Economic and Community Development Specialist

Job Description

The economic and community development specialist will develop and conduct applied research and technical assistance projects and participate in the collaborative design and implementation of projects with a special focus on western Virginia (Alleghany County as well as the Roanoke-Alleghany and Central Shenandoah area). This position, reporting to the Director for Research Development, is a restricted calendar year, administration and professional faculty appointment.

Forty percent (40%) of the specialist’s time will focus on Alleghany County and implementing the work of Alleghany Thrives, a community-based collective impact program, under the guidance of CECE’s Associate Director for Community Innovations.

The remaining sixty percent (60%) of the specialist’s time will include developing and implementing applied research and technical assistance projects related to Alleghany Thrives and the broader CECE project portfolio, all in collaboration with CECE project faculty.

• Experience with community development, community-based organizations or collaborative initiatives.
• Exemplary communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills.
• Experience with relationship‑building, partner development, and public engagement (engaging with, convening, and presenting to clients, constituents, beneficiaries, or similar).
• Demonstrate capacity as a highly organized, creative, entrepreneurial self‑starter, capable of initiating and leading, as well as contributing to a team.
• Experience with applied research or technical assistance projects in a collaborative, interdisciplinary setting.
• Advanced degree in planning, public administration, business, economics or a related field.
• Experience with, or demonstrated equivalent skills, to perform grant writing and generate funding resources to support new initiatives and programs.
• Willingness to be based in or make frequent and regular visits to Alleghany region and to undertake extensive travel, primarily within the state of Virginia.

• Leadership experience with collective impact, community change, or collaborative initiatives.
• Familiarity with Alleghany County, Virginia (including the city of Covington and town of Clifton Forge) or demonstrated experience working in a community with similar rural characteristics.
• Strong analytical skills and experience with research and practice grounded in community and/or economic development concepts and their application.
• An understanding of and interest in contributing to the scholarship of community and/or economic development.
• Experience with grant writing for federal funding agencies.
• Demonstrate the ability to build collaborative teams across organizations.

N/A

Exempt:
Not eligible for overtime

Restricted

$52,000 to budget maximum of $58,000

40

04/06/2026

Travel to Covington, Alleghany County, and other parts of the state will be required regularly.

The successful candidate will be required to have a criminal conviction check.

Dedicated to its motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve), Virginia Tech pushes the boundaries of knowledge by taking a hands‑on, transdisciplinary approach to preparing scholars to be leaders and problem‑solvers. A comprehensive land‑grant institution that enhances the quality of life in Virginia and throughout the world, Virginia Tech is an inclusive community dedicated to knowledge, discovery, and creativity. The university offers more than 280 majors to a diverse enrollment of more than 36,000 undergraduate, graduate, and professional students in eight undergraduate colleges, a school of medicine, a veterinary medicine college, Graduate School, and Honors College.

The university has a significant presence across Virginia, including Blacksburg, the greater Washington, D.C. area, the Health Sciences and Technology Campus in Roanoke, sites in Newport News and Richmond, and numerous Extension offices and research institutes. A leading global research institution, Virginia Tech conducts more than $650 million in research annually.

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