Position Summary Urban Alliance (UA) believes that all young people deserve equal access to the paid work experiences, professional networks, and skills training needed to achieve economic mobility. As the Greater DC Executive Director, you’ll have the opportunity to leverage your leadership, relationship building skills, and passion for youth development to help young people aspire, work, and succeed. You’ll also lead UA’s signature partnership with Martha’s Table, which serves students in their freshman year of high school, and increases in intensity, culminating in a senior-year internship at a local business through our flagship High School Internship Program.
As the Greater DC Executive Director, you’ll be leading Urban Alliance’s largest region and longest-running program, and you will join the organization’s Senior Leadership Team alongside the executive directors of UA sites in Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit. You’ll lead a hard-working, dynamic, and impactful regional team of 13 staff members that reaches nearly 800 DC area youth a year across six school districts, while being supported with program development, evaluation, HR, and operations from UA’s national team. You’ll also develop and shepherd the Greater DC region’s new strategic plan, which will more than double our impact over the next five years.
This role is ideal for an individual who is highly adept at developing strategic relationships, wants to manage a program and team that serves hundreds of young people every year, and has a deep understanding of the needs, landscape, and key stakeholders of the DC area.This position currently directly reports to UA’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
About Urban Alliance & the Greater DC Region For more than 25 years, Urban Alliance has provided thousands of young adults from historically excluded communities with the skills, social capital, and career exposure needed to overcome systemic barriers to equal employment and economic mobility. Urban Alliance is a bridge between young adults, employers, and schools that provides high school students with comprehensive soft skills and digital literacy training, paid internships with local employers, individualized mentoring and case management, and ongoing post-high school planning support. In the Greater DC Region, Urban Alliance has formed strong strategic partnerships with more than 100 corporate partners, including Bank of America, Marriott, and Clark Construction, who host, guide, and develop interns within their organizations. Additionally, Urban Alliance has joined forces with real estate companies and grant makers to develop the Urban Alliance Property Management Pathway, which connects high school students with paid, real-world work experience, experienced mentors, and industry training in leasing and maintenance with the goal of supporting their transition to part- or full-time work within the industry after graduation.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES As a key member of Urban Alliance’s Senior Leadership Team, you will:
Fundraising and Relationship Management
Establish strategic relationships to develop and implement regional sales and fundraising plans that secure and grow revenue-generating partnerships with employer partners
Collaborate with the Chief Development Officer to establish fundraising and paid internship targets for the region
Collaborate with the national fund development team to solicit and secure grants from regional philanthropic organizations
Ensure accurate tracking of the fund development and paid internship pipeline via Salesforce
Represent the organization externally by participating in public speaking engagements, maintaining a robust social media presence, and regularly participating in and attending community events
Serve as a thought partner to youth workforce development peers in the field and collaborate with the national team on high-visibility publications and events
Program Management
Assure that the organization makes consistent and timely progress in achieving its mission and target programmatic impact
Lead the Greater DC team by directly supervising program directors and managers to ensure programmatic delivery meets key deliverables, outcomes, and targets
Collaborate with the Chief Operating to establish the annual budget and track and project expenses
Team Management
Oversee the day-to-day operations of the region and ensure overall successful long-term operations
Manage program and alumni directors to ensure that all staff meet goals for the region
Facilitate strong working dynamics between the National and Greater DC teams
Provide professional development for members of the Greater DC team
Promote strong organizational health and culture throughout the region
Qualifications & Keys to Success You will excel at Urban Alliance if you have:
Fundraising experience: the ideal candidate will demonstrate relevant experience in fundraising and relationship development.
Regional knowledge and experience: the ideal candidate will have a deep understanding of the challenges facing today’s young people, the key stakeholders in the DC area’s workforce development field, and the region’s philanthropic landscape.
Professional experience: the ideal candidate will have at least 5 years of leadership experience in the youth, education, or workforce development field with a strong track record of developing and implementing strategic, innovative, and data-driven programming. The candidate will have a demonstrated ability to work effectively across a diverse portfolio of programs and a history of problem-solving complex issues by bridging the gap between strategy and implementation.
Leadership: the ideal candidate will be a thoughtful, collaborative, and empowering leader with strong management qualities and demonstrated success in building, leading, and retaining diverse teams. The candidate will be committed to building staff capacity and elevating the work of their team. The ideal candidate will also have experience managing a geographically disparate or remote team.
Communication: the ideal candidate will be an excellent communicator and possess strong writing and speaking skills. The candidate will leverage their strong interpersonal skills to connect with diverse stakeholders, including youth and their families, staff, business leaders, volunteers, senior government officials, community leaders, and funders. The ideal candidate will enjoy public speaking and will advocate for important youth workforce development issues. Commitment to racial equity and social justice: the ideal candidate will have an unwavering commitment to advancing racial equity and will ensure that it is reflected throughout the organization’s programs. The ideal candidate will recognize the intersection of race and economics in shaping education and employment opportunities and will work to elevate and amplify the voices of the young people we serve.
Compensation and Benefit Package: At Urban Alliance one of our core values is taking care of each other, and this includes offering competitive benefits, paid time off, and options for remote work.
The total compensation package for this position is between $120,000 and $135,000. In addition to having paid time off between December 25th and January 1st, we provide 18 days of paid time off plus 10 paid federal holidays, as well as birthday and diversity paid holidays. Additional days are provided to staff after three years. Depending on the calendar, additional paid closure days and early closure days are established each year. Our benefits include a comprehensive health plan with 90% individual healthcare coverage for employees, 403(B) retirement plans with a 3% match, whole life insurance and pre-tax commuter benefits. In addition, depending on responsibilities, we offer working remotely up to two days per week and flexible hours when possible.
Urban Alliance Vaccination Policy As established by the Urban Alliance Board of Directors, all employees are required to receive a vaccination against COVID-19, unless a medical or religious reasonable accommodation is approved. If offered a job, the candidate must be able to prove that they have been vaccinated with one of the CDC-authorized vaccines, including either Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, or Johnson & Johnson / Janssen or request and be granted an accommodation before their start date.
Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Urban Alliance is a racial and social justice organization committed to creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace. Urban Alliance is an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status. Applicants from all underrepresented groups, including people of color, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and DACA recipients are encouraged to apply.