Director of Civic Engagement

Director of Civic Engagement

Alliance for Connecticut Charter Schools (ACCS)/EmpowerCT
Location: Connecticut/hybrid
Type: Full-time/Exempt

Who We Are

The Alliance for Connecticut Charter Schools (ACCS) is a statewide membership-based advocacy and support organization working to strengthen Connecticut’s charter sector, expand access to high-quality schools, and ensure charter students receive equitable opportunities. ACCS operates at the intersection of school quality, growth, compliance, and policy advocacy to deliver results for families and schools across the state. We work closely with our community engagement arm, LEAD, to build and mobilize grassroots support that informs and strengthens our efforts.

Position Summary

The Director of Civic Engagement will lead ACCS’s statewide civic engagement and mobilization strategy through its C4 entity (EmpowerCT), building the people power needed to advance charter-friendly policies, support unfunded schools, and strengthen public and political support for high-quality public charter schools in Connecticut. This is a high-impact role for a mission-aligned leader who can operate strategically, organize quickly, and translate policy and political priorities into disciplined, measurable action.

The individual in this role is responsible for building and activating networks of alumni, families, educators, community champions, partners, and other supporters; leading field and digital mobilization; overseeing civic education and training, including ACCS’s LEAD the Way candidate training program; and, when needed, managing campaign operations, including planning, staffing, field and digital programs, and efforts to get out the vote. The Director will also ensure clear compliance boundaries between C4 activities and any 501(c)(3) work.

This Connecticut-based hybrid role includes weekly in-person team time in Danbury and regular work from ACCS sites across the state, with the flexibility to work from home one day per week. The role requires regular travel throughout Connecticut, occasional out-of-state travel, and some evening and weekend availability to support events, mobilization efforts, and campaign cycles. Additional in-person requirements apply during the legislative session. The role reports to the CEO and Chief Strategy Officer.

How You’ll Help

The Director of Civic Engagement will drive impact across several core areas:

Strategy, Leadership, and Performance

• Design and execute a statewide engagement and mobilization strategy aligned with ACCS priorities
• Develop annual and quarterly plans with clear goals, budgets, staffing models, and implementation timelines
• Lead and develop a small team of organizers and fellows through goal-setting, coaching, and performance management
• Manage vendors, consultants, and external partners
• Define key performance indicators and produce regular dashboards and progress updates
• Use data and feedback loops to improve recruitment, engagement, conversion, and retention across field, digital, and campaign work
• Ensure activities follow organizational brand, financial, legal, and risk-management policies

Coalitions, Partnerships, and Alumni Engagement

• Build and activate a statewide network of charter school graduates, families, and supporters
• Develop regional leadership teams and facilitate regular meetups, trainings, and rapid-response actions
• Cultivate relationships with parent leaders, faith and community groups, charter school leaders, small businesses, civic organizations, and other partners
• Coordinate joint events, statements, and advocacy efforts, aligning partners around shared messaging and goals
• Maintain a reliable CRM to support recruitment, segmentation, engagement, and re-engagement
• Train staff and partners on relevant compliance requirements and participation guidelines

• Plan and execute canvassing, phone and text banks, community events, and coalition activations
• Lead digital engagement across email, SMS, and social media, including content calendars, creative briefs, audience growth, and rapid response
• Organize testimony opportunities, lobby days, rallies, and other public actions
• Manage logistics, materials, staffing, approvals, and run-of-show for field and community engagement activities

• Lead ACCS’s LEAD the Way candidate training program, including curriculum development, cohort recruitment and selection, faculty scheduling, workshops, and capstones
• Build partnerships with training organizations and issue experts to strengthen the program and expand the leadership pipeline
• Connect graduates to boards, commissions, campaigns, and other community leadership opportunities
• Track participant engagement, placement, and outcomes

• Plan and manage political campaign activity consistent with C4 requirements, including targeting, messaging, field and digital programs, volunteer recruitment, voter contact, earned media support, and efforts to get out the vote
• Hire and supervise campaign staff and consultants and manage campaign budgets, reporting, and implementation
• Use dashboards, testing, and performance data to improve engagement and turnout
• Coordinate with allied committees and coalitions while maintaining required organizational separation and documentation
• Maintain appropriate separation between C4 and 501(c)(3) resources, communications, data, and staff time
• Coordinate legal and compliance review and maintain clear controls, approvals, and time-tracking

Preferred Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in civic engagement, advocacy, campaigns, organizing, or coalition leadership, including experience managing teams
• Demonstrated success leading field programs and digital mobilization at a statewide or similarly complex scale including direct political campaign management 
• Experience building alumni, family, supporter, or community networks and converting engagement into measurable action
• Experience designing and delivering leadership development, civic education, or candidate training programs
• Strong project and operational management skills, including managing scopes, timelines, budgets, vendors, and multiple workstreams
• Excellent communication and leadership skills, with the ability to brief executives, coach staff, build alignment, and engage diverse audiences
• Working knowledge of the legal and operational distinctions between 501(c)(3) and C4 activity, including practical compliance controls
• Fluency with CRM systems, spreadsheets, dashboards, email and SMS platforms, social media scheduling tools, survey and form tools, project management platforms, and basic design or video tools
• Connecticut experience strongly preferred
• Spanish-English bilingual proficiency a plus
• Ability to travel regularly throughout Connecticut and work occasional evenings and weekends; a valid driver’s license is required if operating a vehicle on behalf of ACCS

Salary and Benefits

The salary range for this role is $130,000-$170,000 annually. ACCS offers a comprehensive benefits package, including health care, a 401(k) with employer matching, and generous paid time off.

Application

Interested and qualified applicants should apply here. Note: the application deadline for this position is July 31, 2026. We do not guarantee review of applications submitted after this date.

We are an equal opportunity employer committed to equity, inclusion, and belonging. We actively seek to build a diverse team and strongly encourage candidates from underrepresented backgrounds to apply. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic under applicable law.