Western Neighborhoods Project is dedicated to the history of San Francisco's Richmond, Sunset, OMI and West of Twin Peaks districts.   read more ...

Click Here to Apply. Once you've completed the Survey Monkey form, email a Cover Letter explaining what you hope to bring to WNP as well as your Resume or CV to Board President Matt Nichols, matt[at]outsidelands.org.

Information for Prospective Board Members

About WNP

Western Neighborhoods Project is a 501(c)3 California nonprofit that specializes in preserving, interpreting, and sharing the history of San Francisco's west side from the community's point of view. From our Home for History at 1617 Balboa Street in the Richmond District, we host lectures, film screenings, panel discussions, and rotating exhibitions. Our work also extends beyond the office, out into the neighborhoods, supporting other nonprofits and local businesses throughout San Francisco as we lead guided walking tours, guest lecture at community meetings, and display local history at festivals. This includes providing our expertise to collaborators such as our neighbor Argonne Elementary School, researching their 100th anniversary and guest lecturing on neighborhood history to the Third Grade Class; Conservatory of Flowers, for their 140th anniversary; the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department, for the 150th Anniversary of Golden Gate Park and the Chinese Historical Society of America for the traveling exhibition “Chinese in the Sunset” (2017) and now “Chinese in the Richmond,” currently underway.

On our website, OutsideLands.org, you'll find consistently updated articles, a community chat room, videos produced in partnership with local filmmaker Joey Yee, and our podcast, “Outside Lands San Francisco,” which is also available on iTunes, Spotify, and Stitcher and has over 1.5 million downloads. In 2014, we launched an auxiliary program called OpenSFHistory in order to rehouse, digitize, and make available online approximately 100,000 historical images spanning all of San Francisco sourced from one Private Collector. Since then the program has expanded to include other prolific private collections in the Bay Area as well as those from local nonprofits without the capacity to launch their own digitization project.

We are well-known for successfully creating and executing projects on San Francisco history, from oral history projects like “I Am OMI” and “Tales from Kelly’s Cove;” to rehabilitating and displaying an original refugee cottage for the 100th anniversary of the 1906 earthquake and fire; to conceiving and co-organizing a free museum pop-up called San Francisco History Days at the Old Mint, which draws 6,000–7,000 people over one weekend each year. In 2015, we launched the OpenSFHistory program to conserve, digitize, and share with the public more than 100,000 historical images that span all of San Francisco.

Our Mission

  • To research the history of the western neighborhoods of San Francisco in the interest of preservation and community education.
  • To promote and make accessible to the public, the rich and diverse stories of the western neighborhoods of San Francisco.
  • To solicit oral histories, photos, and historical items pertaining to the western neighborhoods of San Francisco for cataloging and preservation.
  • To build awareness of the cultural diversity of the western neighborhoods of San Francisco.

2019 Quick Stats

  • Operating Budget: $250,000
  • Members: 550
  • Employees: 1 full-time
  • Volunteers: 15 people volunteering 4,200 hours

The Board of Directors

Functions

WNP’s Board of Directors is responsible for upholding the organization’s mission, and for providing overall leadership, strategic direction, and financial oversight to the organization. The board works closely with the Executive Director to establish strategic priorities and implement initiatives and programs focused on Diversity, Equity, Accessibility and Inclusion (DEAI). Board members act as ambassadors for the organization, enhancing WNP’s public standing, garnering community support, and promoting membership and fundraising efforts. This is an “active” board; board members provide volunteer hours to the organization in the form of staffing events/office hours, assisting with the collection, providing historical content, or other duties as needed.

Responsibilities

  • Ensure that WNP is run in an ethical and legal manner, and implement good governance practices that establish accountability and achieve greater
  • Support, provide direction to, and work with the Executive Director to create a strategic direction for WNP, setting short- and long-term goals and policies, and see initiatives through to completion.
  • Aid in identifying and procuring potential funding sources, leveraging personal and business contacts when appropriate.
  • Provide financial oversight and effective resource management, including setting and approving the annual budget.
  • Promote the best interests of WNP, enhancing the organization’s image with our members, donors, and the general public.
  • Actively solicit for new members and sustaining donors for the organization.
  • Recruit and orient new board members, when needed.
  • Be familiar with the organization’s Bylaws.
  • Be able to clearly articulate WNP’s mission, accomplishments, and goals.
  • Attend at least 75% of board meetings and board activities.
  • Actively participate on at least one board committee.
  • Be a paid member of WNP at the current minimum membership level ($50).

Committees

Committees help maximize the board’s productivity by matching board members with particular expertise to appropriate areas. They allow members to engage with issues more deeply and consistently than the board could as a whole. Committees present their activities and/or recommendations to the board. Committees may change depending on the needs of the organization.

  • Executive + Finance Committee
  • Membership Committee
  • Gala + Events Committee
  • Collections Committee

Time Commitment

  • Each board member is asked to commit to at least one one-year term, and is eligible to serve additional terms
  • The full board meets approximately every 6 weeks, about 8 times per year. Meetings are generally on Saturdays from 10-11:30am
  • Each board member is expected to serve on at least one committee, which meet, when necessary, between board meetings
  • Board members provide volunteer hours to the organization beyond attending meetings.