ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, EARLY CHILDHOOD POLICY EDUCATIONAL EQUITY

*This is currently a work-from-home position; however, Advancement Project is reevaluating its remote work practices and will shift to a hybrid workplace model once it is safe to do so.

Who We Are  

Advancement Project California champions the struggle for greater equity and opportunity for all, fostering upward mobility in communities most impacted by economic and racial injustice. We build alliances and trust, use data-driven policy solutions, create innovative tools and work alongside communities to ignite social transformation. Rooted in the historic struggle for racial and economic equality, Advancement Project California envisions a world where all communities have equitable access to public resources and opportunities to thrive. The California office’s primary programs are Educational Equity, Equity in Community Investments, and Political Voice.

About the Role

The Associate Director of Early Childhood Policy (“Associate Director”) will report directly to the Director of the Educational Equity (“Director”) program to lead advocacy that elevates early care and education issues as part of the Educational Equity program’s Birth to 12^th grade agenda to advance racial equity and economic justice in state and local policy and practice. The Associate Director will support the Director with the program’s overall management, including fund development, fiscal oversight, program development, supervision and staff development, research, policy and advocacy initiatives, partnership building, and external relations. The Associate Director will also help lead strategic planning of the Educational Equity team and work in partnership with community-based organizations to support advocacy campaigns that advance equity and reflect community priorities statewide, with a particular focus on Los Angeles City and County. This position requires understanding a broad range of educational equity issues from an early childhood perspective and demonstrated policy, advocacy and/or legislative experience. The successful candidate will be skilled at making a case for change by identifying persuasive facts and crafting compelling messages and developing campaign strategies and recognizing political opportunities.

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership in research, policy, and advocacy in the areas of early care and education, creating bridges between birth to 12^th grade policy and practice, racial equity and economic justice in the early childhood field, “whole child” opportunities analysis for highest need communities, gap analysis in early childhood funding, dual language learner/English learner education, and promoting promising and best practices across the birth to 12^th grade system.
• Support the Director in supervision and oversight of the Educational Equity staff and day-to-day operations, promoting a culture of high performance, supportive and collaborative leadership, and continuous improvement that values learning and a commitment to quality.
• Assist the Director to manage grants, projects and contracts:
• Work with staff and partners to articulate project goals, scope of work and deliverables, timelines and progress toward achieving grant milestones.
• Provide leadership to support workflow and accountability between policy, research, communications and technical staff to execute project deliverables with highest quality.

• Help set and implement strategic goals and policy and advocacy development for state and local early childhood equity initiatives.
• Develop and successfully implement policy and research frameworks, fund development and budget management, and grant/client development activities.

• Lead research and integrate emerging trends in educational equity from an early childhood lens, as well as best practices ensuring uplifting of diverse community-based organizations. Policy/research duties include, but not limited to:
• Extensive literature reviews, online research and interviews on various policy topics.
• Lead development of policy briefs, report writing, and quantitative/qualitative analysis.
• Prepare materials and reports for advocacy efforts.

• Provide leadership in the team’s efforts to collaborate with partner organizations, analyze political opportunities and develop winning campaign plans and strategies.
• Lead strong internal communication, and overall staff professional development and mentorship.
• Represent Advancement Project in key policy and advocacy stakeholder networks and serve as liaison with community-based organizations and coalitions.
• Identify, initiate, and deepen relationships with a broad array of policy, research and community-based stakeholders, relevant government staff, and political leadership.
• Provide leadership in project implementation for current and emerging APCA cross-programmatic efforts.

• Support coordination of the Birth to Twelfth Grade Water Cooler convening of advocates across the state, including annual 500-person conferences in Sacramento, through outreach, publicity, event logistics (e.g. registration, catering, travel, contractors, etc.) and content-planning for events.
• Stay apprised of developments related to state and local policy and advocacy efforts.
• Participate in and help lead organization-wide planning, development, and communications activities, as needed, and ensure adherence to Advancement Project goals and policies within the project area.
• Serve as a member of the Management Team.
• Other duties as assigned, dependent on organizational needs and employee skills.

Qualifications:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job function assigned satisfactorily. The requirements listed are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Sincere and demonstrated commitment to advancing racial and economic justice for the highest-need communities.
• 8 years of experience in civil rights and social justice, education/early childhood, public policy, community-based policy advocacy and/or organizing, ideally with 3-4 years in a leadership role, and 5 years of supervision experience.
• Bachelor’s degree required; graduate degree in public policy, law, or the social sciences preferred. Equivalent combination of education and experience sufficient to successfully perform the essential job duties may be considered.
• Ability to conduct policy analysis, research (qualitative/quantitative), and analyze complex information/data for policy and planning.
• Demonstrated success building coalitions/partnerships with community groups representing a wide range of racial and ethnic communities.
• Deep understanding and experience in California’s early care and education, connections to the K-12 education systems, and racial and economic justice frameworks and inclusive community development.
• Solid knowledge base of the birth to 12^th grade policy and advocacy landscape, as well as understanding opportunities to increase the current early childhood system’s ability to efficiently and appropriate serve high need communities of color.
• Direct experience in working with legislative or administrative sources of influence.
• Working knowledge of community-based research, innovative technologies and GIS mapping.
• Strong interpersonal, communication, facilitation and presentation skills including presenting to a variety of audiences, including large audiences (e.g. community partners, academics, policy-makers, philanthropists, the general public, supervisees, teammates).
• Strong writing and research skills.
• Demonstrated leadership and strategic thinking capabilities.
• Demonstrated ability to work in collaboration with internal and external stakeholders.
• Demonstrated track record for successful project management and staff management.
• Proven ability to work with diverse communities, leaders and staff.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Self-starter, organized, analytical and detail oriented.
• Ability to work independently and with minimal supervision.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a small team setting.
• Flexibility to adjust and contribute to continually evolving work situation and changing priorities.
• Excellent computer skills, including strong internet research skills; proficient with MS Office applications.
• Excellent organizational skills with demonstrated ability to execute projects on-time and on-budget.
• Travel locally and statewide may be required. Note: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, APCA staff are working from home and not traveling at this time. This qualification will be effective once it is safe to travel.

Benefits & Perks

Perks & Work Environment

• Yearly professional development allowance and personalized professional development goals. 
• 15 vacation days, 3 personal days, 8 sick days, and 2 weeks paid parental leave along with national and office holidays.
• Organizational and team wellness days to help build team cohesion and camaraderie.
• Opportunity to see the meaning and impact of your work at an organization that is actively building more equitable communities and systems across California.
• Opportunity to work in a flexible work culture that is sensitive to employee wellbeing and encourages work life balance.
• Additional benefits during the pandemic including scheduling flexibility for parents and caregivers and telework stipend.
• Opportunity to work in a company dedicated to pay equity and a diverse work culture.

Salary & Benefits

• $85,000 – $100,000 depending on experience.
• Full, employer-covered medical, dental, and vision benefits with no employee contributions for spouses and/or dependents, including registered Domestic Partners.
• 403B retirement plan with employer matching benefits after 90 days.
• Flexible Spending Account for eligible employees to allocate pre-tax money throughout the year.

To Apply:

Please send an email with subject “ECE Associate Director Application” and a cover letter, resume, and work-related writing sample in one PDF attachment titled last_name_first_name_hr.pdf (e.g., Jimenez_Jorge_ed.pdf) to:

Jorge Jimenez

Director of Human Resources, Finance and Administration

hr@advanceproj[dot]org

Interview Process

• Phone interview with hiring manager
• Two panel interviews (via Zoom)
• Reference Checks

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Advancement Project is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, religion, national origin, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability, age, or any other category protected by local, state, or federal laws. We are committed to building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive staff team. We strongly encourage applicants who are people of color, LGBTQ, women, people with disabilities; and/or formerly incarcerated people.