Careers

First Universalist Church of Minneapolis is a 1,000+ member church with a 150+ year history of being a strong and powerful voice for liberal religion and social justice in Minneapolis and beyond. On any given Sunday, you’ll find us preaching about racial justice in the sanctuary and creating radically inclusive community in our religious education classes that welcome more than 320 children and youth. As a staff team, we’re a multicultural group of people who work hard, have fun, and do our best to create a community in which all find inspiration and belonging. Together, we seek to expand our hearts and minds, make a difference in the world, mark important milestones, and explore big questions in the context of a supportive, anti-racist, anti-oppressive, radically welcoming religious community. We are a church dedicated to racial justice and we honor all kinds of families, recognizing our interdependence and our common foundation of love.

You love people of all ages, like working in a team of staff and volunteers, take satisfaction in managing details and keeping things organized, and want a job where your contributions are valued and you know you’re making a difference in a community. You are committed to developing leadership skills and promoting opportunities for service and social justice across generations.

In general, congregants of First Universalist Church will not be considered for employment in this position. However, the church reserves the right to hire church members for some jobs where knowledge of the congregation is critical. Other members of an employee’s family may be considered for employment; however, relatives may not supervise one another. “Relative” means a spouse, domestic partner, parent, sibling, child, niece, nephew, cousin, aunt, uncle, grandparent, grandchild, etc.

This is a part-time, term-limited position beginning August 1, 2025, and concluding May 31, 2026. This is an hourly position paid at a rate of $26.11/hour and an expectation of working an average of 8 hours/week. This position includes the benefit of paid sick and safe time. 

This position includes both in-person and virtual work. The schedule for this position includes a combination of weekday, weekday evening, and weekend hours, including approximately one Sunday morning each month. The exact schedule is negotiable – outside of specific required Sunday mornings – so long as the required job duties are able to be accomplished. You must be able to get yourself to the church building even in our Minnesota weather, barring safety concerns. The church building is located in Uptown Minneapolis at 3400 Dupont Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55408. The church is accessible with an accessible entrance and accessible and all-gender bathrooms, and elevator access to all floors on which this job needs to be performed.

You will take direction and receive support from Allison Connelly-Vetter, Director for Children, Youth, and Family Ministries. You will work collaboratively with other members of the Children, Youth, and Family Ministries staff, Advisory Team, Program Lead Team, wider church staff, and volunteers.

Planning and leading service and/or justice projects for a group of children and youth ages Kindergarten and older on select Sunday mornings, generally over holiday weekends or school breaks. These projects will happen approximately once a month during worship on Sunday mornings. This is a monthly task. A candidate for this position must be available from 8 a.m. – 1 p.m. on the following Sundays:

Planning and leading service and/or justice projects for our middle and high school youth groups and families with young children on some Wednesday evenings. This is a monthly task.  

Actively participating in the ministry of the Program Lead Team, a group of staff and volunteers responsible for children and youth programming in the congregation. This is a monthly task.

Supporting and guiding the work of the Youth Leadership Team in collaboration with the Director of Children, Youth, and Families. This includes monthly meetings on evenings or weekends along with additional opportunities for social and spiritual formation gatherings. This is a monthly task.

Supporting adult members of the congregation in welcoming, including, and appropriately engaging with children and youth in their programs. This is an ongoing task.

Supporting high school aged youth in their participation in wider church programming. This also entails supporting traditionally adult-led congregational (and particularly justice-focused) groups in adjusting their culture to warmly and competently include youth and families into their work. This is an ongoing task.

Participating in worship as desired, including leading a justice-focused story, song, or activity for kids and youth.

Supporting Children, Youth, & Families staff and volunteers to ensure proper coverage for Sunday morning Religious Education programs as needed when colleagues are unavailable. This is an occasional task. 

Collaborating with staff and volunteers to lead and/or support seasonal events, including the Christmas Pageant, Summer Camp, and youth-led fundraiser(s) or service projects. These events require work on evenings and weekends. This is a seasonal task.  

Meeting weekly with the Director of Children, Youth, and Family Ministries for ongoing support and collaboration. This is a weekly task. 

Developing a team of lay leaders to continue the ministry of this position beyond its term limit. This is an ongoing task that will increase in the second half of the year.

• Warm and welcoming to children, youth, and adults
• Strong organizational skills
• Both a good team member and a self-directed worker 
• Excellent communication skills, including a commitment to grow skills in the ability to navigate conflict and maintain relationships 
• Commitment to inclusion, accessibility, and responsiveness to the diverse needs of congregants
• Willingness to learn about, teach, and work to support the values of Unitarian Universalism
• Wants to work in an organization in which the dismantling of white supremacy is a high priority
• Work or lived experience with communities of color, LGBTQ+ communities, disabled and neurodivergent folks, and/or Indigenous peoples is of particular value
• High school diploma/GED preferred
• Must meet background check criteria 
• Must have current, complete COVID-19 vaccination
• Note that qualifications may be met as a result of lived experience, volunteer work, professional experience, and/or formal and informal training
• You must be able to get yourself to the church building even in our Minnesota weather, barring safety concerns. The church building is located in Uptown Minneapolis at 3400 Dupont Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55408. 

• Racial Justice. An ability to articulate what an anti-racist religious education program looks like, normalizing this conversation in all ministry settings, and partnering with congregants and others to achieve this goal. A commitment and clear pathways to facilitate Black and Brown liberation and joy, as well as ongoing learning and development about race and racial/ethnic identity for both BIPOC and White congregants. Demonstrates enthusiasm and capacity to work against racism and decenter White Supremacy Culture.
• Team Player. Works well in collaboration with others. Finds own sense of purpose and meaning in supporting the larger vision of the church, while simultaneously bringing vision and leadership to the areas within their purview. Publicly supports ministers and staff, while freely bringing concerns/suggestions/thoughts to the ministers and staff in team meetings and private conversations. 
• Managing vision and purpose. Articulates and supports the vision and mission of First Universalist church. 
• Developing volunteers. Is able to identify and recruit capable people into positions of responsibility; builds people up; maintains open and active dialogue with volunteers; communicates expectations clearly and holds people accountable. 
• Managing conflict. Deals with problems quickly and directly; steps up to conflicts, seeing them as opportunities; reads situations quickly; focuses when listening; settles disputes collaboratively and equitably; finds common ground and gets cooperation. 
• Interpersonal relationships. Relates well to a wide range of people, inside and outside of the congregation; builds appropriate rapport; builds effective and constructive relationships; is diplomatic and tactful; is regarded as a team player. 
• Trust and integrity. Is widely trusted; seen as direct and truthful; keeps confidences; takes responsibility for mistakes; adheres to an appropriate and effective set of core values during good and bad times; acts in line with those values; practices what they preach.