Program Manager, Maryland Chapter

Anticipated Pay Range at Commencement of Employment: $56,000 – $71,000 per year

Blue Star Families

Blue Star Families is the largest nonprofit dedicated to making military life better for families. Each year, we support over 1.5 million military- and veteran-connected family members through a national network of 300,000+ members and local chapters in communities across the country.

Our mission is simple and bold: We make military life awesome for families.

We listen, share, partner, and act to deliver evidence-based, data-driven solutions that work for real people. We’re a lifestyle organization, a friend and neighbor, and a trusted partner. Our approach is collaborative, human-centered, and designed with the whole family in mind.

A Blue Star Family is one with an immediate family member — a spouse, parent, or child — actively serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, including the Guard and Reserves. These families face unique challenges: frequent relocations, deployments, career disruption, and isolation. We respond with research-informed programs that create connection, build resilience, and foster a true sense of belonging.

We serve with urgency but build trust over time — because change happens at the speed of trust. Whether we’re driving spouse employment, supporting caregivers, or helping communities welcome military families, we strive for upstream solutions.

Who We’re Looking For:

Bold thinkers. Fast movers. Smart collaborators. People who want to build, lead, and drive measurable change — and who care deeply about making an impact that matters.
What You’ll Do Here:

Solve complex challenges with data, heart, and humility
Build cross-sector partnerships that get things done
Help military families feel at home wherever they live
If you’re ready to work in a high-performance, mission-driven environment — and to make life better for those who serve — Blue Star Families is where you belong.

General Description

The Program Manager (PM) is a cornerstone of the Blue Star Families Chapter team — part planner, part community ambassador, part volunteer manager, and part operational executor. Although this role is remote and based from your home office, it’s far from behind-the-desk work.

You’ll be out in the community each week, and it requires frequent in-person engagement, physical activity, and strong connections with the local military community. You will live in the community you serve and spend your time building relationships, managing programs, and ensuring that every chapter event and initiative delivers a meaningful impact for military families.

Reporting to the Chapter Executive Director (with a dotted line to the Senior Director of Chapter Relations), the Program Manager will manage multiple programs for the local Chapter, including, but not limited to, projects currently within Blue Star Families portfolio. The Program Manager will also lead volunteer and membership engagement for the local Chapter.

*The Program Manager must reside in the local community the Chapter serves, and perform additional programming in neighboring areas with high concentrations of military families.

Key Job Functions
Lead and manage multiple programs and events for the chapter, from planning through execution
Host and/or attend events, transporting, lifting, and setting up equipment and materials (up to 50 lbs)
Apply project management expertise to all Blue Star Families’ local chapter operations.
Develop and maintain schedules, budgets, resource plans, and project timelines
Set and monitor deadlines, ensure completion of deliverables, and alert the team of pending due dates and delinquencies.
Utilize and manage project management technologies and tools to administer projects actively and effectively (including, but not limited to, HIVE, Hive Brite, Trello, Salesforce, Google Workspace Suite, Zoom, etc).
Foster strong, lasting relationships with community partners and local organizations
Recruit, onboard, and manage volunteers, including recognition and retention strategies
Oversee chapter communications, including social media, marketing, and outreach
Work evenings, weekends, and holidays as needed; travel locally up to 60%
Collaborate with the Senior Director, Chapter Relations, to drive national initiatives and ensure alignment across chapters
Continuously improve programs and processes to deliver an exceptional membership experience at every touchpoint
Participate in national meetings, trainings, and events to stay connected, informed, and aligned
Perform various administrative activities, including scheduling and meeting planning, document creation, communications, travel arrangements, minutes, presentations, and other logistical functions.
Perform other duties as assigned
Required Experience, Skills, and Background
2–4 years in program, event, or community management
Independent self-starter with excellent interpersonal and communication skills
Knowledge of military family life and sensitivity to their needs
Proven experience in volunteer recruitment, management, and stewardship
Comfortable with public speaking, media interactions, and community outreach
Highly detail-oriented, organized, and able to manage multiple priorities
Ability to frequently lift and carry supplies and equipment up to 50 lbs.
Ability to travel locally and transport equipment and supplies for Chapter events and functions up to 60% of the time
May be required to work nights, weekends, and holidays as necessary to carry out key job functions
Limited out-of-town/overnight travel may be required to attend meetings, trainings, events, etc.
Desired Experience, Skills, and Background
Familiarity with CRM systems, particularly Salesforce
Experience with membership-driven or nonprofit organizations
Ability to assess and improve programs, processes, and operational efficiency

More About Blue Star Families

Blue Star Families empowers military and Veteran families to thrive by connecting them with their civilian neighbors — both people and organizations — to create strong communities of mutual support. We believe we’re all stronger when we take care of one another.

Our groundbreaking research is raising the nation’s awareness of the unique challenges of military family life. With the help of neighbors across the country, Blue Star Families is overcoming the isolation and alienation of frequent moves, deployments, and reduced support from the government. Our innovative programs are solving specific challenges for military families, including fighting economic insecurity with resources that foster spouse career development, creating family strength with rich family programming, and providing critical peer support for caregivers, whose numbers are only increasing.

Blue Star Families is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

EEO Policy

Blue Star Families is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, age, national origin, disability status, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Why Blue Star Families?

Virtual/remote nonprofit organization that moves with you (position specific)
Career growth opportunities
Excellent benefits (403(b) with matching, Flexible Spending, Life Insurance, Short-Term Disability, Communications Allowance, and more)
Permanent Change of Station (PCS) Leave for Active Duty Military Spouses
On-the-job professional development training
Front-line opportunity to positively impact the military experience
Competitive salaries
Workplace flexibility

Learn more here