Director of Community Engagement

Overview

The Basics movement helps every family help every child reach their full potential (thebasics.org).

 

Our Principles – Five science-based parenting and caregiving tenets that support social, emotional, and cognitive development of children birth to age five.

Our Strategy – A public health approach that builds awareness and strengthens community networks to engage families with The Basics.

Our Network – The Basics Learning Network (BLN) is a growing alliance of cities, counties, and regions in the U.S. and abroad where partners apply The Basics Strategy and share resources, lessons, and results.

 

The Basics Inc. is a fiscally sponsored organization of TSNE. (www.tsne.org)

 

Responsibilities

The Director of Community Engagement is a key member of The Basics Inc. leadership team. They will oversee the onboarding and support of communities in the BLN, foster collaboration across the network, and ensure partners have the tools and knowledge needed to succeed.

 

This role is ideal for an experienced leader in community-based initiatives who has a deep understanding of collective impact strategies and similar models of cross-sector collaborations and is committed to helping transform how communities support families.  

 

Essential Functions

 

Strengthen and Support the Basics Learning Network (BLN):

• Collaborate with the senior leadership team to ambitiously drive growth and lead the identification and onboarding of new communities, including the coordination of licensing and membership agreements.
• Build strong relationships and foster peer learning across the network.
• Provide technical assistance, coaching, and professional development for communities at all stages of their implementation.
• Responsible for initiating contractual relationships leading to formal agreements between The Basics Inc. and other entities.
• Contribute to the documentation and sharing of best practices, lessons learned, and community impact stories.
• Build and maintain relationships between BLN communities to strengthen peer-to-peer learning.
• Streamline support materials to ensure easy access to implementation tools and resources.
• Identify and support demonstration or exemplary sites including as targets for case studies.
• Coordinate monthly BLN virtual learning sessions.
• Contribute to agenda-setting, thematic content, and convening of the annual Basics conference.

 

Advance the Movement:

• Represent The Basics at conferences and public forums.
• Ensure content, training, and resources are culturally responsive and appropriate for diverse populations.
• Conduct presentations to raise awareness and grow the network.
• Help develop strategies to expand relationships with philanthropic and organizational partners.
• Identify promising communities for inclusion in the BLN and lead outreach to engage them.

Research and Development:

• Collaborate with The Basics team to gather and interpret data from BLN communities and inform continuous improvement.
• Help translate research findings into practical tools and learning opportunities.  
• Maintain community profiles to tailor support based on local context.
• Partner with the operations and evaluation teams to ensure data and reporting systems accurately capture community progress and impact.
• Contribute to grant proposals related to the BLN and its evaluation.

Qualifications

We will consider exceptional candidates who demonstrate a strong combination of the specific qualifications and skills described below.

 

• Master’s degree or PhD preferred (or equivalent senior-level experience in community engagement, early childhood development, public health, or a related field).
• 7+ years leading or advising community-based initiatives, including experience managing staff or cross-sector teams.
• Demonstrated success in building and sustaining cross-sector partnerships. 
• Experience guiding networks or coalitions through structured implementation.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and facilitate professional learning and technical assistance for community stakeholders.
• Strong facilitation and technical assistance skills.
• Familiarity with philanthropy and grant development is a plus.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills.
• Strategic thinker and relationship builder with strong organizational skills.  
• Highly organized, with strong attention to detail for administrative and compliance-related processes.

Physical Demands/Work En