Associate Director of Programs

Reports to: Director of Programs

Work hours: Monday through Friday; full-time

FLSA status: Exempt

Location: In person, 3135 Lorain Ave, Cleveland, OH 44113

Lead with Purpose. Serve with Compassion. Create Pathways to Stability.

At the West Side Catholic Center, we believe every person deserves dignity, compassion, and respect—especially in moments when circumstances can feel overwhelming.

Grounded in faith, hope, love, and respect for those we serve, our mission is simple: We assist all who come in need of food, clothing, shelter, advocacy, and a path to self-sufficiency.

Every day, our team walks alongside individuals and families experiencing homelessness, food insecurity, crisis, and other challenges. We provide meals, clothing, shelter, advocacy, supportive services, and, perhaps most importantly, the relationships and encouragement that help people move forward.

We are looking for an experienced nonprofit leader who believes deeply in that work and is ready to help lead it.

The Opportunity

The Associate Director of Programs is a key member of the West Side Catholic Center's leadership team and plays a central role in how we serve our community.

This is an opportunity for a leader who can see both the person and the program—someone who understands that excellent human services require compassion and accountability, strong relationships and strong systems, and a willingness to step into the details while never losing sight of the bigger picture.

The Associate Director provides leadership and oversight for several of WSCC's most important direct-service programs, including our 35-bed Family Shelter, Community Resource Center, and Family Engagement and Family Support Programs.

You will lead people, strengthen programs, build partnerships, manage resources, and help ensure that the services we provide are responsive to the real and changing needs of our community.

Most importantly, you will help create an environment where the people we serve feel seen, respected, safe, and supported—and where our staff has the leadership and resources they need to do their best work.

What You Will Lead

Family Shelter

Our 35-bed shelter provides more than a safe place to stay. It gives families experiencing homelessness the opportunity to find stability, support, and a pathway forward.

You will provide leadership for shelter operations and ensure that the environment is safe, trauma-informed, supportive, and grounded in dignity and respect.

Community Resource Center

Our Resource Center is a place where people come to meet immediate needs and connect with longer-term support.

You will oversee services, including meals, food pantry operations, clothing distribution, and on-site social service programming, while helping ensure these services work together as part of a larger continuum of care.

Family Engagement & Family Support

You will provide leadership for the development and implementation of programs designed to engage and support families in our community.

This includes identifying opportunities to strengthen services, responding to emerging needs, and ensuring that programs remain meaningful, accessible, and effective.

What You Will Do

Lead people.

• Supervise, mentor, and develop program managers.
• Build a culture where compassion and accountability exist together.
• Establish clear expectations and support staff in meeting them.
• Provide coaching, feedback, professional development, and leadership that helps people grow.
• Be present and accessible to staff and willing to step in when challenges arise.

Lead programs.

• Provide day-to-day leadership and oversight across multiple program areas.
• Ensure programs operate effectively, efficiently, and consistently with WSCC's mission and values.
• Identify opportunities for innovation and improvement.
• Ensure that services reflect trauma-informed practices and respond to the needs and strengths of those we serve.
• Monitor program effectiveness and use data, experience, and community feedback to continually improve our work.

Lead with clinical expertise.

• Complete mental health and substance use assessments to help identify housing, recovery, and supportive-service needs.
• Provide clinical guidance and consultation to program staff.
• Help ensure that individuals and families are connected with appropriate internal and community resources.
• Support staff in responding effectively to crisis and complex client needs.

Lead responsibly.

• Ensure appropriate stewardship of organizational resources.
• Maintain compliance with funding requirements and applicable safety, licensing, and regulatory standards.
• Track program outcomes and prepare required reports.
• Use data and evaluation to strengthen program performance and demonstrate impact.

Lead beyond our walls.

• Build and maintain strong relationships with community partners, social service agencies, healthcare providers, housing organizations, volunteers, and other stakeholders.
• Represent WSCC in community collaborations and service networks.
• Identify opportunities to strengthen partnerships and create better pathways of support for those we serve.
• Work collaboratively across WSCC to ensure that our programs operate as a connected system rather than as separate services.

The Leader We're Looking For

We are looking for more than someone who can manage programs. We are looking for a leader.

Someone who understands that working in human services is both deeply rewarding and deeply challenging. Someone who can walk into a difficult situation, listen first, bring people together, and find a way forward. Someone who can hold staff accountable while making them feel supported. Someone who understands that data matters, budgets matter, compliance matters, and systems matter—but that people matter most.

The successful candidate will bring:

• A Master’s degree in Social Work or Counseling.
• Independent clinical licensure as an LISW or LPCC; supervisor endorsement preferred.
• At least 5 years of progressive leadership experience in social services, shelter operations, behavioral health, family services, or community-based programs.
• Demonstrated success leading multiple programs and supervising multidisciplinary teams.
• Strong knowledge of trauma-informed care, crisis intervention, mental health, substance use, homelessness, and family support services.
• Experience with grant compliance, outcome measurement, and program evaluation.
• Excellent communication, organization, problem-solving, and relationship-building skills.
• The ability to balance strategic thinking with a willingness to be present in the day-to-day work.
• A genuine commitment to treating every person with dignity, compassion, and respect.
• A commitment to the mission and values of the West Side Catholic Center.

Why WSCC?

Because the work matters.

Compensation & Benefits

Pay: $70,000 - $80,000 per year.

• The opportunity to lead programs that have a direct and meaningful impact on individuals and families in our community.
• A mission-driven team committed to compassion, dignity, respect, and service.
• Competitive salary and comprehensive benefits, including health, dental, and vision coverage.
• Generous paid time off and flexible scheduling to support work-life balance, life insurance, and an Employee Assistance Program.
• 403(b) with employer matching.
• The opportunity to shape and strengthen programs that respond to the evolving needs of our community.
• A leadership role where your ideas, experience, and voice will matter.

The West Side Catholic Center is an equal opportunity employer. We welcome candidates from all backgrounds and are committed to creating a workplace where people are treated with dignity, respect, and compassion.

Come Lead With Us

If you are an experienced human-services leader who believes that how we serve people matters just as much as what we provide, we would like to meet you.

If you are ready to bring your experience, your leadership, your clinical expertise, and your heart to an organization committed to helping people find stability and a path forward, we invite you to apply.

How to Apply

Please submit your resume and a brief statement describing a program, initiative, or team you have led that made a meaningful difference—and what that experience taught you about leadership.

Email a cover letter and resume to Gretchen Anderson, Director of Human Resources, at ganderson@wsccenter.org with the subject “Associate Director of Programs Applicant,” or mail to: West Side Catholic Center, Attn: Gretchen Anderson, 3135 Lorain Ave, Cleveland, OH 44113.