Uncommon Schools is a non-profit network of 53 outstanding public charter schools in grades K-12 across New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts. Our mission is to start and manage outstanding urban public charter schools that close the achievement gap and prepare students from low-income backgrounds for success in college and beyond. We are accomplishing that mission every day, with a college graduation rate that is well above the national average and thousands of stories of our students and alumni achieving their dreams.

POSITION OVERVIEW 
The Senior Associate Director of College Completion will develop a vision that is financially sustainable and scalable for how Uncommon Schools will support its alumni to ensure they graduate from college and will oversee the implementation, evaluation and continuous improvement of this vision. Uncommon Schools is committed to ensuring that its graduates both enter in to and graduate from a four-year college or university. This fulfills our mission of seeing students to and through college, thus closing the achievement gap between low-income students and their wealthier peers. The Senior Associate Director of College Completion will report to the Director of College Completion.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Support in the development an overall vision and approach for how Uncommon will support its alumni in persisting in and completing college:

• Identify the most pressing barriers to college completion for Uncommon’s alumni
• Identify effective, scalable and financially sustainable strategies to support Uncommon’s alumni

2. Oversee the successful implementation and continuous improvement of this vision and approach:

• Work with Uncommon’s internal and external stakeholders to pilot, refine, and more broadly implement effective, scalable and financially sustainable strategies to support Uncommon’s alumni in selecting, persisting in and completing college 
• Disseminate data, research and recommended strategies
• Develop and/or oversee development of partnerships with institutions of higher education and other outside partners to support Uncommon’s alumni in completing college
• Use data to systematically evaluate the effectiveness of strategies alongside internal stakeholders
• Ensure Uncommon is developing or maintaining any necessary systems and infrastructure to manage and refine alumni support efforts going forward, such as data collection tools and alumni tracking tools
• Oversee the implementation and on-going improvement of a “college transitions” curriculum that is taught to seniors during the fourth quarter of senior year by the high school counseling team. The course should equip Uncommon’s seniors with the knowledge and resources necessary to successfully make the transition to college.
• Work with the Development Team in order to secure and maintain the philanthropy necessary for the operation of the alumni support program. 

3. Manage, observe and evaluate annually a team of 10 alumni success counselors. 

• Coordinate with Recruitment to ensure a fully staffed alumni support team
• Plan and lead professional development for Uncommon’s alumni success counselors at strategic times during the summer and throughout the academic year.

Preferred

• Passionate commitment to the mission of Uncommon Schools
• You’re a problem solver—You have exceptional strategic, analytical and critical thinking skills
• You are influential—you use your effective communication skills to get diverse audiences excited about your ideas and initiatives
• You enjoy working with data—you can organize and analyze data sets, and use those findings to solve problems
• You’re flexible—you learn quickly and thrive in dynamic, fast-paced and entrepreneurial environments
• You’re a systematic thinker—you enjoy organizing information and input from different stakeholders and creating a project plan to move work forward efficiently and effectively
• You get things done! You have a “whatever it takes” attitude and thrive on getting results. You expertly manage your time and priorities. You are comfortable taking initiative and being self-directed
• Experience researching or implementing effective and innovative strategies to support low-income students in graduating from college preferred but not required 
• Willingness and ability to travel—primarily in the Northeast—in order to build and maintain college partnerships, observe alumni success counselors, and attend regional and national conferences. 

MINIMUM

• Experience managing a high school alumni support or college counseling program for K-12 schools
• Bachelor’s degree

Uncommon Schools offers competitive salaries commensurate with experience and a comprehensive benefits package.  Aside from extensive professional development, all our staff members are equipped with a laptop computer, email, and all necessary supplies.

Uncommon believes in the importance of being a diverse, equitable and inclusive organization that enables our students and staff to thrive. We are committed to building a talented team that reflects the diverse backgrounds and experiences of our students. At the same time, we work to ensure an inclusive community through creating a space for important dialogue about issues of race and identity for our staff and students.  As an equal opportunity employer, we hire without consideration to race, religion, creed, color, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, veteran status or disability.