Audience Development Coordinator

Application Deadline: June 30, 2026
Position Period: 1 year, starting July/August, with potential for extension

Overview

Sixty Inches From Center is seeking someone experienced in nonprofit and grassroots marketing to support our Operations and Comms teams by evaluating and shaping how we tell Sixty’s story and connect with our audience of artists, writers, curators, archivists, art workers, educators, community organizers and the “art-curious.”

The primary goal of the Audience Development Coordinator is to help us hone our marketing and outreach strategies in order to deepen our relationship with our existing audience and reach new readers, supporters, partners, and funders in ways that are effective while aligning with Sixty’s values—we want to effectively connect with our communities while always putting people and the planet before profit.

In the first 4-5 months of this role the Audience Development Coordinator will get to know Sixty’s current marketing needs and strategies, evaluate strengths and weaknesses in our marketing, and develop a plan for improving our marketing in order to meet our organizational strategic needs in collaboration with the Sixty team. In the second 7-8 months of this role the Audience Development Coordinator will lead the implementation of their plan in close collaboration with the Comms and Operations teams.

This position will work most closely with the Communications Lead, Operations + Revenue Lead, and Revenue + Fundraising Coordinator, and several project leads such as the Sixty Collective leads and Sixty Regional leads. They will also occasionally work with members of Sixty’s editorial team. While working alongside others, the Audience Development Coordinator will set the tone and pace for the day-to-day management of their own projects and tasks.

This role is well-suited for someone with a background in community organizing, arts advocacy, community-building for artists, and operations work at a small and/or non-traditional nonprofit with an intergenerational team that has a blend of experience levels. This is also ideal for someone with a clear commitment to and knowledge of Sixty’s communities (Indigenous, queer, trans, diasporic, disability, and Midwest-based).

This is primarily a remote position and is open to anyone based in the Midwest, though being able to meet or attend events in person in Chicago is a plus.

About Sixty

Sixty Inches From Center is a worker-led collective of writers, editors, artists, and archivists who believe in the distinct cultural landscapes and contributions of Chicago and the Midwest.

Through our editorial publishing, archiving projects, and community advocacy, we devote our work to supporting and promoting our fellow artists and arts workers who define the Midwest. We center Indigenous, diasporic, queer, trans, and disabled communities in everything we do in order to illuminate new art canons and nurture healthy arts ecosystems.

Sixty is a worker-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. By worker-led we mean that while our board of directors provide support and serve as ambassadors for our work, we as workers lead and make decisions about our daily work and strategy. Our collective, consent-based model for collaboration is deeply tied to our shared values.

What You’ll Be Doing

Getting to know Sixty’s history, values, work, strategy, and audience(s) in order to evaluate strengths and weaknesses in our marketing
Working with the Comms and Operations teams to set strategic goals for marketing and audience development including quantitative and qualitative benchmarks and analytics
Researching marketing and outreach strategies, the current and future state of non-profit marketing and grassroots organizing
Clarifying and honing the language Sixty uses to tell our story and share our work and values
Developing a plan to improve our marketing strategy in line with our values, needs, and goals
Leading implementation of the plan mentioned above in close collaboration with the Comms and Operations teams while solving problems and navigating changes as they come up

What You’ll Need To Do It

Alignment with and commitment to Sixty’s mission and core values
Be based in the Midwest (in the context of our work we broadly define the Midwest as the Great Lakes and Upper Mississippi River Basin, the Native lands therein, and the overlapping colonial boundaries of North Dakota, South Dakota, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, and Wisconsin)
Experience in marketing for non-profits, fundraising, arts publications, and/or community organizing
A deep understanding of and curiosity about the changing landscape of social media, online and offline marketing— and how non-profits and community organizations are adapting to reach and expand their audiences
Strong time management, project management, and communication skills in a remote work setting
Confidence working both independently and collaboratively on time-sensitive projects with an ability to set goals and guide ideas forward
Confidence problem-solving, experimenting, and troubleshooting roadblocks both independently and collaboratively
Curiosity and willingness to learn more about Sixty’s non-hierarchical organizational model as well as worker-led organizations, cooperative organizational structures, solidarity economies, and the needs of Midwest arts workers more broadly
Experience with or knowledge of the art, writing, archive, philanthropy and organizing ecosystems of the Midwest, especially in communities of color, queer and trans communities, and disabled communities
Comfort using Canva, Buffer, Adobe, WordPress and Google software

Payment + Timeline

Annual salary: The salary for this part-time position is $24,960 with benefits (health, dental, vision) and possible additional compensation for special projects or editorial contributions that fall outside of the scope of this position. Once a team member at Sixty, you can become a member of Sixty Collective and receive member benefits. Staff are paid monthly, with the first month’s paycheck coming August 1, 2026, contingent on the completion of Sixty’s onboarding process.

Timeline: This is a part-time 12-month term employee contract position beginning in late July / early August 2026, with a possible extension at the end of the 12 months.

Hours and availability: 20-24 hours per week, or approximately a 3-day work week.
This is a remote position open to anyone based in the Midwest, but if you are in the Chicago area you are welcome to join us in-person when we have hybrid meetings and events.

You will be asked to come to an average of 2 meetings a week, usually on Tuesdays and Thursday, and to one all-team Sunday meeting a month. Meeting times are subject to change to meet the needs of all team members, and extra meetings may come up when needed, especially in the implementation phase of this role. All team meetings are remote or hybrid.

The nature of this work will require a mix of hard and flexible deadlines, mostly self-determined by the person in this position. Sixty offers unlimited PTO with 2-3 weeks notice given when possible.

It’s important to note that the entire Sixty team takes two collective breaks each year: a 3-week Summer Slowdown starting June 19th (Juneteenth) and an 8-week Winter Slowdown starting December 1st, with total rest from December 1st to the Monday after New Year’s Day, and a workflow warm up until January 31st. Our team (including the person in this role) receives normal payment during these periods.

To Apply:

Submit your application here

In the application form you will be asked to share:

Contact info, pronouns, location, and availability
Why you’re interested in the role and what makes you a good fit
Your resume/CV
3-5 work samples in the form of a PDF file or links

The deadline to apply for this position is 11:59PM Central on Tuesday, June 30th, 2026. Sixty will reach out to schedule interviews the week of July 6th and let applicants know of our decision by July 17. The position will begin late July / early August 2026.

We will review applications as we receive them. No late applications or email applications will be considered.

A note on plagiarism and generative AI: Sixty Inches From Center does not use generative AI in any of our work and we have a zero-tolerance policy for plagiarism.

We reserve the right to shelve applications that contain any form of plagiarism, including but not limited to text or images generated using AI. We make some exceptions for AI used for accessibility purposes.

If you have any questions please reach out to river@sixtyinchesfromcenter.org.