously nonpartisan Follow 501(c)(3) rules strictly. Never endorse candidates. Never oppose candidates. Treat every candidate — of every party and no party — with the same respect, the same questions, and the same access. Measure and report outcomes Track voter registration numbers, turnout rates, candidate engagement, earned media, and community participation. Share progress with the CEO, the BHW board, funders, and the community honestly — including what isn't working. Who you are You are an experienced nonprofit advocacy leader, community organizer, policy professional, or civic engagement director who believes that people with disabilities belong in the center of American civic life — not on the margins of it. You are comfortable leading across multiple workstreams, managing complexity, and building something new. You are comfortable working across differences. You are comfortable with a legislator of any party. You are comfortable talking with a self-advocate, a parent, a DSP, and a funder in the same afternoon. You understand that nonpartisan civic engagement is meaningfully different from candidate advocacy — and you can explain why that matters to the mission. You can write in plain language. You can speak in plain language. You prefer direct accountability to corporate jargon. You know what you don't know and you ask. What you bring Required Bachelor's degree in a related field, or equivalent professional experience Five or more years of experience in nonprofit advocacy, policy, community organizing, civic engagement, government relations, or a closely related field — with demonstrated leadership responsibility Demonstrated experience managing multiple workstreams, staff or volunteer teams, and external partnerships Excellent writing skills, including the ability to translate complex material into plain language Working understanding of IRS rules governing 501(c)(3) nonpartisan electoral activity Comfort with technology including website content management, email marketing platforms, and basic data tracking A valid driver's license and willingness to travel regionally and occasionally out of state Strongly preferred Experience working directly with or alongside people with intellectual and developmental disabilities Familiarity with South Dakota civic, political, and philanthropic landscapes Grant writing experience with both private foundations and public funders Media relations experience What success looks like in year one Voter registration drive completed at every BHW residential and day program site A Team self-advocacy programming strengthened and integrated with the broader civic engagement initiative Website launched as a public South Dakota disability voter resource Candidate questionnaire sent to every state legislative candidate in Districts 29, 30, 32, 33, 34, and 35, with responses published publicly At least one nonpartisan candidate forum hosted Visibility campaign live — including at least two billboards, 500+ yard signs distributed, and sustained social media presence REV UP South Dakota coalition formally launched with at least five partner organizations Legislative session advocacy supported in coordination with the CEO and CSP of SD Measurable increase in voter registration among BHW participants, families, and staff Black Hills Works, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.