Application Guide

How to Apply for Partnerships, Resource Development & Sustainability Consultant

at An Emerging Culinary, Culture & Community Foundation

🏢 About An Emerging Culinary, Culture & Community Foundation

This is a rare opportunity to help build a Harlem-based cultural institution from the ground up, founded by a James Beard Award-winning chef and cultural activist. The Foundation is dedicated to preserving and activating African American and Diaspora foodways as systems of knowledge, cultural authority, and economic opportunity. Working here means shaping the infrastructure of a mission-driven organization at its earliest and most formative stage, with direct access to the Founder and Board leadership.

About This Role

As the Partnerships, Resource Development & Sustainability Consultant, you will design and execute the Foundation's fundraising and partnership strategy during its planning, launch, and early growth phases. You will identify and cultivate mission-aligned funders and partners, build a practical funding pipeline, support priority grant submissions, and recommend a sustainable operating and revenue model. Your work will directly enable the Foundation to document, interpret, and sustain African Diaspora foodways for the long term.

💡 A Day in the Life

A typical day might involve researching and prioritizing potential foundation and corporate funders, drafting a grant proposal for a priority submission, and meeting with the Founder to align on partnership outreach. You might also update the funding pipeline tracker, prepare a briefing memo for a Board member, and refine the sustainability model based on new insights from peer organizations.

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🎯 Who An Emerging Culinary, Culture & Community Foundation Is Looking For

  • Proven experience in nonprofit fundraising and partnership development, ideally with cultural institutions, food systems, or community-rooted organizations.
  • Demonstrated success building funding pipelines from diverse sources (foundations, individual donors, corporate sponsors, government grants) and securing six-figure+ gifts or grants.
  • Deep understanding of and commitment to African American and Diaspora cultural preservation, foodways, and economic justice, with cultural competency to work in Harlem and with Black-led institutions.
  • Self-directed and adaptable consultant who can operate in a startup-like nonprofit environment, collaborate with a Founder and Board, and translate vision into actionable resource-development systems.

📝 Tips for Applying to An Emerging Culinary, Culture & Community Foundation

1

Lead with your track record of securing funding for cultural or community organizations—quantify results (e.g., '$1.2M raised from 15 foundations') and name specific funders you've cultivated.

2

Demonstrate familiarity with the fiscal sponsorship model (e.g., Fund for the City of New York) and explain how you would navigate fundraising under that structure while building toward independent 501(c)(3) status.

3

Show your connection to African American foodways, Harlem, or Diaspora culture—mention relevant projects, networks, or personal experiences that give you credibility in this space.

4

Propose a concrete 90-day plan in your cover letter or as an attachment: how you would assess the current landscape, prioritize funder outreach, and deliver early wins.

5

Address the contract nature of the role by highlighting your ability to work independently, manage multiple deadlines, and collaborate remotely with a Founder and Board across time zones.

✉️ What to Emphasize in Your Cover Letter

['Your specific fundraising results and the types of funders you have successfully cultivated (foundations, individuals, corporations, government).', "Why this Foundation's mission—preserving African American and Diaspora foodways as cultural authority and economic opportunity—resonates with you personally and professionally.", 'Your experience building resource-development infrastructure from scratch, including CRM systems, donor pipelines, and partnership frameworks.', 'How you would approach sustainability planning for a fiscally sponsored startup nonprofit, including revenue diversification and capacity-building milestones.']

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🔍 Research Before Applying

To stand out, make sure you've researched:

  • → Research the Founder's background as a James Beard Award-winning chef, restaurateur, author, and cultural activist—understand their public platform, network, and existing ventures.
  • → Learn about the Fund for the City of New York and how fiscal sponsorship works, including its implications for fundraising, grant eligibility, and donor relations.
  • → Study the landscape of funders supporting African American cultural institutions, foodways, and Harlem-based community organizations (e.g., Ford Foundation, Mellon Foundation, local NYC funders).
  • → Explore existing culinary and cultural heritage organizations (e.g., Southern Foodways Alliance, Museum of Food and Drink) to understand comparable models and potential partners.
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💬 Prepare for These Interview Topics

Based on this role, you may be asked about:

1 How would you build a funding pipeline from scratch for a new Foundation with no prior fundraising history? Walk us through your first 90 days.
2 Describe a time you secured a major grant or partnership for a cultural or community organization. What was your strategy and what was the outcome?
3 How would you identify and approach funders who are specifically interested in African American foodways, cultural preservation, and economic justice?
4 What revenue model would you recommend for a Foundation that is currently fiscally sponsored but aims to become independent? How would you phase that transition?
5 How would you work with the Founder, Board Chair, and other consultants to align fundraising efforts with programmatic priorities and organizational capacity?
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⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Using a generic nonprofit fundraising cover letter that doesn't mention African American foodways, Harlem, or the Foundation's specific mission—this role requires cultural fluency and genuine connection.
  • Focusing only on grant writing and ignoring the partnership cultivation and sustainability strategy aspects—the role explicitly includes building relationships and recommending a revenue model.
  • Failing to acknowledge the fiscal sponsorship context or the startup nature of the Foundation—candidates who assume an established infrastructure miss the consultant's mandate to build systems.

📅 Application Timeline

This position is open until filled. However, we recommend applying as soon as possible as roles at mission-driven organizations tend to fill quickly.

Typical hiring timeline:

1

Application Review

1-2 weeks

2

Initial Screening

Phone call or written assessment

3

Interviews

1-2 rounds, usually virtual

✓

Offer

Congratulations!

Ready to Apply?

Good luck with your application to An Emerging Culinary, Culture & Community Foundation!

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