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  Position Description: Vice President of Impact and External Relations     OVERVIEW Atlanta is the cradle of the civil rights movement and the economic engine of the Southeast. Yet, for generations, students from low-income communities, particularly students of color, have been denied access to a public education that is of equally high quality as that available to the city’s more affluent children. Conditions for meaningful, positive change in Atlanta do, however, exist, perhaps more so than in any other city in the South. Atlanta has a strong Superintendent, a school board oriented toward quality education for all students, a relatively high per-pupil expenditure rate, a maturing charter sector, state-level support from the Governor, and an abundance of human capital. redefinED atlanta is working to harness these conditions more fully and collaboratively to deliver educational excellence and equity to all students.   redefinED atlanta’s vision is for Atlanta to be a place where every student in every community receives a high-quality public education. redefinED atlanta’s strategies focus on developing great public schools through empowering parents, cultivating strong school-level talent, and authentically engaging the community to elevate expectations of excellence and drive change in education in Atlanta.     OPPORTUNITY The Vice President of Impact and External Relations position represents an exciting opportunity to join a mission-driven, committed and high-functioning team, and be part of a thriving organization and community of dedicated stakeholders who are acting with urgency to realize equity and excellence in education.   Guided by a set of core values in which we are wholly invested, and energized by the impact and learning associated with our first three years’ work, redefinED atlanta’s team is driven and poised for growth. We are eager to extend our coalition building to further organize and activate families and communities, and cultivate philanthropic, civic and business leaders to raise their voices and leverage financial resources in order to increase access to high quality public education in Atlanta.   We are a small, horizontal and entrepreneurial team whose energy and creativity are elevated when we work shoulder to shoulder together. In addition to the ripe conditions for change described above, we enjoy a diverse, aligned and deeply engaged Board whose support and influence make our work better and easier. And we have Atlanta!  The city’s many vibrant communities offer verdant landscapes, abundant cultural riches, vivid history, diversity and affordability. Atlanta is a truly inspiring place to live and work.   ROLE The Vice President of Impact and External Relations (VPIER) will design and implement a strategy to help deliver on redefinED atlanta’ strategic vision and goals, and to position the organization as an authority on issues related to quality public schools in Atlanta. The VPIER will help strengthen the redefinED atlanta brand, grow the organization’s influence, and raise the visibility of the issues for which redefinED atlanta advocates to a diverse set of audiences, including media, policymakers, partner organizations, and parents. The VPIER will oversee the planning and execution of all content initiatives for the organization across multiple channels and formats.  The VPIER will also be a key player in raising revenue through relationship building with, and stewarding of, key stakeholders.   The ideal candidate is entrepreneurial, collaborative and creative, and will thrive in a flat, small team environment. This is a leadership-level position-- the Vice President of Impact and External Relations will report to and serve as a thought-partner to the Executive Director while working across and with the rest of the staff and board of directors. The role is critical to strengthening redefinED’s internal capacity and deepening its external visibility.     RESPONSIBILITIES   INFLUENCE & IMPACT Serve as an externally facing leader and voice of the organization, cultivating and maintaining positive, productive relationships with civic, philanthropic, and community leaders, informing them about redefinED atlanta’s vision and initiatives, and matching interests, resources, and talent to investment and advocacy opportunities that will strengthen relationships and be mutually beneficial. Actively build and manage coalitions of aligned grasstops leaders and partner organizations that are engaged and activated to drive the conversation about education in Atlanta and move the needle on key organizational initiatives Assume primary staff responsibility for the External Relations committee of our board of directors, overseeing the activities of the committee and providing expertise to volunteers in organizing and developing successful strategies Develop creative and innovative approaches to strategically engage and involve redefinED atlanta partners in the political and policy development process   COMMUNICATIONS Guide the creation, implementation, and evaluation of integrated strategies that address proactive and rapid response reputation management and communications needs of the organization, partners, and the larger issue area Drive strategy and messaging, and partner in the execution of key communications vehicles like annual reports, newsletters, blogs, speechwriting, press releases, and social media Collaborate with the team to develop innovative and effective means to actively communicate redefinED atlanta’s message and increase public awareness of our organization, the work of our partners, and excellent public schools as a cause.   RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT Work with the Executive Director (ED) and Director of Development to develop goals and objectives for resource development initiatives, oversee the implementation of long and short-range plans to meet those goals and objectives, and manage our pipeline of donors and prospects Partner with ED and Vice President of Operations and Investments to establish long-range revenue goals and drive strategy and timing around the creation of a capital campaign and/or endowment.     SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS   Relationship Building Able to build relationships with a wide range of people-- politicians, philanthropists, organizational and school leaders, and parents, including those whose political or education views are different from their own Able to intuitively understand barriers and motivations and devise action from that understanding; able to influence others toward common goals in a respectful and purpose-driven way. Able to effectively communicate across a variety of audiences (clear, concise, professional; excellent and efficient writer) Able to communicate our unique value proposition and impact to funders, prospective donors, and partners via multiple mediums   Strategy Can translate vision to concrete goals, benchmarks, strategies, and tactics Will constantly reground in the big picture and allocate resources (financial and otherwise) in support of that vision Will continually identify new opportunities to generate support, promote a constructive public narrative, and engage a variety of voices in the work   Content Knowledge Possess experience in PR and communications at similarly situated entities; understand how media works; fluent in social media as a constituent builder Have comfort with or previous experience in cultivating major gifts, or in development communications Understand education terms, issues, politics Can learn and master new material quickly   Management Can effectively lead a team with varying degrees of experience and autonomy Feel accountable to serve as part of the senior leadership team Enjoy and thrive while working in a close-knit team Able to manage up, across and down with ease   Effective Organization Able to organize, plan, and prioritize strategically Have experience managing multiple projects at once, including projects with high levels of complexity and dynamism Have disciplined approach to managing time, events, meetings, data.     PREFERRED BACKGROUND AND WORK EXPERIENCE While not required, the following skills, experiences and credentials would be welcome:   An understanding of local and national issues and challenges facing public education Strong ties and/or a strong reputation within the Atlanta metropolitan region Cultivated relationships with local media and journalists Training in rapid response media Short and long-term strategic visioning and planning experience Demonstrated leadership with cross sector partnerships and community organizations Demonstrated knowledge and experience with Advocacy and Public Policy     REPORTING The Vice President of Impact and External Relations will report to Executive Director Ed Chang, and will manage one direct report beginning in early 2020.     COMPENSATION Compensation is commensurate with experience and includes a base salary and full benefits package. Relocation assistance provided.     APPLY The Executive Search team at Promise54 is managing this search. Review of applications will begin immediately, and continue until the position is filled. For best consideration, submit a resume and letter of interest to Leslie Nair, Partner, at [email protected] , by Friday, September 27th, 2019.   COMMITMENT TO DIVERSITY We do not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its activities or operations. These activities include, but are not limited to, hiring and firing of staff and contractors, selection of volunteers and vendors, and provision of services. We are committed to providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all members of our staff, clients, volunteers, subcontractors, and vendors.