Department Director

State of Indiana•Indianapolis, IN

13d•Onsite

About The Position

The Indiana Department of Education provides innovative support to Indiana schools, teachers, students, and parents. We proactively work with educators, policymakers, business leaders, and community-based organizations to build student success. Our strategic priorities include: Delivering quality, purposeful educational opportunities for each student. Elevating and supporting Indiana’s educators. Increasing partnerships and delivering aligned, effective, and efficient support. The Senior Director of Secondary Pathways & Student Readiness serves as a senior leader responsible for advancing Indiana's vision that every student graduates prepared for enrollment, employment, enlistment, and service. This position leads the development, implementation, and continuous improvement of statewide strategies that strengthen high school transformation, career-connected learning, work-based learning, graduation pathways, student readiness, and postsecondary success. The Senior Director will work across K–12 education, higher education, workforce development, economic development, employers, and community partners to ensure students have access to high-quality pathways aligned to their goals and Indiana's workforce needs. The position will oversee major strategic initiatives, drive policy implementation, monitor outcomes, and support local education agencies in delivering meaningful opportunities that prepare students for success beyond high school. This position reports to the Assistant Secretary of Education and serves as a member of the agency's senior leadership team.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree required; master's degree preferred.
Seven or more years of progressively responsible leadership experience in education, workforce development, public policy, economic development, or a related field.
Demonstrated experience leading complex, cross-sector initiatives.
Strong understanding of secondary education systems, college and career readiness, workforce development, and postsecondary pathways.
Experience managing projects, teams, budgets, and external partnerships.
Exceptional written, verbal, and presentation communication skills.
Extensive knowledge of agency and/or organizational program(s) and business practices.
Extensive knowledge of state programs and resources, public policy, and program evaluation.
Ability to develop and/or measure program outcomes.
Ability to create and maintain strong working relationships with key public and private government and business leaders.
Ability to identify problems, determine accuracy and relevance of information, and use sound judgment to generate and evaluate alternatives and to make recommendations.
Ability to work with internal and external customers to assess needs, provide assistance, resolve problems, and satisfy expectations.
Outstanding interpersonal skills with the ability to build relationships, establish credibility, and influence leaders at all levels.
Make sound, well-informed, and objective decisions. perceives the impact and implications of decisions.
Ability to delegate work, set clear direction, and manage workflow.
Ability to effectively give feedback, provide guidance or corrective action, coach, and develop employee skillsets.
Individuals should have the ability to perform essential functions with or without reasonable accommodation.

Nice To Haves

Experience working with state education agencies, higher education institutions, workforce systems, or large-scale education initiatives.
Knowledge of career and technical education (CTE), work-based learning, apprenticeship programs, and student readiness frameworks.
Experience in policy development and implementation.
Familiarity with data analysis, accountability systems, and performance management.

Responsibilities

Lead statewide implementation of Indiana's secondary education and student readiness priorities.
Develop and execute strategic initiatives that advance college, career, military, and civic readiness.
Serve as a key advisor to agency leadership on matters related to secondary education, workforce alignment, and postsecondary pathways.
Collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to ensure alignment across state agencies and strategic priorities.
Lead implementation and continuous improvement of Indiana's high school diploma and Graduation Pathways framework.
Monitor statewide implementation of readiness seals, pathway requirements, and student readiness indicators.
Develop guidance, resources, and supports for schools and districts.
Evaluate policy effectiveness and recommend improvements based on data and stakeholder feedback.
Expand access to high-quality work-based learning experiences, including internships, apprenticeships, clinical experiences, and employer partnerships.
Coordinate efforts with employers, workforce development organizations, higher education institutions, and intermediary partners.
Support development of scalable systems that increase student participation in career-connected learning opportunities.
Advance innovative approaches to career advising and pathway navigation.
Strengthen alignment between secondary education, postsecondary institutions, workforce development, and industry needs.
Support initiatives that increase credential attainment, dual credit participation, and postsecondary enrollment.
Collaborate with state and regional partners to develop talent pipelines aligned to high-demand industries.
Monitor labor market trends and recommend pathway investments that address workforce needs.
Establish performance measures and monitor statewide outcomes related to student readiness.
Analyze participation, completion, credential attainment, and postsecondary success data.
Develop reports, presentations, and recommendations for agency leadership, policymakers, and stakeholders.
Drive continuous improvement efforts through data-informed decision making.
Build strong partnerships with school leaders, educators, employers, workforce boards, higher education institutions, policymakers, and community organizations.
Represent the agency at local, state, and national meetings, conferences, and convenings.
Facilitate stakeholder engagement efforts that inform policy and implementation decisions.
Review and evaluate organizational effectiveness, goal determination, and strategic planning, etc., makes recommendations for improvement.
Develop and coordinate plans and policies, resources, and mission as well as goals, vision and expectations of agency or program.
Provide guidance to agencies and the public regarding applicable laws and rules.
Supervise subordinate personnel including hiring, determining workload, and delegating assignments, training, monitoring, and evaluating performance, and initiating corrective or disciplinary action.
Monitor agency or program budget including revenues, expenditures, and budget projections.
Communicate with news and other media, responds to media questions or requests in an appropriate public relations manner.
Coordinate with other government officials on planning issues (i.e. federal and/or state agency directors, etc.).
Coordinate, review, and evaluate the use of appropriate controls and standards for the agency.
Recruit, select, onboard, and train employees to ensure role responsibilities and expectations are clearly understood while providing opportunities to continue professional development.
Set expectations, measure progress, provide ongoing feedback, and evaluate the performance of employees.
Ensure work adheres to quality standards, deadlines, and proper procedures.

Benefits

Three (3) medical plan options (including RX coverage) as well as vision and dental plans
Wellness Rewards Program: Complete wellness activities to earn gift card rewards
Health savings account, which includes bi-weekly state contribution
Deferred compensation 457(b) account (similar to 401(k) plan) with employer match
Two (2) fully-funded pension plan options
A robust, comprehensive program of leave policies covering a variety of employee needs, including but not limited to: 150 hours of paid New Parent Leave and up to eight weeks of paid Childbirth Recovery Leave for eligible mothers
Up to 15 hours of paid community service leave
Combined 180 hours of paid vacation, personal, and sick leave time off
12 paid holidays, 14 on election years
Education Reimbursement Program
Group life insurance
Referral Bonus program
Employee assistance program that allows for covered behavioral health visits
Qualified employer for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program
Free Parking for most positions
Free LinkedIn Learning access