Director of CORE Academy

NATIONAL COMMUNITY RENAISSANCE•Rancho Cucamonga, CA

26d•$115,000 - $135,000

About The Position

Hope Through Housing Foundation (HTHF) is committed to breaking the cycle of generational poverty by delivering high-quality, place-based social services for low-income families, seniors, and individuals living in and around National CORE’s affordable housing communities across California, Texas, and Florida. We believe affordable housing is a launching pad—not a landing pad—and we partner closely with residents to build pathways to self-sufficiency, stability, and long-term opportunity. The Director of CORE Academy serves as a senior program and strategy leader responsible for the vision, development, fundraising, and implementation of CORE Academy—HTHF and National CORE’s flagship, evidence-informed workforce development initiative. Designed for scale, CORE Academy prepares residents for employment and career advancement, with a primary focus on property management and related career pathways, while serving as a replicable national model for workforce development within affordable housing communities. This role provides strategic leadership across program design, multi-site implementation, partnership development, fundraising, and evaluation. The Director of CORE Academy ensures CORE Academy is funder-ready, outcomes-driven, and positioned for sustainable growth and national expansion. Working cross-functionally with HTHF’s Programs, Data, and Philanthropy teams, as well as National CORE and external partners, this role translates workforce strategy into measurable impact.

Requirements

Demonstrated experience leading complex programs with multiple stakeholders and funding sources.
Strong grant and funder-facing communication skills, including outcome articulation and reporting.
Proven ability to build and sustain cross-sector partnerships.
Excellent written, verbal, and public speaking skills.
Strong project management, organizational, and leadership capabilities.
Alignment with HTHF’s mission and values; experience with affordable housing, workforce development, or economic mobility strongly preferred.
Bachelor’s degree required in workforce development, public administration, social sciences, education, or a related field.
5–7 years of progressively responsible experience in workforce development, program leadership, or related fields.
Demonstrated success securing grants, contracts, or philanthropic funding.
Experience working with low-income populations and community-based programs.

Nice To Haves

Proficiency in Spanish is a plus.

Responsibilities

Lead the strategic vision and growth of CORE Academy as a scalable, outcomes-driven workforce initiative aligned with Hope’s mission and organizational priorities.
Design and continuously refine CORE Academy program models, curriculum frameworks, and career pathways to support replication across multiple geographies.
Develop logic models, theories of change, and success metrics tied to employment placement, wage growth, retention, and career advancement.
Identify emerging workforce trends and sector-specific opportunities to expand CORE Academy into additional career pathways over time.
Oversee end-to-end implementation of CORE Academy across multiple sites and regions, including outreach, recruitment, enrollment, scheduling, and delivery.
Partner closely with National CORE’s department leaders to align curriculum with employer and industry needs.
Establish operational systems, tools, and workflows that support consistency, quality control, and scalability.
Ensure effective coordination of facilitators, training partners, locations, and participant supports.
Build and steward strategic partnerships with employers, workforce boards, community colleges, vocational schools, and nonprofit collaborators.
Develop employer pipelines for internships, apprenticeships, on-the-job training, and direct job placement opportunities.
Serve as a key external representative and ambassador for CORE Academy in workforce collaboratives, funder convenings, and community forums.
Serve as the programmatic lead for CORE Academy fundraising and long-term sustainability.
In partnership with the Philanthropy team, identify, pursue, and secure grants, contracts, and philanthropic investments to expand CORE Academy locally and nationally.
Contribute program narratives, budgets, evaluation frameworks, and implementation plans for grant proposals and funding reports.
Cultivate and maintain relationships with institutional funders, corporate partners, and public-sector funding entities.
Oversee program data collection, performance tracking, and reporting to demonstrate outcomes, return on investment, and long-term impact.
Use data and evaluation findings to inform continuous improvement, strategic decisions, and expansion planning.
Ensure compliance with grant, contract, and funder reporting requirements.
Serve as a subject matter expert on workforce development and career pathways for Hope staff.
Equip Service Coordinators and program teams with tools, training, and resources to integrate career-focused supports into resident engagement.
Provide internal training and technical assistance related to employment readiness, career coaching, and workforce systems.
Perform other duties as assigned in support of Hope’s mission and strategic priorities.