Director of Family & Community Engagement

Cambridge Public Schools•Cambridge, MA

11d

About The Position

The Director of Family & Community Engagement leads the implementation of a comprehensive district-wide strategy to meaningfully engage families as partners in student success. This position is central to building reciprocal, affirming, and aligned relationships with families, caregivers, and community partners that support academic achievement, student well-being, and a sense of belonging across all schools. The Director works collaboratively with school leaders and district departments to ensure consistent, equity-driven engagement practices that are responsive to community needs. They provide direct coaching and support to school leaders and their teams—particularly around chronic absenteeism, communication challenges, and family trust-building—and help embed engagement strategies that promote student attendance, connectedness, and achievement.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree preferred.
Minimum ten (10) years of experience in a K-12 educational setting, with at least three (3) years in a leadership role.
Demonstrated leadership in family, caregiver, or community engagement.
Proven ability to manage teams, coach staff, and build cross-functional alignment.
Experience designing and implementing engagement strategies to support student attendance and academic outcomes.
Strong project management and organizational skills.
Excellent interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills.
Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively and productively across lines of difference.
A creative problem-solver with a commitment to equity, inclusion, and belonging.

Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership & Alignment Design and implement a coherent, district-wide family and community engagement strategy that strengthens trust, collaboration, and consistency across all schools.
Develop and implement targeted strategies to address chronic absenteeism by building family-school partnerships that increase student attendance and re-engagement.
Serve as a connector between departments, ensuring alignment of engagement efforts with district priorities, and eliminating silos that hinder effective collaboration.
Build affirmative partnerships with families that connect district initiatives to community assets and voices.
Champion a whole-organization approach that views family and community engagement as everyone’s responsibility.
Provide direct coaching and consultation to school leaders and their teams to strengthen site-based engagement practices, build staff capacity, and troubleshoot family-facing challenges.
Work closely with principals and school liaisons to develop family engagement plans that reflect local school needs and promote a welcoming and inclusive school culture.
Support school-based efforts to reduce chronic absenteeism by partnering with student support teams to analyze attendance trends and develop responsive family outreach strategies.
Acknowledge and navigate the complexities of “dotted line” reporting structures with empathy, clarity, and consistency.
Hire, supervise, and coach a team of district-level liaisons who support school-based family engagement staff.
Set clear performance expectations and foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
Lead professional development for family liaisons, school leaders, educators, and front-office staff to elevate engagement practices, inclusive communication, and customer service.
Cultivate and sustain partnerships with community-based organizations, advocacy groups, and parent/caregiver associations that advance district engagement priorities.
Coordinate a district-wide volunteer initiative, including recruitment, screening, training, and alignment with school needs.
Ensure the district has a visible, meaningful presence in community events and forums.
Collaborate closely with the Communications Office to build a two-way communication model that emphasizes reciprocal dialogue with families.
Establish systems that improve communication and information-sharing between central office departments and schools.
Present regularly to caregiver groups and community stakeholders, both to inform and to listen.
Design and maintain structured feedback loops that gather ongoing input from families and inform iterative improvements to engagement practices.
Support budgeting, grants management, and resource allocation for engagement initiatives.
Serve as a liaison to The Village/Parent/Family University and other leadership/learning networks.
Participate in district- and community-level committees and represent CPS in relevant external partnerships and forums.
Stay abreast of research and innovation in family engagement and its role in student outcomes.