Executive Director, New York
Educators for Excellence (E4E) is a growing movement of educators, united around a common set of values and principles for improving student learning and elevating the teaching profession. We work together to identify issues that impact our schools, create solutions to these challenges, and advocate for policies and programs that give all students access to a quality education. We do this by treating teachers as agents of change instead of subjects of change because research shows that classroom teachers are the single most important in-school factor in improving student achievement.
Our Theory of Change is grounded in two long-term goals that are inextricably linked : better outcomes for our students and the elevation of the quality and prestige of the teaching profession. We achieve these goals by changing policy at the district, state, and federal levels and transforming our teachers' union to be more student-focused, democratic, diverse, and anti-racist. United around our Declaration of Teachers' Principles and Beliefs, we are building a powerful movement to lead this change by :
- Organizing educators who share a common vision of equity and excellence in schools,
- Training and supporting teacher leadership, and
- Advocating for teacher-led recommendations at all levels of government, within teachers' unions, and in the public conversation around education.
E4E organizes anti-racist, student-focused educators, builds their leadership capabilities and collective power through issue-based advocacy campaigns, and supports them to take on positions of leadership in their schools, districts, and most importantly, in their unions. We have made incredible progress organizing teachers to take action to uplift their students and profession. Through E4E, tens of thousands of educators have signed on to a common vision for elevating the teaching profession and improving student outcomes; thousands of teacher members have successfully advocated for and won equity and excellence-focused policy changes in their local communities; and hundreds have trained for and taken on positions of elected and appointed leadership in their schools, districts, and unions. With chapters currently operating in New York, Connecticut, Chicago, Massachusetts, and Minnesota, E4E's organizing culture is grounded in our passion for impacting educational systems and revolves around an innovative, roll-up-your-sleeves spirit backed by a shared commitment to continuous professional growth.
E4E is seeking a dynamic leader to serve as the next Executive Director to lead our New York Chapter. This exciting role will set the strategy and vision for the chapter, own and implement the fundraising strategy for its next phase of growth, while also leading a high-performing team. In addition to setting and leading E4E's strategy, the Executive Director will be the external representative of E4E's work in New York.
Reporting to the Chief Impact Officer and serving as a member of E4E's Leadership Team, the New York Executive Director will lead the New York team to deliver on E4E's Theory of Change to improve outcomes for students, particularly those impacted by the opportunity gap, and to elevate the prestige and quality of the teaching profession.
Scope : What is the nature of the role? What is required?
In this role, you will :
Serve as lead on the vision, strategy, and execution of the NY chapter to achieve impact aligned with E4E's mission, theory of change, and strategic plan.Evaluate opportunities within the local landscape for educators to influence critical decisions at the district and state levels to effectuate and sustain policy changeOversee advocacy campaigns that impact policies based on our local educator-created policy recommendations rooted in the E4E Declaration of Teachers' Principles and Beliefs and aligned to our national policy agenda.Design strategies to cultivate teacher members to grow their participation and pursue leadership roles within their districts, states, and, importantly, within their unions.Lead the team to achieve chapter power-building goals related to organizing, advocacy, and teacher leadership campaigns.Create and implement metric-based organizing goals aligned with national goals and priorities.Manage data systems for evaluating progress toward strategic goals, ensuring that local objectives are met while also aligning efforts with the national organization.Raise and Manage Funds :
Work in collaboration with the Development Manager and the National Development Team to execute and grow fundraising efforts, with an annual starting revenue goal of approximately $1.75M.Innovate and expand local fundraising activities, with a strong focus on diversifying our current funding base, particularly by cultivating new individual and grassroots donors, exploring earned revenue opportunities, and stewarding relationships with existing partners in partnership with the national development team.Provide strategic vision, leadership, and execution of drafting high-quality development materials including proposal content, reports, and collateral.Develop and administer the local budget, ensuring fiscal responsibility and stability, along with finance leaders.Build and Manage a High-Performing Team :
Serve as a model of our core values and promote a strong team culture.Recruit, select, coach, and retain talented team members.Manage toward ambitious programmatic and operational goals.Coach and manage a team of six, including two direct reports, focused on setting the vision for and managing execution of the chapter's local strategy; the implementation of E4E's grassroots organizing model; teacher leadership programs and event series; supporting the Deputy Director of Campaigns in their direct management of a team of Organizers; the effective implementation of a team culture that is aligned to our Core Values, especially DEI, and focuses on impact.Represent E4E in the community :
Give speeches, author op-eds, attend education events and conferences, work with media, and engage with teachers and the general public to uplift the perspectives and ideas of E4E members.Serve as strategic leader and at times, convener, in external coalitions, and with funders, advocates, public officials and other stakeholders.Manage external relationships to support campaigns and increase organizational brand and reputation, in partnership with lobbyists, with District, City, and State officials.Secure opportunities for teachers to share their voices directly in local media. Build and maintain relationships with local policymakers, union leaders, key stakeholders, interest groups, and elected officials to support our local strategy.Establish E4E-New York as a source for the opinions and perspectives of progressive educators on issues that impact New York City's classrooms.Serve on E4E's Leadership Team :
Participate in Leadership Team (LT) calls, retreats, and Executive Director (ED) Cohort meetings, requiring quarterly travel.Demonstrate Enterprise Leadership as both a chapter leader and a member of E4E's national leadership team : Share input on key decisions that impact the entire organization and proactively develop potential solutions to the concerns identified for the betterment of our work, our culture, our staff, and our whole organization.Act as a two-way communicator between the local team and the national Leadership Team of which all Executive Directors are part of and vice versa, elevating issues and communicating important information.Engage in org-wide community-building and work teams (e.g., Diversity Council, identity-based learning communities, serve on hiring committees, etc.)Minimum Requirements :
At least ten years of experience in leading others within the education, education policy, campaign organizing, and / or advocacy space, including at least five years of experience in pre-K 12 education, classroom teaching experience, community organizing, campaign organizing, and / or union organizing preferred.Experience managing high-performing teams by setting clear, well-defined goals and managing desired outcomes through layers.Political savvy and demonstrated track record of effectively navigating complex power dynamics and building coalitions, and experience managing or working on electoral campaigns and within or in partnership with labor unions.Establish a clear vision that is mission-aligned, sets measurable goals, and develops teams and activities to maintain alignment with this vision.Demonstrated experience building partnerships; and / or prior experience within fundraising / development required.An acumen for building an inclusive workplace where diversity and individual differences are valued and leveraged to achieve the vision and mission of the organization.The ability to build and maintain a deep knowledge of key NYC and NYS legislative, economic, social, and political trends and developments, including deep knowledge of the educational landscape, and their impact on the organization, its strategy, and its internal and external stakeholders, while digesting information to inform organizational positions and stances.The ability to identify necessary shifts in a timely manner involves key stakeholders in the planning process, promotes buy-in & follow-through, and adjusts course as needed.Make decisions in the best interest of the broader organization, constantly leveraging
