Jobs and Careers
CI
Head Start Program Director
City of OaklandUnited Statesfull_timeVerifiedPosted 28 Jul 2026
💰 $202,265/yr($164,730/yr – $202,265/yr)
About the role
Posting number: 26-EM254-03
Department: Human Services Department
Job classification: Manager, Human Services
Posting type: Open & Promotional
Categories: Human Services
Summary
To view the full Recruitment Brochure click HERE
This recruitment may close at any time,
interested applicants are encouraged to apply immediately.
This recruitment may close at any time,
interested applicants are encouraged to apply immediately.
The Head Start Program Director reports to the Director of Human Services, or their designee, leads a team of professionals, and is responsible for the direction, management, and implementation of the Head Start/Early Head Start Birth-to-Five program. The Head Start Program Director continuously monitors the progress on meeting child outcomes and school readiness goals with the deliberate intent of meeting or exceeding the national average for child outcomes. The position oversees 6 direct reports, a department budget of $25 million, and staff of 100.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
• Provide strategic and operational leadership for the division, establishing priorities, goals, policies, performance standards, and ensuring compliance with federal, state, and local requirements.
• Build and sustain collaborative relationships with the Head Start Policy Council, Advisory Board, Mayor’s Office, City leadership, County, State and Federal partners, regulatory agencies, delegate partners, and community stakeholders.
• Ensure high-quality, culturally responsive child development services aligned with Head Start Performance Standards and California early childhood education standards and Community Care licensing.
• Oversee fiscal management, including budget development, financial oversight, contract administration, invoice processing, payments and pursuit of grants and alternative funding sources.
• Review budgets, checking that expenditures align with allowable uses, and watching for early signs of risk – whether in financial reports, staffing patterns or enrollment data. • Direct and coordinate division operations, ensuring consistency in policy implementation and effective collaboration with external agencies, consultants, and vendors.
• Recruit, supervise, and develop staff; address public inquiries and eligibility determinations; and provide technical assistance to community partners.
• Establish community engagement, education and training programs for clients, partners and members of the public. This could be townhalls or listening sessions.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
• Provide strategic and operational leadership for the division, establishing priorities, goals, policies, performance standards, and ensuring compliance with federal, state, and local requirements.
• Build and sustain collaborative relationships with the Head Start Policy Council, Advisory Board, Mayor’s Office, City leadership, County, State and Federal partners, regulatory agencies, delegate partners, and community stakeholders.
• Ensure high-quality, culturally responsive child development services aligned with Head Start Performance Standards and California early childhood education standards and Community Care licensing.
• Oversee fiscal management, including budget development, financial oversight, contract administration, invoice processing, payments and pursuit of grants and alternative funding sources.
• Review budgets, checking that expenditures align with allowable uses, and watching for early signs of risk – whether in financial reports, staffing patterns or enrollment data. • Direct and coordinate division operations, ensuring consistency in policy implementation and effective collaboration with external agencies, consultants, and vendors.
• Recruit, supervise, and develop staff; address public inquiries and eligibility determinations; and provide technical assistance to community partners.
• Establish community engagement, education and training programs for clients, partners and members of the public. This could be townhalls or listening sessions.
To learn more about the position and to view the full recruitment brochure, click HERE
IDEAL CANDIDATE
The ideal candidate will be an experienced program administrator with strong business acumen, staff management, problem-solving skills, crisis management abilities, fiscal stewardship, change management and a demonstrated track record of fostering a culture of collaboration, high performance, service excellence, and accountability in a transparent manner. This individual should bring deep expertise in systematically collecting, analyzing, presenting and using data, including Head Start Performance Standards to drive programmatic and operational decisions that improve outcomes for children.
KEY ATTRIBUTES
• Mission-driven, community-centered leadership with a clear commitment to equity and positive outcomes for children and families.
• Deep Head Start/Early Childhood expertise, with a strong command of compliance, monitoring, and performance standards (comfortable navigating multiple funding streams and regulations).
• Politically astute and publicly accountable; able to operate effectively in a transparent environment with public meetings, community advocates, and multiple oversight bodies.
• Relationship builder with presence; able to partner with Policy Council, Advisory Board/ City leadership, unions, providers, and cross-department stakeholders.
• Operational strength and systems mindset; able to stabilize and improve systems, staffing structures, and service delivery across multiple sites and program models.
• Talent and culture leader who deploys a strong strategy in hiring, retaining, developing, coaching, and building healthy team dynamics.
The ideal candidate will be an experienced program administrator with strong business acumen, staff management, problem-solving skills, crisis management abilities, fiscal stewardship, change management and a demonstrated track record of fostering a culture of collaboration, high performance, service excellence, and accountability in a transparent manner. This individual should bring deep expertise in systematically collecting, analyzing, presenting and using data, including Head Start Performance Standards to drive programmatic and operational decisions that improve outcomes for children.
KEY ATTRIBUTES
• Mission-driven, community-centered leadership with a clear commitment to equity and positive outcomes for children and families.
• Deep Head Start/Early Childhood expertise, with a strong command of compliance, monitoring, and performance standards (comfortable navigating multiple funding streams and regulations).
• Politically astute and publicly accountable; able to operate effectively in a transparent environment with public meetings, community advocates, and multiple oversight bodies.
• Relationship builder with presence; able to partner with Policy Council, Advisory Board/ City leadership, unions, providers, and cross-department stakeholders.
• Operational strength and systems mindset; able to stabilize and improve systems, staffing structures, and service delivery across multiple sites and program models.
• Talent and culture leader who deploys a strong strategy in hiring, retaining, developing, coaching, and building healthy team dynamics.
Qualifications
The following qualifications are guidelines, as the appointing authorApply for this role
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