Chief of State Operations - Democrats for Education Reform
Stronger Consulting, United States
Job Description
LOCATION: Remote, 30% travel required (primarily to state chapters)
START DATE: Late Spring, 2023
SALARY RANGE: $175k to $225k
REPORTS TO: President
WHO WE ARE
Democrats for Education Reform (DFER) is a national political organization that supports elected Democrats and candidates for office who seek to expand policies and practices that work well for America’s students and confront those that do not. We are education progressives who prioritize students and families, especially low-income students and students of color who should be better served by our country’s public education system.
DFER partner Education Reform Now Advocacy (ERNA) is an advocacy group that advances education reform measures by empowering community leaders to support our legislative and political advocacy work. ERNA keeps constant pressure on legislators to champion high-quality public education.
DFER partner Education Reform Now (ERN) is a nonpartisan think tank that promotes increased resources and innovative reforms in K-16 public education, particularly for students of color and students from low-income families.
WHAT WE DO
1. Support for Progressive Education Leaders In an approach that is markedly different from our peers and partners in the field, DFER engages directly with candidates and elected officials to empower them to advocate for education policies that focus foremost on serving students. Our partner organization, Education Reform Now, does work that involves policy research, analysis, and education that helps policymakers at all levels understand complex education issues and make informed decisions.
2. Informing the Education Debate Our coalition work reflects the breadth of our policy priorities. We work collaboratively with organizations and our community networks to create an education system that is held accountable to all kids and families.
3. Targeted Interventions and Rapid Response DFER’s reach from the most local district relationships to state and federal policymakers, enables us to respond quickly to the changing landscape and policy trends. Activities vary significantly from project to project and may include training, policy analysis, public engagement, electoral and issue advocacy, and policy guidance for elected officials and local advocates.
ROLE OVERVIEW
Democrats for Education Reform (DFER) is seeking a Chief of State Operations to lead the Executive Directors of our state chapters by providing in-depth collaboration, thought-partnership, and support to achieve with their fundraising, policy and political objectives, as well as to effectively manage their teams with care and professionalism to build capacity to address high leverage, dynamic needs in their state context. The Chief of State Operations will also be responsible for enabling positive collaboration with staff members in the National office as well as across state chapters to meet broader organizational goals.
The Chief of State Operations role exists to:
- Maximize the talent, leadership, and effectiveness of our Executive Directors, improving education in the regions where we work.
- Build synergy, coordination, and linkages across our state and national teams to ensure ERN can meet our mission and sustain our work for the future.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
- Ensure the success of each state chapter, serving as a critical thought-leader and collaborator, finding connections between states and sharing resources, best practices and tools to remove barriers to achieving critical goals. They will also build connections and elevate information sharing between the National Office and other state chapters to support each Executive Director.
- Manage, coach, develop, and support Executive Directors, a group of experienced leaders who will at different times need consultation, support, accountability, challenge, compassion, and connection to themselves and others to set strategy, goals, and plans to meet fundraising, policy, and political goals and manage a high-performing team.
- Build critical pathways to share information between State Executive Directors and the National office, to support representation of state priorities, to provide effective professional development opportunities, and to address other key needs.
- Ensure and support Executive Directors in operating their state chapters in compliance with human resources (HR), fundraising, and compliance laws.
- Support the fundraising efforts of our national team and state chapters by playing a role with our largest funders. Ensure funders are informed about the work and impact and have what they need to increas