Posted on August 25, 2012

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Executive Director

The Oakland Schools Foundation (OSF) secures and manages resources for Oakland schools in order to support its vision of equity: that all students have the opportunity to achieve excellence. OSF is a unique support organization for Oakland schools and the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD). OSF seeks to generate greater resource equity for schools and academic excellence for students by strategically supporting schools and OUSD to do the following:

1. Effectively fundraise (grants, donations) and partner (public agencies, nonprofits, firms) to secure resources needed to promote students’ academic success;
2. Manage those resources effectively by contracting with qualified service providers, leveraging partnerships to further student achievement goals, etc.; and<
3. Consistently measure progress against stated goals, collected and analyzing performance data and reporting programmatic outcomes to funders, the District, and other stakeholders.

Rather than focus on promoting a particular pedagogical or programmatic perspective, OSF works closely with its client schools at OUSD and the OUSD central office to implement a variety of services with the goal of improving equity and academic excellence for all students in Oakland schools. OSF is opportunistic, working closely with school leaders and central office staff to match programmatic gaps to the external resources that can address them. Its staff is committed to delivering a wide range of quality services and expertise to schools, remaining flexible and responsive to its clients’ needs and interests.

ORGANIZATION GOALS

Since its founding in 2003, OSF has created an exceptionally successful model of support to Oakland’s traditional and charter public schools that has helped raise more than $20 million directly for schools’ needs. Additionally, OSF has helped school clients build community partnerships that provide other resources, such as volunteers and after-school programs, serving as a practical model for the Oakland Unified School District’s (OUSD) Full Service Community Schools Strategic Plan. OSF is proud of this success and looks forward to supporting implementation of the District’s vision in the years ahead.

Between 2008-2011, OSF grew from serving 14 schools to nearly 40, expanding and deepening its collaborative programs for family engagement and extended learning. The organization also began to partner with the OUSD central office as the District emerged from state supervision and confronted the challenging budget reductions experienced by both school clients and long-time funders by increasing its level of service to schools.

OSF’s planning for 2011-14 is focused on achieving the following goals:

1. OSF will become a premier local education fund that secures and manages resources for Oakland public schools and the district to help improve public education in Oakland.
2. OSF will focus more than ever on securing resources and helping schools manage those resources in service of strong student outcomes.
3. OSF will deepen and expand school service for a diverse cohort of under-resourced schools.
4. OSF will deepen its partnership with OUSD in support of its Thriving Students initiative.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR POSITION

OSF seeks an experienced, visionary Executive Director to implement the organization’s new strategic priorities. The ideal Executive Director candidate will be a seasoned senior leader and people manager with substantial experience in low-income urban education systems and a proven track record of success in relationship building, strategic problem solving, setting and achieving ambitious goals, and a personal commitment and sense of urgency around increasing academic achievement and life opportunities for all students. Experience in sales or nonprofit development/fundraising is preferred but not required.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

The Executive Director’s responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Organizational Leadership and Management

• Manage a team of nine professionals, with three direct reports, to ensure the highest quality of service and support for all stakeholders, including school clients, OUSD leadership, community members, and funders
• Lead key human capital functions, including recruiting talent, staff development, work assignment, performance evaluation, promotion and compensation discussions and dismissal
• Oversee finance and legal functions in collaboration with the VP of Finance and Operations

Strategic Planning and Problem Solving

• Lead the implementation process for the new strategic plan; regularly review and measure progress against strategic plan goals and priorities
• Work closely as a thought-partner to OUSD leadership through the formulation and implementation of short and long term policies and strategies
• Drive conversations with the Board, OUSD leadership, and the funding community to facilitate idea generation, planning, decision-making and action

Fundraising and Partnerships

• Raise a minimum of $1.5 million for OUSD central office and school programs plus $600,000 for OSF operations annually for the next three years
• Ensure that OSF is supported by a diverse and sustainable funding base by effectively managing development staff and building an individual giving program
• Serve as a key point of contact for the philanthropic community in financial support of OUSD; actively engage and energize volunteers, board members, event committees, school partners, and funders

Accountability and Program Support

• Ensure that client schools receive exceptional service from the OSF team, including tracking customer service metrics and reporting them regularly
• Identify opportunities for OSF to lead appropriate and high-impact initiatives, developing programmatic strategies to facilitate such leadership
• Oversee progress monitoring of OSF initiatives; ensure accountability and compliance with funder grant terms and conditions as well as state and federal accounting and reporting requirements

Communication

• Clarify and grow OSF’s brand and visibility by building strategic relationships and partnerships throughout Oakland’s education community
• Serve as compelling voice for increasing equity and educational opportunity for all students, communicating OSF’s goals and objectives clearly to internal and external audiences
• Oversee all communications activities, including website, annual report, newsletters, public relations and social media outreach

Application Instructions

HOW TO APPLY

Please submit your resume and a thoughtful cover letter to Robert Spencer, Chair of the Board for the Oakland Schools Foundation at info@redwoodcircle.org. For more information, contact Christina Legg Greenberg at Redwood Circle Consulting (510.575.9635 or info@redwoodcircle.org).

Compensation is competitive and is based on experience. Oakland Schools Foundation offers a comprehensive benefits package to its employees. Oakland Schools Foundation is an Equal Opportunity Employer.