Senior Director, External Affairs - Newark

Company Description

Uncommon Schools is a nonprofit network of high-performing, public charter schools providing an outstanding K-12 education in historically under-resourced communities. We have proudly built schools that reflect our student population, with more than 60% of our teachers and staff across our network identifying as a person of color. Uncommon currently manages 53 schools serving more than 20,000 students in five cities: Boston, Camden, New York City, Newark and Rochester. We are proud that Uncommon graduates persist in and graduate from college at five times the rate of their peers nationally. We achieve this by offering strong academic, co-curricular, and social-emotional learning that prepares students for success in college and beyond.

Job Description

TEAM & ROLE OVERVIEW

The Regional Senior Director will play a critical role in managing all external- and community-facing work for their specific region, as our schools serve communities in multiple cities that each have different landscapes and needs. The Regional Senior Director will work to advance Uncommon’s reputation and influence as a leading charter management organization in the region. The Regional Senior Director will build support for our schools by leveraging a deep understanding of the community and ensuring that Uncommon Schools is working as effectively as possible with and building strong relationships with key external stakeholders in the community. The Regional Senior Director will work closely with the Head of Operations, who oversees school operations for the region, and the central External Affairs team at Uncommon’s Home Office, as well as other school, regional and Home Office leaders within Uncommon. The Regional Senior Director will report to the Senior Director of External Affairs on the Uncommon Home Office Leadership Team, and will oversee an External Affairs team, with size determined by the needs of the region.  

RESPONSIBILITIES

We are seeking a mission-aligned, high-energy, detail-oriented, people-driven and community-embedded leader who will create and execute on the strategic plan for external affairs in the region, and build deep and lasting relationships with school, regional, and external community members and stakeholders (e.g., parent leaders, community leaders, elected officials, school Board of Trustees, charter authorizers, other charter leaders).  Key responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Management of External Affairs & Stakeholders

• Regional advocacy and government affairs

  • Plan and execute elected official engagement strategy, including managing high-level key relationships, supporting the team to plan for and execute on initiatives and strengthening relationships with elected officials (e.g., school visits, community projects, meetings)
  • Overseeing creation and execution of a parent advocacy strategy and successful coalition-building to support Uncommon Schools and education reform interests, and manage and implement Uncommon advocacy initiatives within the regional context (e.g., Get Out the Vote campaigns, voter registration, parent advocacy & organizing, etc.) 

• Board management

  • Serve as the key owner and liaison for the regional Board of Trustees, including long-term relationship management and facilitation of all board meetings and sub-committee meetings

• Other high-level external relationships

  • Partner with the central Uncommon External Affairs team on Uncommon Impact work related to supporting our district partnerships 
  • Build, implement, and manage a system for school tours/visits by external stakeholders
  • Plan for and support all other high-stakes relationships in the region (e.g., district leaders, fellow charter sector leaders, local coalition leaders, etc.)

Strategic Planning & Execution

• Partner with regional and Home Office leaders to create and implement a robust external strategy for the region
• Manage and drive strategy for all charter and governance compliance, including managing authorizer relationships, managing the charter application and renewal processes and ensuring adherence to all relevant governance policies and procedures;
• Determine and drive strategy for core initiatives/relationships in the region, including but not limited to: relationship with local school district(s) and implementation of district/city policies; supporting student recruitment

Collaboration & Team Management

• Work seamlessly with the Head of Operations and other regional leaders, especially around projects involving school implementation and Board of Trustees management
• Work closely with External Affairs, Enrollment, Development, an