The Filipino Community Center announced that it is accepting applications for its executive director position until April 15, after maintaining operations with the role unfilled since November 2022.

With FilCom’s previous two executive directors having stepped down from the role, each after less than a year, the center’s board of directors has spent the time since reevaluating the position’s responsibilities and making adjustments.

“We have a really active board of directors that stepped up to help me manage the center without an executive director,” said FilCom’s board chairman, Edmund Aczon. “We’ve looked at everything, and we’re ready to bring in somebody to take over.”

Since FilCom’s most recent executive director, Jeannie Lum, stepped down, Aczon said, the board has consulted with the center’s longest-^­standing former director, Franz Juan, to determine where adjustments to the position were most needed.

“One thing that he really mentioned was there’s a lot of responsibility,” Aczon said, noting that the role requires one to oversee finances, staff scheduling, networking and the center’s many events and programs. “We realized that it’s too much for one person.”

Prior to Lum’s departure from FilCom, Aczon said, the board had recently added a program and events director to its staff after noticing strain on its executive directors. The position has since served to aid in the oversight of the center’s diverse array of programs. However, Juan’s feedback opened the board’s eyes to a need for greater measures.

In 2023, Filcom received a grant from the city and state, each amounting to $460,000, allowing it to create two additional administrative positions. The roles were quickly filled and have helped the center and its incoming director to manage tasks such as taking phone calls, staff scheduling and overseeing facility maintenance.

While the new executive director will still need to ensure that all aspects of FilCom’s operations run smoothly, Aczon believes the recent changes will allow the incoming executive director to focus more attention on other responsibilities of the position, such as fiscal management, fundraising and forming partnerships with outside organizations.

In its search to fill the role, FilCom’s board of directors seeks a person who can manage relationships with its partnering organizations, has strong fiscal management skills and is passionate about making a difference in the various communities the center serves.

In return, the position will allow the new director to be immersed in the “rich tapestry” of Filipino culture, while expanding opportunities for community impacts through the center’s diverse array of programs, Aczon said.

FilCom’s programs and events offer its communities opportunities in areas of personal development, health improvement and civic service. With cultural connection being one of the center’s main focuses, its annual Filipino Fiesta alone draws thousands of people from throughout Oahu to celebrate Filipino culture, Aczon added.

“We view the Filipino Community Center as a gathering place,” he said. “This is an opportunity to serve not only the Filipino community, but other ethnic groups, too.”

To view qualifications and job details for the executive director position, visit bit.ly/FilComExecutiveDirector.

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Linsey Dower covers ethnic and cultural affairs and is a corps member of Report for America, a national service organization that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues and communities.