Executive Director

ORGANIZATIONAL OVERVIEW

NAEHCY (https://naehcy.org/) is the largest national association dedicated to educational equity and excellence for children and youth experiencing homelessness. Our membership includes over 1,600 local homeless education liaisons, educators, school counselors, social workers, registrars, nurses, child advocates, shelter staff, state and federal policy specialists, and partners from community-based and national nonprofit organizations.

NAEHCY was established in 1989 to ensure that children and youth residing in temporary living situations received equitable and excellent services through the public schools across the country.

NAEHCY MISSION

NAEHCY’s mission is dedicated to ensuring educational equity and excellence for children and youth experiencing homelessness, including high mobility children and youth, through collaboration, learning, leadership and capacity building of our members.

We fulfill our mission by providing technical assistance and sharing best-practice implementation strategies to build the capacity of individuals, agencies, schools, and organizations to ensure the academic success of children.

As such, we support state and federal administrators, homeless liaisons, educators, community service providers, advocates, parents and youth. In addition, we collaborate with partners to advocate for public policy change to ensure all children and youth succeed in school. Our 1600 members serve the approximately 1.5 million children and youth experiencing homelessness.

NAEHCY VISION

Every child and youth experiencing homelessness is successful in school, from early childhood through higher education.

POSITION OVERVIEW

Chief Executive Officer

NAEHCY is seeking an Executive Director who is a well-respected industry leader in education, McKinney-Vento law and policy. This strategic leader will be responsible for ensuring a collaborative and inclusive organizational culture, sustainable financial resources, and effective operating systems. The ideal candidate must be adept at building strong internal teams, developing and retaining talent, and building collaborative partnerships across all sectors. The ideal candidate will be a strategic thinker and leader with strong financial and business acumen.

The Executive Director reports to the Board of Directors and is responsible for NAEHCY’s consistent achievement of its mission, strategic plan, and financial objectives.

The Executive Director will be responsible for and must have strong skills and knowledge in the following areas:

Management Responsibilities

The team reporting directly to the Executive Director includes the Event Manager, Membership and Communication Coordinator, Professional Development Coordinator, and Youth and Professional Development Specialist.

Key Responsibilities

Leadership and Board Development

• Work closely with and/or provide technical assistance to educational agencies (LEAs) and school districts and school districts/liaisons as they advocate for the rights of students experiencing homelessness, such as immediate school enrollment and school-of-origin rights.
• Have the ability to network and build collaborative relationships and partnerships with state coordinators, homeless school liaisons, community agencies, public and private sources, donors, and educational and policy leaders
• Have experience with reporting to, and supporting, a governing Board
• Possess the ability to build a highly effective team

Staff/Business Management and Development

• Be a strong strategic thinker who can enhance and refine NAEHCY’s strategic vision, priorities, goals, and measures to meet program outcomes; engage staff, contractors, volunteers, and partners; and deliver sustainable results
• Possess knowledge of management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, leadership techniques, and the effective use of time and resources
• Be an innovative leader who focuses on taking risks, spurring staff ingenuity, and autonomous thought where knowledge is valued, and challenges are viewed as learning opportunities
• Manage contractors

Community Relations

• Have the ability to build strong relationships and engage education, community, and national partners who support the mission of NAEHCY
• Have considerable experience creating, building, and managing partnerships with an array of groups and individuals
• Have a high level of comfort with public relations and public speaking as well as communicating information to a wide range of audiences – from members, policy makers, donors, and volunteers to the press and the general public
• Possess experience with government relations processes and working with other local, state, and national groups in the field of education for homeless children and youth

Financial Management and Fundraising

• Demonstrate success in building and sustaining a comprehensive fundraising program, ideally with experience across a full range of funding sources including individuals, corporations, foundations, and government
• Assure a sustainable business model and develop new resources and partnerships at scale, including public and private funding, contracts for services, and program partnerships
• Be experienced in fiscal planning and budget management for an organization of comparable size and scope

DESIRED EXPERIENCE, SKILLS, AND ATTRIBUTES

The successful candidate will:

• Embody the mission and core values of NAEHCY and will exhibit passion about the work of NAEHCY both inside and outside the Association
• Be a proven leader in the nonprofit multi-service arena and have the ability to accurately assess the needs of membership and implement the Association’s strategic direction, policy, and programming over multiple years
• Demonstrate leadership in, and knowledge of, the McKinney-Vento homeless education assistance act, technical assistance, and professional programming for staff who work with homeless children and youth (representing diverse cultures)
• Have the ability to work and make judgments independently and take initiative

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

The successful candidate will:

• Master’s degree or hold a bachelor’s degree with equivalent work experience in an appropriate discipline (e.g., education, social sciences, public administration, business administration)
• Have 3-5 years executive/senior management experience in social services, public education, or a related organization

Please send resume and cover letter to:

Cheryl Jensen, M.S., PCC, RLC
Managing Partner
612-203-4662
cjensen@strategic-cc.com