Executive Director - Western Region

World Savvy is a leading national education nonprofit working to transform teaching, learning and culture in K-12 public education so all students can learn, work and thrive in our rapidly changing world as globally competent citizens.

World Savvy is unique in the field for our systems change approach that holistically supports the integration of global competence into student learning, teacher training and capacity, and school and district leadership. We have offices in Minneapolis (largest) and an office in the San Francisco Bay Area. Learn more at www.worldsavvy.org.

Mission: World Savvy educates and engages youth to learn, work, and thrive as responsible global citizens.

Vision: As the leading provider of global competence education, World Savvy envisions a K-12 education system that prepares all students with the knowledge, skills, and dispositions for success and active engagement in the global community.

World Savvy is an ambitious organization with big ideas and tenacious growth goals. Our culture is one of optimism, authenticity, levity and learning. World Savvy is deeply committed to anti-racism, inclusion and equity in our programming and workplace. As we grow, we will intentionally build a team that reflects the ethnic, racial and cultural diversity of the students, educators and communities we serve. World Savvy seeks individuals who are black, indigenous and people of color to apply.

OUR VALUES:

• We do the best work possible in service of our mission.   
• We believe collaboration is essential.
• We see people as whole human beings.   
• We intentionally grow and change.
• We lean into complexity when it’s called for.
• We believe big things are possible, whether that’s our mission or the project on the table.
• We notice and disrupt exclusionary patterns.
• We bring hope, joy, and a sense of aspiration into all that we do.

POSITION SUMMARY:

The Executive Director – Western Region (EDWR) reports to the Chief Growth Officer (CGO) and oversees the growth strategy which includes both earned and contributed income and fundraising. A peer to the Executive Director – Midwest Region, the EDWR leads World Savvy’s flagship regional office, which launched in 2002.  However, this role can be based anywhere in the Western Region: California Bay Area, other California locations, or the surrounding states including Colorado, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Idaho, New Mexico, Wyoming, and Montana. If a candidate is hired outside of the Bay Area, additional travel to the Bay Area may be required.

With oversight and support from a national team, the EDWR collaborates with peers and executives to drive organizational strategy, reach collective goals and build a values-based culture. The EDWR supervises the San Francisco-based Director of K12 School Recruitment and future regional hires. This position will advocate for the organization to prospective funders, schools and district partners, as well as be the external voice and face for World Savvy in the local community. The EDWR is expected to raise an annual budget that sustains regional operations and aligns with our 2035 Vision Plan for growth at or above 20% annually. This will include recruitment of schools and partners to drive our local earned income strategy, as well as development and fundraising responsibilities.

• Schedule: Full time, limited nights and weekends as required by program
• Salary range: $125,000-$150,000 based on experience
• FSLA Status: Exempt
• Projected Start Date: ASAP
• Application Deadline: Open until filled
• Location: California Bay Area, other California locations, or the surrounding states including Colorado, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Idaho, New Mexico, Wyoming, and Montana
• Travel Requirements: up to 30% (primarily local and regional travel) or up to 50% if candidate is outside the Bay Area

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these essential functions.

•  Work with the Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operations Officer, and Chief Growth Officer to develop a regional strategic plan to advance World Savvy's mission and objectives, and to grow earned and philanthropic revenue in order to create a self-sustainable World Savvy Western region (with priority focus on California Bay Area and the surrounding states including Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Idaho, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Hawaii and Alaska).
• Establish and maintain existing Western-based networks of educators and school/district administrators and identify and leverage existing World Savvy champions in fundraising and school/district partnership efforts to advance the regional growth strategy.
• Serve as the primary spokesperson for World Savvy in the Western region for local, state and regional platforms. With support from the national marketing and communications team, develop regional marketing and communications strategies to raise awareness and deepen World Savvy’s impact in the West. 
• Develop and manage an annual regional expense budget (currently $650,000 annually). Develop, manage and track relevant financials for the regional office, including earned income and philanthropic revenue projections and spending.
• Work collaboratively with the national program team and the Director of K-12 School Partnerships – Western Region to secure school and district partnerships in alignment with the regional growth strategy.
• Oversee, mentor, guide and develop staff; currently includes 1 FTE direct report: Director of K-12 School Partnerships – Western Region.
• Support and lead efforts to maintain a cohesive and values-aligned working culture that supports team members who are remote and/or office-based.
• Brainstorm, develop and lead any local advisory and/or advocacy networks, or related entities, that will help guide and grow our regional presence.
• As an active member of the Senior Leadership Team, collaboratively contribute to national organizational strategy, meeting shared goals and objectives, and fostering a values-based work culture.

KEY REQUIREMENTS:

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience.
• 7-10 years of roles demonstrating progressively more responsibility.
• 7 + years of nonprofit fundraising and development experience, including experience writing grants and securing major individual gifts that significantly contributed to the growth of an organization.
• 5 or more years of demonstrated success in a nonprofit leadership role as an effective internal and external relationship-builder, fundraiser, budget manager, project leader, supervisor and collaborative colleague.
• Outstanding communications skills: verbal, written, listening, persuasion, presentation and interpersonal. Ability to communicate effectively and build strong relationships.
• Successful track record as the primary ambassador of an organization whose mission, values and/or culture aligns with those of World Savvy is preferred.

KEY COMPETENCIES:

• Entrepreneurial mindset, motivated by growth and continuous improvement with a track record of creating effective strategies, setting and achieving ambitious goals (earned and/or contributed income).
• Embraces complexity, excels at navigating and leading change, transforms ambiguity into clarity, and thrives in a fast-paced, agile work environment.
• Demonstrated commitment to social justice, global awareness, equity in education and the core principles of global competency.
• Strong interest and/or experience in the education sector or a related field; experience in K-12 public education is a plus.
• Ability to innovate and propose solutions to complex problems.
• Excellent time management, analytical, reasoning and organizational skills; strong project management skills and detail-orientation.
• Ability and willingness to operate effectively at both a strategic and tactical level.
• Strong negotiation skills; ability to work collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders to reach mutually acceptable agreements.
• Strong supervisory skills. Ability to mentor, guide and develop staff in alignment with organizational values.
• Technology skills that meet today’s workforce demands (Microsoft Office, Google Suite, Salesforce, Pardot, video conferencing, Slack, Asana, etc.) including strong skills using virtual collaboration tools to track projects, solve problems and work with others across distances.
• Valid driver’s license, access to a personal vehicle and the ability to self-sufficiently travel by car within the Bay Area, state and region.

WORK ENVIRONMENT:

World Savvy is a hybrid work environment; employees may choose to work remotely 2-3 days per week with the approval of their direct supervisor.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

This position requires the ability to:

• Constantly remain in a stationary position, often sitting for prolonged periods
• Occasionally move about to accomplish tasks or move from one worksite to another
• Constantly communicate with others to exchange information
• Constant use of a computer keyboard and mouse, repeating motions that may include the wrists, hands and/or fingers
• Occasional operation of office equipment, such as printers, copiers, and scanners
• Constant assessment of the accuracy, neatness and thoroughness of the work assigned.

APPLYING FOR THE POSITION:

Please apply online at https://worldsavvy.bamboohr.com/careers/52. Please include a resume, and a cover letter explaining why you are interested in the job and why you believe your experiences and skills are a good fit for the position. If you have questions that would affect your interest in applying, please e-mail jobs@worldsavvy.org.  Applicants for this position must be legally authorized to work in the United States, and must disclose if they require sponsorship for a visa at the time of application or in the future.

A note about World Savvy’s commitment to anti-racism and recruiting:

In the past, we’ve used equity and inclusion language to express our social justice values and our intention to build a team that reflects the racial diversity of the students, educators and districts we serve. Like many organizations, we’ve recognized how passive and ineffective this has been at overcoming the effects of systemic racism that have impacted the workforce for generations. Many things need to change, including the dialogue we have with job seekers. To that end, we share the following:

Our commitment is that as we grow and intentionally build a team that reflects the ethnic, racial and cultural diversity of the students, educators and communities we serve. This population is currently 50% or more BIPOC. Recognizing the gap we have on our team, we’re seeking individuals who are Black, Indigenous and People of Color to apply. We believe these life experiences and perspectives are critical at the leadership level, in particular, to advance our global competence work. At its core, this work is about teaching students to practice empathy, appreciate cultural differences, consider multiple perspectives and collaboratively problem solve. In an increasingly divided world, the continued success of this work hinges on modeling this ourselves, continuously learning and growing.

World Savvy Covid-19 Approach: 

World Savvy is currently a hybrid work environment depending on the role and tasks. This is reviewed on a periodic basis, with staff provided 30 days of notification of any changes. Work environments may include: work from anywhere, work in-person/office, and work in the community.

In accordance with World Savvy’s duty to provide and maintain a workplace that is free from known hazards, its commitment to health and safety, and the concerns of its community, we are adopting a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy to safeguard the health of our employees and clients. This policy will comply with state and federal law, and is based on guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and local health authorities, as applicable and as updated from time to time. As an eligible state and federal contractor, World Savvy will comply with the COVID-19 vaccination requirement for all federal contractors and continue to follow the CDC guidance as it relates to vaccinations and booster shots, reasonable accommodations will be considered on a case by case basis. World Savvy will ask for proof of vaccination as a condition of employment.

Affirmative Action/EEO Statement

World Savvy is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. Equal Employment Opportunity has been, and will continue to be, a fundamental principle at World Savvy, where employment is based upon personal capabilities and qualifications without regard to: age; ancestry; color; creed; domestic violence victim status; gender, gender identity or expression (including transgender status); genetic information; marital status; medical condition; military and veteran status; national origin; physical or mental disability; political affiliation; protected medical leaves (requesting or approved for leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act or the California Family Rights Act); race (including traits that are historically associated with race, such as hair texture and protective hairstyles, including braids, locks, and twists); religion; sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions); sexual orientation; status with regard to public assistance; or any other protected categories under applicable federal, state and local law in which World Savvy operates.