The James Irvine Foundation: Program Associate

THE FOUNDATION

The James Irvine Foundation is a private, nonprofit grantmaking foundation dedicated to expanding opportunity for the people of California. The Foundation’s current focus is a California where all low-income workers have the power to advance economically. Since 1937 the Foundation has provided more than $2.92 billion in grants to organizations throughout California. The Foundation ended 2025 with $3.6 billion in assets and provided $160.2 million in grants. For more, please visit

Position Summary

The Program Associate provides program-related support to the multi-initiative portfolio team to facilitate grantmaking and grant monitoring policies and processes, in addition to supporting relationship-building in the field. The Program Associate may participate in the initial screening of potential grantees, arranging meetings with organizations, preparing docket materials, and monitoring ongoing grants. The Program Associate also monitors administrative, grantmaking, and Direct Charitable Activities (DCA) budgets and consultant contracts for a given initiative or project. Working closely with the Grants Administration team, the Program Associate ensures that grantmaking adheres to Foundation policies, procedures, and deadlines.

The Program Associate works in partnership with the Foundation’s grantmaking portfolio staff on a set of initiatives that advance Irvine’s efforts to give all low-income workers in California the power to advance economically. Program Associates work on multiple initiative or project teams, which may be led by an Initiative Director or another senior staff member. Program Associates have an Advisor, typically a senior team member, who provides professional development coaching and performance assessments. The Advisor to whom this position will report will depend, in part, on the person’s background and interests and the distribution of staff reporting to various senior team members.

Principal Duties And Responsibilities

• In coordination with assigned initiative teams, provides grants administration support for the maintenance of all active grants in the assigned portfolio. These grants administration responsibilities include maintaining grant files, drafting or editing correspondence and reports, ongoing communication with grantees, and entry of related information in the grants database. In carrying out these duties, the Program Associate also responds to all requests and any special assignments from the Grants Administration department.
• Ensures timely receipt and distribution of concept papers and proposal submissions to Initiative Directors, Senior Program Officers, Program Officers, and other members of the grantmaking portfolio team.
• Facilitates the workflow of grant proposals by managing internal timelines, undertaking the logistical arrangements for review by members of the appropriate team and other Foundation staff, requesting additional documents from applicants to complete the review, and informing applicants of the review timing.
• Participates in meetings of assigned teams to review grant proposals and grant recommendations; review grant progress updates; plan technical assistance, evaluation, and communications activities; and share and reflect on experiences in the field and related program activity. As requested by the team lead, circulates agendas and prepares meeting minutes. Also, participates in meetings and training sessions organized by Grants Administration.
• Maintains a thorough knowledge of the priorities and grantee due diligence criteria for assigned initiatives and a working knowledge of the priorities of other grantmaking areas of the Foundation in relation to Irvine’s North Star. Responds to inquiries for initiative-related information from potential grant applicants.
• Conducts research and maintains an internal database of potential grantees and partner institutions, including intermediary organizations. Assists other colleagues on assigned initiative teams in gathering background information, history, and organizational data on prospective grantees to inform the review process and ensure the eligibility of prospective grantees in the early phase of consideration.
• Arranges, attends, and manages the logistical arrangements, coordination, and follow-up activities related to team and grantee-related meetings on- or off-site, as needed. For on-site grantee-related meetings, works collaboratively with appropriate managers and/or Executive Assistant to plan and carry out events.
• Assists in coordinating consultant activity with initiative team colleagues or grantees, as needed. Prepares required documents for the establishment and approval of individual consulting contracts. Monitors expenditures related to the approved budgets, ensures reimbursement of authorized expenses, maintains supporting documentation of related contracts, and works with the Accounting department on year-end budget reconciliation.
• Conducts research, data analysis, and prepares reports as assigned by senior staff members and/or team leads. Remains abreast of current research, activities, and social justice trends in the specific field(s) related to the initiative by reviewing professional publications, and attending related conferences, meetings, and other events.
• Works collaboratively and participates in cross-disciplinary teams with colleagues at the Foundation, as requested.

Minimum Qualifications

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCES

• Bachelor’s degree and a minimum of two years of work experience related to the role; or a history and background that provides equivalent experience.

Required Skills And Abilities

• A strong desire to contribute to the mission of The James Irvine Foundation.
• Demonstrated ability to manage process, plan workflow, handle multiple tasks simultaneously, and meet office deadlines; good attention to detail and follow-through are essential.
• Strong interpersonal skills, including the ability to work collaboratively with individuals and teams at all levels of the organization, representing different interests and needs.
• A personal style characterized by humility, flexibility, self-awareness, accessibility, curiosity, a sense of humor, and the ability to work with grace under pressure.
• Demonstrated personal commitment to addressing the systemic and structural barriers to economic opportunity that are based on race and other factors.
• Ability to take initiative, work collaboratively, and think proactively and creatively.
• Strong administrative and computer skills; proficiency in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, and databases; and curiosity and aptitude to learn about and leverage AI applications, such as Microsoft Copilot and Claude, in an employee-driven way to enhance productivity.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, as well as strong analytic ability.

Compensation And Benefits

The James Irvine Foundation’s compensation philosophy is reflected in its Talent Advancement Program, which was created to assure equity in staff compensation. While every staff member is assigned a Tier based on demonstration of competencies, the Foundation looks to outcomes as criteria for advancement through the program’s Tiers. The positions are benchmarked against relative industry and occupational groups and reviewed each year, with the goal to deliver compensation equitably throughout the organization. The non-negotiable starting compensation for this role is set at $110,000 and the full compensation range is $110,000 – $120,000. For more information, please review Compensation Practices at Irvine.

The James Irvine Foundation offers an attractive benefits package and is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We encourage applicants who reflect the diversity of California, and qualified applicants with criminal histories will be considered pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance.

WORK LOCATION POLICY

The Foundation values flexibility in employee work location while recognizing the benefits of working together in person for organizational culture, relationship‐building, and effectiveness. Foundation staff work in a hybrid in-person/remote model according to the Work Location Policy at both the Los Angeles and San Francisco offices. Staff are required to work in‐office a minimum of 40% of their work time typically being in office two days a week.

How To Apply

The James Irvine Foundation is partnering with Walker & Associates Consulting, a BIPOC- and woman-owned national strategic management consulting and executive search firm, for this position. To apply, email a cover letter, resume, and list of three references (candidates will be notified in advance of any outreach to references) to ***email_hidden*** on or before 5:00 p.m. PST on Friday, June 26, 2026. Use the subject line: Program Associate. Submission via one PDF or Microsoft Word file is preferred. Questions or Nominations? Email Jeannine N. Walker at View email address on workus.org.