Director, Community Impact

Houston Dynamo Football Club; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Houston Dynamo Football Club is seeking a Director of Community Impact to lead and evaluate community engagement, education, food security, and partnerships across Greater Houston. This role shapes philanthropy strategy, oversees grantmaking, and collaborates with internal teams and external nonprofits to maximize social impact.

The ideal candidate has 7–10 years in community relations or CSR, strong leadership, budgeting, and grant administration skills, and fluency in English, with capacity

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in nonprofit management, business, public administration, communications, sports management or a related field preferred.
• 7–10 years of progressive experience in community relations, nonprofit management, corporate social responsibility, foundation management, or community impact leadership.
• Minimum 3 years of people leadership and program management experience.
• Experience managing community programs and external nonprofit partnerships from planning through execution and evaluation.
• Experience administering grants or charitable funding processes, including application review, due diligence, documentation, award administration and outcome reporting.
• Strong project management skills with ability to manage multiple programs, deadlines, budgets and stakeholders.
• Excellent written, verbal and presentation skills with ability to communicate with executives, partners, nonprofit leaders and community participants.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office required; experience with CRM, grant-management or project-management platforms preferred.
• Ability to work evenings, weekends and holidays as needed; local travel throughout Greater Houston required.
• Bilingual English/Spanish preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead planning, execution and continuous improvement of Dynamo & Dash Charities programs and community impact initiatives, with primary focus on Education and Food Insecurity and support of the Club’s broader charitable pillars.
• Manage partner-supported charitable programs from concept through execution, ensuring objectives, budgets, timelines, participant experience and partner commitments are delivered at a high level.
• Cultivate and manage partnerships with food banks, schools, community organizations, corporate sponsors, and government agencies to expand the Foundation's impact in addressing food insecurity.
• Oversee community food distribution events, meal-packing projects, backpack programs, holiday giving campaigns, and other hunger-relief initiatives.
• Coordinate with HDFC Partnerships, Marketing, Communications, Ticketing, Soccer Operations and other departments to integrate community impact into Club and partner priorities.
• Support educational and literacy initiatives, STEM and scholarship efforts, food access and distribution initiatives, ticket and equipment donations, volunteer opportunities and other charitable activations.
• Engage players, coaches, staff, and community partners in service projects that promote food security, healthy lifestyles and education programs.

Skills

Program management

Partnerships

Grantmaking

Budgeting

Communication skills

MS Office

CRM systems

Bilingual English/Spanish

Education

Bachelor's degree in nonprofit management, business, public administration, communications, sports management or related field

Tools

CRM systems

Grant-management platforms

Project-management tools

Job description

The Houston Dynamo Football Club (HDFC) is a multi-faceted organization dedicated to inspiring and supporting soccer participation and growth in Houston, TX and beyond. The Club's brands include men's and women's professional teams - the Houston Dynamo (MLS) and Houston Dash (NWSL), a development academy, Houston Dynamo & Dash Charities, as well as Shell Energy Stadium and Houston Sports Park.
The Club has a rich history, including MLS Cup titles (2006, 2007) and in-season tournament championships for both the Dynamo (2018, 2023) and Dash (2020) and is focused on building toward the next championships, inspiring and uniting the city of Houston through the sport of soccer and community outreach, and creating the most inclusive sporting experience and diverse fan base in the city and state.

Purpose of the Job

The Director of Community Impact serves as a strategic leader responsible for developing, implementing, and evaluating community engagement and philanthropic initiatives that advance the mission of the Houston Dynamo& Dash Charities. This role leads community impact programs, nonprofit partnerships, volunteer engagement, grantmaking activities, and social responsibility initiatives that positively affect youth, education,andfoodsecuritytocommunities throughout Greater Houston.

The Director of Community Impact collaborates with Houston DynamoandHouston Dash,Partnership and other externalnon-profit organizations to strengthen community relationships, expand organizational impact, and enhance the club's reputation as a trusted community partner.

The position reports to the Vice President, Community Engagement and works collaboratively across the organization toleveragethe power of soccer, the Dynamo, the Dash, players,staffand partners to strengthen the Houston community.

Duties and responsibilities

Charitable Programs and Community Impact

• Lead planning, execution and continuous improvement of Dynamo & Dash Charities programs and community impact initiatives, with primary focus on Education and Food Insecurity and support of theClub’sbroader charitable pillars.
• Manage partner-supported charitable programs from concept through execution, ensuring objectives, budgets, timelines, participantexperienceand partner commitments are delivered ata high level.
• Cultivate and manage partnerships with food banks, schools, community organizations, corporate sponsors, and government agencies to expand the Foundation's impact in addressing food insecurity.
• Oversee community food distribution events, meal-packing projects, backpack programs, holiday giving campaigns, and other hunger-relief initiatives.
• Coordinate with HDFC Partnerships, Marketing, Communications, Ticketing, Soccer Operations and other departments to integrate community impact into Club and partner priorities.
• Support educational and literacy initiatives, STEM and scholarship efforts, food access and distribution initiatives, ticket and equipment donations, volunteer opportunitiesand other charitable activations.
• Engage players, coaches, staff, and community partners in service projects that promote food security,healthylifestylesand education programs.

Grantmaking and Charitable Funding Administration

• Own the administrative lifecycle of the community grant program, including application development, outreach, intake, eligibility review, due diligence, evaluation materials, award documentation, paymentcoordination and post-award reporting.
• Maintain accurategrant records, calendars, agreements, supportingdocumentationand reporting requirements in partnership with HDFC Finance and Legal resources.
• Monitor grantee progress, outcomes and compliance with award requirements and use learnings to strengthen future grant cycles and community investment decisions.
• Support administration of scholarships and other charitable funding programs, as applicable.
• Worksclosely with the Sr. Director ofSoccer Programs inproviding scholarship opportunities for youth soccer players to join pay-to-play leagues.

Operations,Budgetand Administration

• Support annual planning and budget development for Charities programs and community investments
• Support fundraising and stewardship events and initiatives, including Boots & Suits, Charities Classic and other donor or partner engagement opportunities, as assigned.
• Represent Dynamo & Dash Charities at community events, meetings, matchdays and partner activations; occasional evenings, weekends and holidays are required.
• Develop program goals, KPIs and evaluation practices; collect impact data, feedback and stories to inform decisions and support impact reporting and partner stewardship.

Board Relations & Governance

• Serve as the primary staff liaison to the Houston Dynamo& DashCharities Foundation Board of Directors, fosteringstrong communicationand engagement with board members.
• Partner with the VP, Community Engagement,ExecutiveLeadersand Board Chair to develop meeting agendas, presentations, reports, and supporting
• Develop and maintainimpact measurement systems and reporting dashboards.
• Prepare reports for Foundation leadership, board members, donors, sponsors, and community partners.
• Track program budgets and ensure responsible stewardship of Foundation resources
• Use data and stakeholder feedback to continuously improve programs and outcomes.
• Ensure charitable programs, donations and community investments follow applicable policies, nonprofit requirementsand Club standards.

QUALIFICATION Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in nonprofit management, business, public administration, communications, sportsmanagementor a related fieldpreferred
• Minimum 7-10 years of progressive experience in community relations, nonprofit management, corporate social responsibility, foundation management, or community impact leadership.
• Minimum 3 years of people leadership and program management experience.
• Demonstrated experience managing community programs and external nonprofit or community partnerships from planning through execution and evaluation.
• Experience administering grants or charitable funding processes, including application review, due diligence, documentation, award administrationand outcome reporting.
• Strong project management skills with ability to manage multiple programs, deadlines, budgetsand stakeholders simultaneously.
• Excellent written, verbal and presentation skills with ability to communicate with executives, partners, nonprofit leadersand community participants.
• Demonstrated financial acumen, attention to detail and comfort managing budgets, invoices, recordsand reporting.
• Proficiencywith Microsoft Officerequired; experience with CRM, grant-management or project-management platforms preferred.
• Ability to work evenings, weekends and holidays as needed; local travel throughout Greater Houston required.
• Bilingual English/Spanish preferred.

Knowledge, Skills, ABILITIES,anDOTHER ATTRIBUTES

• Working knowledge of nonprofit operations, grantmaking, governance practices and community partnership development.
• Strong understanding of community impact principles and ability to align programs with demonstrated community needs and organizational priorities.
• Highly organized and detail-oriented, with ability to build reliable processes and maintain accurate, confidential records.
• Ability to evaluate programs and partnerships using quantitative measures and qualitative community feedback.
• Ability to identify problems and root causes and develop practical, collaborative solutions.
• Exceptional relationship-building skills and judgment with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders.
• Agility to respond effectively to the evolving needs of a fast-paced sports and entertainment organization.
• Strong work ethic, sense of urgency and commitment to high-quality execution and service.
• Proven ability to lead cross-functional projects and influence without direct authority.
• Passion for using sport and the platform of the Dynamo and Dash to create meaningful impact in Greater Houston.
• Maintains Organizational Core Competencies.

ORGANIZATIONAL CORE COMPETENCIES

• Accountable – Holds themselves (and when appropriate others) accountable for achieving goals and objectives.
• Collaborative – Works collaboratively with others to achieve organizational outcomes.
• Progressive – Open minded, accepting, creative, and innovative in approach.
• Values Driven – Being ethical in decision making and operating with professional integrity.
• Agile – Achieves personal and organizational success within a changing, dynamic and complex environment. Ability to handle ambiguity.

OTHER INFORMATION

Diverse candidates of all backgrounds are welcome, and the Club seeks individuals passionate about sport, inspiring the city and devoted to the organization's growth. While duties and responsibilities vary across positions, we are seeking individuals who are accountable, collaborative, progressive, agile and ethical/values driven.

We are an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.