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Minds Matter Boston, Executive Director

Employer
Positively Partners
Location
Boston, Massachusetts
Salary
$165,000
Closing date
Feb 18, 2023

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Focus Areas
Education
Job Function
Executive / Senior Management
Position Type
Full Time
Degree Level
Bachelors
Willingness to Travel
Not willing to travel
Experience Level
Executive

About Minds Matter Boston

 

Since 2003, Minds Matter Boston has connected driven and determined students from low-income families with the people, preparation, and possibilities to succeed in college, create their future, and change the world. Our four-year program, beginning in the tenth grade, provides wrap-around services, including 2:1 mentoring with dedicated volunteers, professional ACT and writing instruction, access to college-immersion summer programming, and personalized college advising. For 20 years, 100% of Minds Matter Boston seniors have gained admission to a 4-year college, and 98% of alumni have graduated from a 4-year college.

 

Minds Matter Boston is committed to upholding a community where the diversity and intersectional identities of students, volunteers, and staff are honored and valued. The organizational values of community, commitment, and growth are made real by the ethos of “standing together knowing that we are stronger when we embrace understanding and empathy in building connections with each other.”

 

Founded in New York City in 1991, Minds Matter Inc. has since established a national presence by launching chapters in Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New York, Philadelphia, Portland, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C.

 

About the Opportunity

 

The Executive Director will lead a high-performing organization with a proven model for college and career success. Building upon the past eight years of success and growth, the new Executive Director has the opportunity to work with the Board and other constituents to set the strategy for Minds Matter Boston’s future and how to drive the greatest possible impact for students and the community. It is essential that you are a passionate advocate for educational equity and take action to ensure education and mentoring are key drivers of economic and social mobility.

 

You will be responsible for the organization's strategic and operational leadership, including overseeing a committed staff, Board of Directors, and dedicated corps of volunteers. As an experienced and entrepreneurial professional, your primary focus will be ensuring the overall health of organizational operations and culture, fundraising for sustainability, and driving programmatic growth. To be successful, you must be an effective communicator who is energized by networking across a diverse set of stakeholders.

 

Minds Matter Boston has seven employees and a budget of $1.4 million. The organization works with over 200 students, 21 partner schools, and 350+ volunteers.

 

 

Major Functions and Responsibilities

As Executive Director, you will be responsible for the following threads of work:

 

Organizational Strategy & Execution

  • Develop and execute Minds Matter Boston’s strategic plan in 2024, which will guide the organization’s work for the following 3-5 years, and monitor progress toward goals.

  • Lead an organization that supports students to broaden their dreams and prepare them for college success, and believe in the power and importance of a college education.

  • Oversee human resources and financial management, including budgeting, forecasting, reporting, benefits, and employee relations.

  • Evaluate operational needs and work with the Board to advance organizational efficiency and effectiveness.

 

Team Leadership and Management

  • Oversee Minds Matter Boston’s efforts to center diversity, equity, inclusion, and student voice in all decision-making, organizational practices, and culture.

  • Nurture a transparent and compassionate culture through high support and high accountability for ambitious outcomes, where staff can bring their whole selves to work and productively and openly engage in critical conversations.

  • Develop a staffing structure as the organization scales and hire for new positions as needed.

 

Fundraising and Board Leadership

  • Cultivate, steward, and develop new relationships with community partners and funders to reach organizational growth and sustainability goals.

  • Develop and implement fundraising strategies to secure financial support from various sources, including foundations, corporations, and individual donors.

  • Develop, maintain, and support a strong Board of Directors; seek and build Board engagement with strategic direction for effective operations, impactful programming, resource development, and community partnerships.

 

Qualifications and Experiences

There are innumerable ways to learn, grow, and excel professionally. We respect this when we review applications and take a broad look at the experience of each applicant. We want to get to know you and the unique strengths you will bring to the work. That said, we are most likely to be interested in your candidacy if you can demonstrate the majority of the qualifications and experiences listed below:

  • Progressive senior-level leadership experience leading, managing, and growing a performance and outcomes-based department, organization, or enterprise, preferably within the educational, nonprofit, or philanthropic sectors.

  • Exceptional oral and written communication and public engagement skills, including adapting style and approach to diverse constituencies and needs.

  • Thrives in a lean, fast-paced, highly collaborative, and entrepreneurial environment; has the integrity, wisdom, persistence, and humor necessary to address the practicalities of a dynamic organization.

  • Self-motivated problem solver with maturity and tact to collaborate effectively with colleagues, Board Members, external partners, and team members.

  • Commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. Dedicated to active and ongoing learning, understanding one’s identity, power, and privilege, and acknowledging the intersectional identities of students, staff, volunteers, and the Board.

  • Employs strategic, analytical, and problem-solving skills to overcome challenges by developing equity-based and creative solutions.

  • A proven track record and passion for fundraising with a commitment to maintaining current funders, a zest for cultivating new donors, an ability to generate new revenue streams, and a history of taking organizations to the next level of sustained philanthropic support.

  • Preferred
    • Experience working with driven and determined students from low-income families.

    • Experience in college and career success.

    • Experience managing budgets and forecasting financial performance.

 

COMPENSATION, BENEFITS, AND LOCATION

Compensation is $165,000 with bonus opportunities, plus an excellent benefits package that includes medical/dental/vision/life and short and long-term disability insurance, 15 paid vacation days, 15 sick days, paid holidays, a 401k plan, and an executive coach. Minds Matter Boston is a hybrid organization; all staff spend at least two days a week in the downtown Boston office.

 

HOW TO APPLY

To apply to this position, please have an updated resume ready and a thoughtfully written cover letter to the attention of Minds Matter Boston’s Executive Search Committee. For confidential inquiries or assistance in completing the application, please contact Mary Carlton at mcarlton@positivelypartners.org.

 

TIMELINE AND HIRING PROCESS

We will review and respond to all applications received. While subject to change, candidates elected to advance throughout the process can expect two interviews with Positively Partners, an interview with members of the Search Committee (representatives of the Board and staff), and for finalists, an interview day with Board members and staff, including a robust reference check process. The expected start date is Spring 2023.

 

Minds Matter Boston is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to sustaining a diverse community with a work environment that is welcoming, respectful, and encouraging to all. We foster a culture of inclusion that celebrates and cultivates diversity along multiple dimensions, including race, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, out-of-home care, age, national origin, socioeconomic status, religion, ability, culture, and experience.

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