Executive Assistant to the Senior Pastor/Head of Staff
Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago, Illinois
September 2026
Classification: Exempt
Status: Regular, Full-time
Reports To: Senior Pastor and Head of Staff
Position Overview
The Executive Assistant provides high-level, confidential, and proactive executive support to the Senior Pastor/Head of Staff of Fourth Presbyterian Church. The Executive Assistant also supports the Senior Associate Pastor and the Executive Director of Operational Ministries.
This is a highly trusted position that serves as an essential partner to the Senior Pastor in managing the complexity, pace, relationships, and priorities associated with leading a large, historic, urban congregation. The Executive Assistant ensures that the Senior Pastor is prepared to lead effectively across the many dimensions of her ministry—including worship and preaching, pastoral care, staff leadership, congregational life, Session leadership, stewardship and resource development, denominational relationships, community engagement, and the broader life of the city.
The successful candidate will bring both executive-level administrative excellence and a deep respect for the pastoral nature of the Senior Pastor’s work. The person will understand that many of the matters coming through the Senior Pastor’s office involve people’s lives, faith, grief, celebrations, relationships, and deeply personal circumstances and therefore require warmth, tact, confidentiality, and care. The Executive Assistant will help create the conditions in which the Senior Pastor can focus on the highest priorities of her ministry and leadership while ensuring that commitments, communications, meetings, and follow-through are handled with precision and grace.
Essential Responsibilities:
Executive Support and Partnership
· Serve as the primary administrative partner to the Senior Pastor, developing a highly effective working relationship built on trust, communication, discretion, and mutual respect. Manage the Senior Pastor’s complex and dynamic calendar, maintaining a forward-looking calendar that allows the Senior Pastor to prepare appropriately for significant meetings, worship services, presentations, sermons, public engagements, and pastoral responsibilities.
· Coordinate meetings for the Senior Associate Pastor and Executive Director of Operational Ministries and maintain their calendars.
· Proactively anticipate scheduling conflicts, competing priorities, preparation requirements, travel considerations, and other logistical needs.
· Prepare the Senior Pastor for meetings by gathering agendas, briefing materials, background information, participant information, previous correspondence, and other relevant materials. Monitor commitments and follow-up items arising from meetings and engagements and help ensure timely completion or delegation.
· Triage requests for the Senior Pastor’s time and attention, exercising sound judgment about urgency, importance, confidentiality, and appropriate routing.
· Serve as an effective gatekeeper while maintaining a welcoming and hospitable presence.
· Coordinate domestic and international travel arrangements, itineraries, accommodations, transportation, meeting schedules, and related logistics as needed.
Staff Support to the Joint Finance Council, the Board of Trustees, and the Session.
· Coordinate the Senior Pastor’s responsibilities related to Session meetings and activities. Support the Senior Pastor in her role as Moderator of Session.
· Schedule, coordinate logistics and meals, and serve as hospitality for all meetings. Take and prepare minutes at all meetings. Maintain all Presbyterian Church USA requirements for the maintenance and archiving of Session and Board of Trustees minutes.
· Work closely with the Senior Pastor, other clergy, and congregational leadership to coordinate calendars, agendas, meeting materials, logistics, communications, and follow-up.
· Assist with ordination, installation, commissioning, recognition, and other officer-related events in association with the Senior Associate Pastor.
· Maintain accurate and appropriately organized records and historical documentation in accordance with Fourth Church and Presbyterian Church (USA) practices.
· Support the Senior Pastor and church leadership with denominational reporting, surveys, and other required documentation, including completion of the PCUSA Annual Report.
Support for Senior Pastor as Head of Staff
· Coordinate meetings of the Senior Pastor with senior leaders, ministry leaders, department leaders, and staff.
· Assist with scheduling staff leadership meetings, retreats, planning sessions, and other gatherings. Assist with logistics for staff retreats, leadership gatherings, celebrations, and other staff events.
· Prepare agendas, meeting materials, schedules, and follow-up documentation as requested.
· Track decisions, commitments, and follow-up actions resulting from meetings.
Administrative and Financial Responsibilities
· Process credit-card reconciliations and invoices and assist with accounts payable and accounts receivable activities as assigned. Assist with expense reports, reimbursements, purchasing, and travel documentation.
· Maintain organized electronic and physical files for the Senior Pastor’s office. Maintain confidential records and ensure appropriate document retention.
· Provide administrative support to members of the Senior Leadership Team when appropriate and requested.
- Undertake special projects and other duties consistent with the position assigned.
Qualifications Required
- Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant professional experience.
- At least 5–7 years of progressively responsible executive assistant, senior administrative, or executive support experience, preferably supporting a senior executive, CEO, senior pastor, president, executive director, or other high-level leader.
- Demonstrated experience managing a highly complex calendar and multiple competing priorities.
- Exceptional organizational skills and meticulous attention to detail.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Demonstrated ability to draft polished, professional correspondence.
- Strong interpersonal skills and exceptional emotional intelligence.
- Proven ability to handle confidential and sensitive information with discretion.
- Strong judgment and the ability to distinguish between urgent, important, routine, and confidential matters.
- Ability to anticipate needs, identify potential problems, and take initiative without waiting for direction.
- Demonstrated ability to work effectively with individuals from diverse backgrounds, roles, perspectives, and levels of organizational authority.
- Strong technology skills, including Microsoft 365, Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint, Teams, Zoom, and related digital tools.
- Ability to learn and effectively use church databases, scheduling systems, document-management systems, and other organizational technologies.
- Commitment to equity, social justice, hospitality, and inclusion.
- Ability to thrive in a complex, collaborative, mission-driven nonprofit and faith-based environment.
Schedule:
This is a full-time position based on a 40-hour work week, Monday-Friday, with some early morning, evening and weekend hours required for board meetings, congregational meetings, and special events. This position requires four days per week in the office, with the option to designate either Monday or Friday as the regular remote-work day.
Compensation & Benefits
This annual salary range of $70,000 - $85,000 commensurate with experience and qualifications.
- Medical insurance (church pays 85% of employee monthly premium and 75% for eligible dependents).
- Optional dental and vision plans.
- Generous PTO: 17 days plus 11 paid holidays.
- 403(b) retirement plan with employer contributions after one year of service.
- Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) for medical and dependent care.
- Transit and commuter parking benefits.
- Life and short-term disability insurance; optional insurance.
Physical Requirements & Work Environment
The physical demands and work environment described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with different abilities to perform essential functions.
- Must be able to participate in online virtual communications including email, video conferencing, and other online tools used to facilitate virtual office culture and work sharing.
- Smoke and drug (illegal or recreational) free environment.
- Fourth Church/Chicago Lights aims for accessibility in any off-site location in its control, but some of them may not be fully accessible.
- This role requires prolonged periods of sitting and computer work.
- Lifting requirements of 20 pounds.
EEO Statement
Fourth Presbyterian Church and Chicago Lights are committed to equal employment opportunity for all qualified persons, without regard to race, color, citizenship status, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, age, creed, physical or mental disability, marital status or familial status, veteran status, military status, source of income, political affiliation, or any other factor protected by law. Fourth Church and Chicago Lights seek to build and retain a diverse staff and are committed to fostering an equitable and inclusive workplace where everyone is treated as a respected and valued member of the team.
Fourth Church and Chicago Lights are committed to elevating the voices of individuals of all backgrounds, including but not limited to women and people of color, Native people, immigrants and refugees, low-income people, LGBTQ+, and transgender, gender non-conforming, and non-binary people, people with disabilities, and accordingly encourage qualified individuals from all communities to apply.
