Program Manager The Southern Center for Opportunity and Access

Southern Education Foundation•Atlanta, GA

3d•$80,000 - $95,000•Hybrid

About The Position

The Southern Education Foundation (SEF), established in Atlanta, Georgia, is seeking a Program Manager for the Southern Center for Opportunity and Access (SCOA). SEF has a long history of contributing to educational improvements from pre-kindergarten through higher education, focusing on low-income students and students of color in the southern states. SEF's mission is to enhance equity, excellence, and opportunity in education nationwide through research, policy analysis, advocacy, and programs. The SCOA is one of four federally funded Equity Assistance Centers (EACs) dedicated to civil rights, equity, and school reform to ensure equitable educational opportunities for all children. EACs provide technical assistance and training upon request to public school districts, school boards, state and local education agencies, and other governmental agencies in areas of race, sex, national origin, and religion. SCOA currently serves 11 states and the District of Columbia.

Requirements

Excellent oral and written communication skills, cultivating trusting relationships with district, community, and external partners.
Creative approaches and a respectful, risk-taking posture for collaborative problem-solving with districts and partners.
Vision for how complex projects come together, comfort in managing complex projects, and flexibility when things do not go as planned.
Working knowledge of Pre-K-12 school systems, including how districts make decisions about programs and data collected to understand and address inequities.
Keen ability to organize and prioritize workload.
Clear and concise verbal and written communication skills to address a variety of audiences.
Attention to detail, and a deep commitment to relationship-building across diverse communities and geographies.
General knowledge of federal grant requirements for periodic programmatic and fiscal reporting, performance reviews, and status meetings.
Strong proficiency in Smartsheet, Microsoft Office Suite, Google Workspace, Dropbox, virtual meeting and webinar platforms (i.e., Zoom, Webex), federal grant tracking and management systems, and other applicable technologies.
Minimum of a Bachelor’s degree.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree is preferred.
Identify opportunities for collaboration (to more districts) and for showcasing the work of the EAC (i.e., representing SCOA in conferences, identifying opportunities for education media to write about it, collaborating with Communications team on awareness opportunities).

Responsibilities

Oversee all day-to-day operations of SCOA, ensuring the Center meets all deliverables on time and within budget.
Manage relationships with school districts and education agencies.
Collect relevant data.
Complete reporting requirements.
Ensure the development and dissemination of a series of tools and communication resources.
Manage SCOA projects, ensuring the quality of EAC deliverables.
Support the overall execution of SCOA’s mission.
Develop overall project management structure, ensuring status and progress of project elements.
Monitor progress against outcomes and deliverables of the program, ensuring time, capacity and adequate planning align with programmatic and budget goals.
Develop, modify, or provide input to project plans, as outlined in cooperative agreements and/or annual Technical Assistance plans.
Coordinate and integrate project activities as identified.
Support and suggest process-related improvements (e.g., quality assurance measures) to SCOA staff and leadership on various projects, as needed.
Set up project documentation and platforms to capture documents and all meeting notes.
Support the planning, implementation, and facilitation of all virtual and in-person meetings.
Maintain pertinent contact and program information (including documentation) for potential and existing clients and partners, in relevant program management software (i.e. Smartsheet, Dropbox, SharePoint, etc.).
Manage reporting to funders and other entities, including drafting updates in collaboration with EAC leadership.
Coordinate and oversee partners and vendors for SCOA, including technical assistance providers and consultants.
Support the project and communications teams in making available any materials to be shared, internally and externally.
Represent SCOA in other networks of education advocates and organizations (i.e. NSBA, LDF, SPLC, etc.).