Overview Ascend is seeking to hire a strategic, analytical, and highly organized individual as its Director of School Initiatives. This individual will support the strategy function of Ascend and will partner with the Chief Schools Officer and Senior Managing Directors of Schools to shape and expand Ascend's impact as it continues to scale.As Director of School Initiatives, you will play a pivotal role in driving Ascend's mission of educational equity. You will spearhead and coordinate the strategic projects of the Schools team that elevate the services we deliver to our communities, ensuring we achieve our goals and empower our schools - and students - to thrive. ResponsibilitiesEmpowering the Schools Team
- Strategic Partnership: Serve as a trusted advisor and thought partner to the Chief Schools Officer (CSO), providing strategic insights and collaborating on key initiatives.
- Effective Meeting Management: Own all logistical aspects of Schools team meetings, ensuring smooth execution through agenda creation, focused discussions, and clear note-taking.
- Goal-Oriented Leadership: Drive initiatives forward with clear short-term and long-term goals. Establish strategic plans and assign clear ownership of projects for optimal results.
- Communication: Partner with the CSO to foster timely, collaborative, and results-oriented communication within the Schools team.
- Empowering Team Leaders: Support Schools team leaders in prioritizing tasks and managing responsibilities. Proactively anticipate challenges, provide tactical support, and monitor progress towards established goals.
- Knowledge Hub: Stay informed on all Schools team initiatives and identify opportunities for cross-functional collaboration and improved team efficiency.
Strategic Planning
- Multi-year Plan: Spearhead the execution of our multi-year strategic plan, ensuring progress aligns with our long-term vision. Regularly communicate status updates to keep the Schools team and organization informed.
- Data-Driven Decision Making: Oversee the strategic plan progress, providing analysis that connects current efforts to long-term goals. Leverage key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure team performance, identify areas for improvement, and proactively address potential risks.
- Insights from Complexity: Synthesize research on intricate topics, translating complex information into clear and actionable recommendations for the CSO and Schools team.
Special Projects
- Crafting Clear Communication: Draft clear communications for internal and external stakeholders, including staff, volunteers, board members, and others.
- Strategic Content Creation: Partner with the CSO to develop strategic content for Ascend Charter Schools Academic Committee meetings and Ascend boards, ensuring alignment with overall goals.
- The Schools Team's Go-To Resource: Act as the Schools team's point person for inquiries and guidance across the organization, ensuring timely and informative responses.
Qualifications
- Ability to learn quickly, pivot when needed, and be effective in a fast-paced, dynamic, and entrepreneurial environment;
- Effective written and verbal communication, strong active listening skills, and the ability to tell stories through written and oral presentations;
- Ability to inspire, influence, and manage a team to produce the highest quality work;
- Strong project, task, and time management skills, leading multiple and large-scale projects to be completed on time;
- Proven track record of setting and achieving ambitious goals;
- Proven ability to lead and drive change, including influencing and motivating others through building and maintaining strong relationships;
- Facility to move comfortably between high-level strategic thinking and intricate details;
- Bachelor's degree required, advanced degree preferred (MPA, MBA, or other relevant degree);
- Minimum of five (5) years of experience managing complex cross-functional projects and demonstrating analytical and strategic thinking skills.
Diversity at AscendAscend is committed to building a diverse, equitable, inclusive, and anti-racist community, both through our hiring practices and our focus on creating a culture and environment where diverse perspectives, ideas, and identities are valued and integrated into our way of working and educating students. Ascend staff represent a wide diversity of racial, socio-economic, gender, religious, and national identities-opening a window to the entire Ascend community on the richness of humanity. We welcome all applicants who share our mission and vision to join us in our deeply consequential work.CompensationThe starting salary range for this position is $115,000-$130,000. Several factors such as candidate's work experience, education/training, job-related skills, internal peer equity, as well as market and business considerations may influence base pay offered. This salary range is reflective of a position based in New York City.