Program Officer, Early Care and Education

THE COMPANY  

The Low Income Investment Fund is a non-profit Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) that mobilizes capital and partners to achieve opportunity, equity and wellbeing for people and communities. LIIF innovates financial solutions to create more equitable outcomes for all by building and preserving affordable homes, quality educational opportunities from early childhood through higher education, health clinics, healthy food retail and community facilities. In this way, LIIF provides a bridge between private capital markets and communities. LIIF's headquarters is in San Francisco and has offices in Los Angeles, New York, Atlanta, and Washington D.C. 

REPORTING RELATIONSHIPS: 

This position reports to the Program Manager, Early Care and Education Program and collaborates with the broader Early Care and Education and LIIF teams.  

JOB SUMMARY:  

The Program Officer is responsible for administering a grant program supporting the creation, enhancement, and maintenance of child care spaces in centers and family child care homes. This role includes providing technical assistance on facilities and business support to individuals and organizations serving low-income children. The Program Officer will also oversee monitoring activities for grant-funded projects. This position will focus on administering a grant program funded through the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) to support early care and education (ECE) programs throughout California. 

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES: 

Administer Grants to Child Care Programs: 

• Manage a grant program that supports licensed child care centers and family child care homes to create, enhance, or preserve child care spaces.
• Review grant applications, conduct site visits, and assess potential grantees.
• Maintain grant eligibility pipeline lists and ensure outreach to child development programs.
• Provide facility support for child care capital projects.
• Monitor grants to ensure compliance, project completion, and expenditure tracking.

Training and Technical Assistance to Potential Child Care Providers: 

• Deliver training and technical assistance on child care facilities, business operations, and regulations.
• Assist child care providers in securing funding for capital needs.
• Develop and distribute written materials on regulations, building codes, and funding requirements.
• Provide guidance on business sustainability for child care facilities.

Coordinate Child Care Site-Related Activities with City and Community Agencies: 

• Partner with city and county agencies, nonprofit housing developers, and public/private sector stakeholders to identify child care facility needs and potential sites.
• Collaborate with the California Department of Social Services, Community Care Licensing, Fire, Building, and Planning Departments to support child care expansion or renovation.

Impact Analysis and Data Management: 

• Maintain data and reports on child care needs and capacity, including site inventory, service demand analysis, and development pipeline tracking.
• Track program outcomes and impact through database maintenance and reporting.

Other Duties as Assigned: 

• Support the overall mission and work of the ECE team as needed.

QUALIFICATIONS: 

• Bachelor's degree in Early Care and Education, Architecture, Planning, Operations, Business Administration, Public Administration, Finance, or a related field.
• Minimum of 2-3 years experience in Early Care and Education (ECE), California child care licensing, and government funding regulations.
• Strong organization and project management skills.
• Ability to work independently while managing multiple priorities.
• Training and business technical assistance experience for child care providers or small businesses.
• Knowledge or willingness to learn about planning and building codes for child care and community facilities.
• Understanding of facilities construction, management, project planning, and cost estimation.
• Strong collaboration skills with diverse stakeholders in public and private sectors.
• Bilingual Required
• Willingness to travel throughout California for site visits and occasional evening/weekend work.
• Proficiency in cloud-based systems and databases (Salesforce experience a plus).

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: 

LIIF offers a hybrid work environment with flexibility to balance in-office and remote work. However, all employees are expected to work on-site at least two (2) days per week. The successful candidate may be expected to travel occasionally for meetings or other Company sponsored events. 

All Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF) employees must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. In accordance with LIIF's policies, we provide reasonable accommodations, absent undue hardship, to qualified individuals who cannot get vaccinated against COVID-19 because of sincerely held religious or medical reasons. If you believe you need an accommodation from the vaccination mandate required by this policy, please notify our Human Resources Department. 

HOW TO APPLY:  

Please apply with Resume and Cover Letter via our recruitment portal: Recruitment )

Notice to Third Party Recruitment Agencies: 

Please note that Low Income Investment Fund does not accept unsolicited resumes from recruiters or employment agencies. In the absence of an executed Recruitment Services Agreement, there will be no obligation to any referral compensation or recruiter fee. 

In the event a recruiter or agency submits a resume or candidate without an agreement Low Income Investment Fund shall explicitly reserve the right to pursue and hire those candidate(s) without any financial obligation to the recruiter or agency. Any unsolicited resumes, including those submitted to hiring managers, shall be deemed the property of Low Income Investment Fund.  

We do not accept unsolicited phone calls. Only candidates being considered for a position will be contacted. 

LIIF, an EOE (Equal Opportunity Employer), believes that diversity ensures excellence. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sexual orientation, gender, or national origin. Candidates of diverse backgrounds and with diverse experience are strongly encouraged to apply for this position.