Join our board

We’re looking for new Board Members.

We invite you to apply for an open Board position with the AIGA Philadelphia Board. All positions are volunteer positions. The term is January 2025 – December 2026.

Our Review Process

As part of our ongoing effort to remain diverse, equitable, and inclusive, all identifying markers (name, school, business, etc.) will be removed from application materials to allow for the most objective review of skills and experience. The AIGA Philadelphia Board will review these edited documents to determine the best candidate for the position.

Board Requirements

  • Attendance of one board meeting per month
  • Five hours per week (rough estimate)
  • Attendance in as many events as you can
  • Attendance in two board retreats (all-day events) a year
  • You have experience with Google Drive and Slack (strongly preferred)
  • You have experience serving on a volunteer nonprofit board or an existing committee. Bonus points if you’ve previously served on an AIGA local chapter board. 
  • You are eager to contribute to the local creative community
  • You believe relationship-building and stakeholder engagement are essential to the growth of the chapter
  • Strong business acumen with a broad understanding of fundamental business principles
  • Experience in a leadership role or vital coaching role
  • Ability to set overall strategy and drive process improvement
  • Commitment to a two-year term in the position to support the design community
  • All new board members will be expected to attend group anti-racism training within the first 90 days on the board.
  • Membership with AIGA

Open board positions:

Professional Development Director | Special Events Director


Professional Development Director

THE ROLE:

The Professional Development Director will lead the chapter’s efforts in helping our professional members improve their skills and advance in their careers.

WHAT YOU WILL ACCOMPLISH:

  • Develop and implement strategies to support the professional development of our professional community
  • Hold events, workshops, lectures, and discussions focusing on  industry best practices, portfolio and resumé development, career advancement, and other topics relevant to professional development
  • You will collaborate with the Program Director and Community Engagement Director to identify opportunities to engage the current community
  • You will create and administer our annual community satisfaction survey, The Design Census

Special Events Director

THE ROLE:

The Special Events Director is responsible for leading two signature biennial AIGA Philadelphia events on alternating years: the Community Awards (including Fellow and Fresh) and the Philadelphia Design Awards.

COMMUNITY AWARDS:

In an effort to celebrate our community and those local creatives making a positive impact, the Community Awards recognize outstanding creatives across various levels of experience on their work surrounding underrepresented communities and local impact. 

The Special Events Director will lead the Community Awards, expanding on previous Fellow and Fresh Awards by planning a community-focused award reception. The Fellow Award is a means of recognizing longtime members who have made a significant contributions to raising the standards of excellence in our practice. The Fresh Awards is a means of recognizing emerging designers. The Special Event Director identifies qualifying members for this award and oversees the voting process.

PHILADELPHIA DESIGN AWARDS:

AIGA Philadelphia invites designers to submit their work to a biennial awards competition, giving them the opportunity to present their work to a panel of well recognized judges. The Director gets a first-hand peek at the work, manages communication with the applicants and award-winners, and helps organize a reception for the exhibition.

WHAT YOU WILL ACCOMPLISH:

  • Form and lead committees to produce Community Awards and Philadelphia Design Awards (alternating years for each event).
  • For the Community Awards
    • Identify categories and nominees
    • Oversee the nomination and voting process
    • Produce reception for awards exhibition with Exhibitions Director
    • Coordinate all communications associated with the Awards and the celebration with Email and Social Media Directors
  • For the Philadelphia Design Awards
    • Create call for entries, submission and judging platform, web graphics, catalog, signage
    • Contact and secure a panel of well recognized judges
    • Manage submission process and promotion of call for entries
    • Work with judges on reviewing submissions and selecting winners
    • Plan exhibition event that will feature winning work