SMD, Program & Partnership

ROLE TITLE: Senior Managing Director, Program and Partnerships (Full Time)

POSITION REPORTS TO: Julie Gronquist-Blodgett

APPLICATION DEADLINE: July 19, 2024 at 11:59pm ET

LOCATION: Kansas City, MO

SALARY: $108,900 - $163,300

BENEFITS: Learn more at www.teachforamerica.org/about-us/careers/employee-benefits.

What You’ll Do

Teach For America: Kansas City is looking for a dynamic leader who loves to innovate and can handle both managing a team through layers to ambitious results AND a large scope of work with a high degree of independence and autonomy. The SMD, Program & Partnerships will lead 3 programs and a 13+ person team, impacting :300 Pre-K – 12 classrooms across Kansas City, MO as well as a network of over 600 CMs and alumni. You will also work closely with school partners to ensure our program offerings are meeting their needs and with the region’s development team to raise the revenue needed to continue operation in future years. This is a fast-paced role - the ideal candidate is decisive and thrives with a high level of accountability. The goals for this role include staff culture, staff retention, and results across TFA KC’s suite of programs.

As the primary regional point of contact for corps members programming, you will partner closely with the Senior Managing Director, Leadership Development (SMDLD) to co-manage our corps member coaches, Managing Directors of Leadership Development (MDLDs), to execute our school partnership strategy, serving as a key thought-partner with local context to support problem-solving. You will also partner with them on the arc of corps member learning, leveraging their talents and skills in strategy, design, and execution.

What You’ll Be Responsible For

Direct Report + Team Management – 40%

• Managing 3 MDLD direct reports (MDLD is co-managed by SMD, LD on the Corp Member & Alumni Leadership Development (CMALD) team.
• Managing a large team towards strong programmatic and internal culture/finance metrics
• Programmatic metrics include teacher retention and satisfaction with PD, student achievement, and school leader satisfaction with the program.
• Staff metrics include team culture, retention, and budget variance.
  
  
  

Regional Point of Contact – 30%

• Determining and executing CM placement strategy / placement partners and, in conjunction with (CMALD), executing annual strategy to place the corps.
• Determining and executing certification strategy to include assessing licensure partners while examining overall impact on CMs.
• Creating the strategy for CM hiring and executing the annual hiring campaign.
• Participating in selection, matriculation, and the shaping of CMs’ offers to join the region.
• Setting vision and managing execution of CM events to include developing curriculum for CM region-specific development programming.
  
  
  

Vision and Strategy + Development – 30%

• Working alongside the Executive Director to anchor in the multi-year planning charge and create a strong case for support.
• Working in partnership with the SMD, Development to raise funds to ensure KC's suite of programs are consistently fully funded and that impact is clearly communicated to partners and donors.
• Managing school facing partner relationships in partnership with your direct reports, including PSA renewal.
• Hiring and managing staff and contractors as necessary to deliver on promised scope of work.
• Participating in all TFA-KC regional staff events and responsibilities
  
  
  

A WEEK IN THE LIFE

Over the course of any week, the Senior Managing Director, Program and Partnerships will spend time:

• Working collaboratively with the SMD, LD on strategy related to MDLD development and opportunities to work on regional initiatives.
• Establishing a long-term regional vision for corps culture that will accelerate the pace of change in Kansas City, based on broader regional vision as well as survey of local landscape; shape and effectively execute strategy to achieve ambitious goals.
• Coaching direct reports both in check-in conversations and through regular observation and feedback.
• Communicating and building relationships with external partners including school leaders, school districts, etc.
• Meeting with the ED and other relevant team members to ensure KC’s suite of programs is delivering on grant requirements and moving us in the direction of our goal to double the number of 3rd graders proficient in reading by 2030.
• Attending meetings as a member of the senior leadership team for the region.
  
  
  

Your Skills & Experience

Your areas of knowledge and expertise that matter most for this role (minimum qualifications):

• Minimum 10 years’ work experience.
• Minimum 5 years’ experience managing direct reports.
• Previous successful teaching and instructional coaching experience required.
• Expertise in session design and facilitation
• Strong interpersonal and talent identification skills and a proven ability to develop and leverage relationships toward achieving concrete goals.
• Team Management: Ability to build and manage a team toward excellence and execution; ability to both motivate people and offer direct, critical feedback when necessary.
• High level of personal organizational skills and ability to work autonomously.
• Work Demands:
• Occasional weekend and evening work required.
• Reliable transportation within the KCPSS footprint required (daily in-city travel)
  
  
  

BONUS (preferred Qualifications)

• Experience with TFA KC’s Accelerate program.
• Strong relationships with a variety of administrators across the KCPSS (Kansas City Public Schools Systems) footprint
• Experience managing a team through multiple layers of management
  
  
  

YOUR FUTURE TEAM

TFA KC has brought more than 1,000 leaders to the region who have served over 150,000 students. Today, with a local TFA network of over 500 leaders, Teach For America has established itself as a leader in the education space. Through Kansas City’s well-known spirit of entrepreneurship, foundations, non-profits, and schools are building a community intent on creating innovative solutions to advancing the work of educational equity. The region’s current work is focused on teacher recruitment, development, and retention in service of doubling the number of 3rd graders who are proficient in reading by 2030.

Your Compensation

The applicable salary range for each U.S.-based role is based on where the employee works and is aligned to one of 3 tiers according to a cost of labor index in that geographic area. Starting pay for the successful applicant will depend on a variety of job-related factors, which may include education, training, experience, location, business needs, or market demands. New hires are typically brought into the organization at a salary between the range minimum and the salary range midpoint depending on qualifications, internal equity, and the budgeted amount for the role. The expected salary ranges for this role are set forth below. These ranges may be modified in the future.

Tier A: $108,900 - $163,300

You can view which tier applies to where you plan to work here. If your location is not listed, please click here for additional total rewards information.

Anti-Discrimination Policy and Commitment to Diversity

Teach For America seeks individuals of all ethnic and racial backgrounds to apply for this position. We are committed to maximizing the diversity of our organization, as we want to engage all those who can contribute to this effort. Learn more about our diversity on staff: www.teachforamerica.org/about-us/careers/life-at-tfa/diversity-and-inclusiveness.

This job description reflects Teach For America’s assignment of essential functions and qualifications of the role.  Nothing in this herein restricts management’s right to assign, reassign, or eliminate duties and responsibilities to this role at any time.