Instructional Support Director of Policy & Equity
Job Description
Colorado Education Initiative (CEI) is seeking a Director of Policy & Equity to join CEI’s team in our efforts to support Colorado school districts to:
- Equitably, predictably, and reliably produce graduates who have developed academic, personal, professional, entrepreneurial, and civic competence;
- Embrace a broader understanding of school quality; and
- Fully maximize the policy and funding opportunities of recovery to enable breakthrough change, particularly as related to equitable access to opportunities that drive increased relevance in high
CEI’s current goals reflect the major systems implications of this moment and our commitment to bridging the gap between the leaders making statewide systems decisions and the leaders doing the work in school systems every day. CEI is positioned to amplify learning from bold implementation projects in ways that build broader movements to disrupt existing policy barriers. Specifically, CEI is interested to bring about state and local changes that support Colorado communities to embrace a broader understanding of school quality and student success, recognizing that traditionally measured academic success is necessary but insufficient; and increase student access to relevant pathways that support equitable development of skills and competencies essential for college and career readiness. This position will lead and support efforts to accelerate progress toward these goals.
The ideal candidate for this role can demonstrate successful outcomes from working alongside schools and districts to design and implement accountability redesign and/or alternative assessment programs. The candidate should be skilled at high-quality project design and project management, with a background in data analysis of schools and systems relating to quality measures and accountability and/or measurement approaches. The candidate should have a deep belief in a local community’s ability to internally generate solutions. Additionally, this candidate must be competent at building and leveraging relationships with CEI school and district partners and in coaching for leadership development and project success.
The candidate is excited to join a team grounded in the CEI mindsets: dream big, act small, and pivot quickly; constant learning and adaptation; flexible, nimble, and purposeful; and partnership and service orientation. In addition to the qualifications described throughout this position announcement, the candidate will exhibit belief in and comfort with the CEI Design Commitments, including change management; diversity, equity, and inclusion; youth activation; family and community partnership; social emotional development; and leadership. This is a new position and will report to the Vice President of Community Partnership.
About Colorado Education Initiative
CEI is at the forefront of improvement, innovation, and change in Colorado’s public education system. CEI is a statewide nonprofit organization that invests time, expertise, and dollars in K-12 public education. For almost 15 years, CEI has worked with educators as an inspired and supportive partner on the ground in over 150 urban, suburban, and rural school districts.
CEI works as an implementation expert, innovation thought leader, and statewide convener in public education. Our mission is to accelerate improvement and innovation in Colorado schools. Our vision is a future in which every student in Colorado is prepared and unafraid to succeed in school, work, and life, and ready to take on the challenges of today, tomorrow, and beyond. We currently partner deeply in nearly 50 Colorado school districts and have limited work in other states in the region. In addition to our field implementation work, we engage in important policy and innovation agendas in Colorado. Our success is driven by a passionate team of diverse individuals who truly enjoy working together.
Of note, we are committed to prioritizing diversity, equity, and inclusion in the work we support across Colorado. We seek to identify and embed equity-seeking practices in our culture and talent systems and have made a focused set of investments in the related professional development of our team. We believe our work demands this because of the historic and current experiences in the school systems in which we operate and because we believe the outcomes we seek for students require the prioritization of equity. In all roles, we welcome candidates who are eager to participate in and contribute to this work and whose lived experiences deepen our perspectives on the education system.
Responsibilities
Strategic Policy
- Lead project design and management of CEI initiatives related to accountability redesign, reimagining assessment, secondary policy, and connections between higher education, workforce, and K-12
- Conduct strategic analysis of policies through an equity lens that would lead schools and districts to implement breakthrough pathways for postsecondary attainment, including reducing barriers for college and career attainment
- Lead and coach school and district teams to successful outcomes in work related to the assessment and/or redesign of their current assessment/measurement systems
- Leverage deep understanding of the education and advocacy ecosystem in Colorado to work across boundaries in efforts to advance common interests, including through relationship building and facilitating small and large group convenings with local and national advocacy organizations
- Partner with internal and external data, research, and communication efforts to advance a new narrative about school quality that includes case studies on student success and school and system transformation
Applied Equity and Facilitation
- Leverage CEI’s equity principles and approach to lead and support implementation work with districts, networks, and schools, including through engaging facilitation of adult learning and collaboration
- Support CEI’s internally facing equity initiatives and the skill development of CEI staff
- Effectively communicate conceptual ideas and training/development expertise to both internal teams and external stakeholders
- Support and promote a culture of positivity and service internally and externally
Qualifications
A successful candidate will have a proven track record as a successful leader with at least five (preferably 10) years of experience working to support the advancement of accountability or continuous improvement policy and practice in school systems. Understanding the unique needs facing communities across Colorado is imperative. They will have skill and experience in working with diverse groups of people, coaching across lines of difference, and empowering local leaders to create change. They will be a strong facilitator in both in-person and virtual contexts and have a working knowledge of adult learning techniques. They will know how to work across organizations to build relationships, develop collaborative work products, and ultimately be responsible for the outcomes. They will have a record of working relentlessly and with humility to serve partners and teams to which they are accountable. They will be organized, detail-oriented, an outstanding verbal and written communicator, and able to manage multiple projects simultaneously. The person in this role must be available and willing to travel as needed, approximately 25% of working days during certain times.
Competencies
This position requires deep content knowledge of accountability and secondary policy, practice, and politics in K-12 education in Colorado; understanding and active monitoring of secondary policy, practice, and politics in K-12 education nationally; strong project design and management skills; data analysis and understanding of data systems involved in accountability; facilitation; coaching; interpersonal communication; collaboration; relationship building; multi-tasking skills; data competency, and the ability to anticipate and take initiative to predict and solve problems.
Compensation
- Full-time position
- Annual salary commensurate with experience in a range of $90,000-$100,000
- Competitive benefits package
- Hybrid work environment including some flexible scheduling and work-from-home options
- Role is based in Denver, but if you live elsewhere in Colorado, we’d love to talk with you
