Lead Studio Facilitator @ Territory

TERRITORY IS NOW SEEKING

Lead Studio Facilitator - Intro programs

Part-Time, for 3 program sessions per year, 60-120 hours per session. Summer programs meet during the day, school year programs meet after school and on some Saturdays. Estimated 32 weeks per year, 8-24 hours per week depending on program session. Pay $23-$30/hour

Territory is seeking a designer with demonstrated experience working with young people ages 14-19 ideally in public art, architecture or planning as the lead studio facilitator for Territory Urban Design Team, the intro studio program. The facilitator will support young people as they learn how to think like a designer. The facilitator will convey a passion for design to young people who have no previous experience with design. The facilitator will make the design of the city into an engaging, relevant, hands-on process, and represent design as a possible career path. The facilitator will be an inventive and adaptable communicator, knowledgeable about a range of examples and styles to make design accessible and relatable. The facilitator will represent and forefront youth vision, help young people identify design goals, and provide them with the skills and support to achieve their goals. Background checks required.

The facilitator will work directly with program staff, and be involved in staff check ins and studio prep with the design director and program director. The intro studio program is the entry point to advanced and career path programs at Territory. Social-emotional learning, restorative justice, and trauma-informed practices are the foundation of Territory’s practice.

This is a part time contract commitment for one intro studio session, with an option for a one year contract position based on youth, staff, and facilitator feedback. Studio sessions include Spring (10 weeks, February-May), Summer (6 weeks, late June-early August), and Fall (10 weeks, late September-early December). The contract includes prep (independent work or in person) and teaching hours (in person, Spring and Fall 5-7pm Tu-We-Th, Summer hours TBD with your input, plus some Saturdays for field trips). Prep time includes arriving 30 minutes early and staying 30 minutes after to ensure youth safety. You will have a trained Territory support staff in the studio with you at all times. Our in-person site is 5256 W. North Ave, between Laramie and Central.

Training and onboarding starts upon hiring.

Expectations for a successful facilitator

• Ability to make youth feel welcomed and heard, able to build relationships with youth

• Past experience with teaching youth (references required)

• 1-3 years experience working a design-related job

• Undergrad or higher design education experience

• Portfolio

• Hands on experience with the tools and materials of the design practice

• Using Territory’s design curriculum and leadership tools, and able to develop new tools

• Takes initiative to improve youth experience and the learning environment

• Able to pivot and adapt under pressure

• Living or working in Austin or on Chicago’s west side is a plus!

Day to day expectations

• Develop weekly goals and provide daily plans in advance

• Meet weekly with program leadership

• Use Territory’s tested design curriculum and incorporate ideas and feedback from team participants and community partners to ensure the studio’s design projects local and youth led

• Be responsible for the well being of a team of young people working in an urban setting

All Territory staff uphold these five core values:

Youth Agency: We elevate young people as leaders and advocates through relevant, hands-on, place-based action.

Collaboration and Teamwork: We nurture safe, judgment free spaces to connect with peers, community partners, and city-wide to increase our shared effectiveness and be accountable.

Design Equity: We use the design process to empower young people, and we reimagine the practice of design to be inclusive of young people with a focus on those populations most often excluded from design.

Adventurousness: We find solutions using the boldness, humor, loyalty, open-mindedness, and lived experiences of the people we serve

Impact: We do work that results in tangible positive change.

Who We Are

Territory is a place based urban design studio for young people ages 14-24 located in the Austin neighborhood on Chicago’s west side. At Territory, young people are building better futures for themselves and their communities through the practice of design. They are gaining access to career skills in design, planning, and community development by doing real placemaking design-build projects that are transforming the built environment. In the process they are addressing decades of social and economic injustices and disinvestment through an inclusive, intergenerational design process intended to make the community whole again.

TO APPLY

Please submit a cover letter, resume, and portfolio link to info@territorychicago.org with the job title in the subject line. Be sure to include your first and last name along with contact information in the body of the email. Incomplete applications will not be accepted.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Territory is committed to creating a diverse work environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. Territory does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, age, disability, parental status, veteran status, or any other protected status under applicable laws. We encourage individuals of all backgrounds to apply.