Position Profile
Executive Director
Alternative Directions, Inc.
Baltimore, Maryland

Alternative Directions, Inc., based in Baltimore, Maryland, is seeking an executive director dedicated to helping prisoners, ex-prisoners and others in need become independent, responsible citizens through civil legal assistance and reentry services.

The Organization

Alternative Directions, Inc. (ADI), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established in 1979, helps men and women in prison and those leaving prison become independent, responsible citizens. ADI provides civil legal pro se services to those in prison and comprehensive case management to those returning to their communities. ADI also educates the public and policy makers about the barriers former prisoners face when reentering society.

Since its inception, ADI’s foremost goals have been to:

1. Provide pro se civil legal services to men and women in Maryland jails and prisons.

2. Educate the public and policy makers about the barriers female and male prisoners face when re-entering the Maryland community.

3. Find new and better ways to keep women and men from returning to prison.

ADI is governed by a nine-member Board of Directors and has a twenty-member Advisory Committee. Current staffing includes eight positions.  The organization’s current budget is approximately $400,000.  More information on ADI may be found at www.alternativedirectionsinc.org.

Programs

ADI pursues its mission through the following programs/actions:

• Civil Legal Assistance Program: helps male and female clients represent themselves in uncontested civil legal matters. ADI stands alone in that it is the only civil legal services organization in Maryland whose target population is incarcerated individuals. A large segment of the population would have no access to the courts without help from our agency. Incarcerated individuals regularly have difficulty obtaining assistance with legal matters, particularly in matters involving temporary guardianship, divorce or child support. The thrust of our civil legal program is to assist the incarcerated population with representing themselves pro se in family law matters.

• The Turn About Program (TAP): provides transitional services to women leaving prison on parole. Women with a substance abuse history enter a 28-day drug abuse program at Tuerk House upon their entrance into TAP, and then continue after-care treatment for another six months. Our TAP clients report to ADI at least three times a week for individual and group counseling, and depending on their personal situations, the women attend GED classes, and parenting and stress management classes. The initial months in the program emphasize recovery, rather than employment. However, the women also attend job development and computer classes throughout their involvement in our program.

• The After Care Transition program (ACT): facilitates a series of workshops in which over 50 partner agencies (state, community and corporate) join us inside Maryland’s women’s prisons. ADI works with women leaving prison within the next 60 days from the Maryland Correctional Institution for Women and the Baltimore Pre-Release Unit for Women. The workshops are held monthly, alternating between the two facilities, generally with a class size between thirty-five and forty prisoners. ACT workshops bring awareness of what these women will be facing when they are released, and provide resources of agencies to contact for varying needs. Speakers bring literature from their agencies that will be helpful in guiding these women toward housing, jobs, physical and mental health care, substance abuse facilities, and other related topics. This gives the women names and telephone numbers readily available to them upon their release which is a necessary component for successful reentry.

• Positive Directions Program: focuses on addressing barriers to employment that face people leaving prison. In this post-911 world, simply obtaining a Social Security card has become a difficult process taking 4 to 6 weeks. Many are also in need of medical care, housing, and a bus pass for transportation. We have assisted by enrolling client into GED classes, job training, and apprenticeships. Our clients are overcoming these barriers, they are finding employment and beginning a new life.

• Out For Justice Project: organizes former prisoners to educate themselves and the public about the need to change policies that create roadblocks to successful re-entry.

The Position

The incoming executive director will succeed Mary Joel Davis, who founded the organization and will be retiring at the end of 2008. The new executive will have an exciting opportunity to lead a mature organization. Building on its 29-year legacy, the Board is committed to keeping ADI vibrant and focused on the needs of our constituency as those needs change.

Toward this end, the Board has identified the following priorities for the first 12 to 18 months of the incoming executive’s tenure (not necessarily in priority order):

• Forge strong relationships with ADI’s constituencies.

• Maintain the high degree of quality and effectiveness of ADI’s current portfolio of services.

• Expand and diversify ADI’s base of financial support.

• Work with the Board to develop new strategic plan for the organization.

• Continue to build the staff, Board and infrastructure.

Key Responsibilities

Reporting to the Board of Directors, the executive director will provide leadership to the organization, manage its day-to-day affairs, and work with the Board and staff to chart the future direction of the ADI. Key responsibilities for the executive director include:

• Provide visionary and strategic leadership to the organization and translate that vision and strategy into concrete actions that advance the mission.

• Manage the day-to-day operations and programs to ensure that ADI maintains its status as a well-managed, highly-respected organization.

• Maintain a continuous understanding of the organization’s financial position and outlook, and ensure fiscal responsibility and security.

• Provide resource development leadership for the organization, expand the donor base, and foster positive relations with existing donors.

• Provide effective management and direction to existing and new staff to further develop and build their skills, experience and performance.

• Communicate the mission of ADI to various audiences and develop and maintain sound relationships with individuals and organizations that share the ADI’s vision.

• Identify strategic opportunities and take actions to raise the visibility and reputation of ADI.

• Support the Board of Directors in its governance role and foster its ongoing development, and keep it informed on internal conditions and important external developments.

Experience and Attributes

An ideal candidate for this position will share our commitment to advancing the mission as well as enhancing services and support to our clients.  He/she will bring a variety of experiences and attributes to AID, including: 

• Commitment to (or ability to commit to) ADI’s mission.

• At least five years of senior leadership experience in the nonprofit sector with a record of mobilizing staff and constituencies to achieve objectives.

• A successful fundraising track record, especially government and private grants.

• Financial literacy with experience in developing and managing budgets.

• Strong familiarity with domestic law, corrections and re-entry issues. 

• Knowledge of prison operations, family law and child support enforcement.

• Knowledge of Maryland civil legal processes is a plus.

• A Bachelor’s degree, JD preferred.

• Excellent written and oral communications skills.