Senior Director, External Engagement

The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools•Washington, DC

8h•$110,000 - $140,000•Remote

About The Position

This role is for the senior member of the External Engagement team, responsible for the Alliance's full coalition and grasstops portfolio. This includes building the SCOTUS coalition and congressional programming to engage lawmakers with charter schools, and developing the capacity of state charter association leaders, school and network leaders, and the broader coalition of partners within the charter movement. The position reports to the Chief of External Engagement and collaborates with the Alliance's Legal team on coalition and litigation strategy. The role involves managing relationships and programming to empower state associations as advocacy organizations and maintain engagement with school and network leaders. On the legal and congressional front, the role focuses on building and mobilizing a coalition for upcoming U.S. Supreme Court cases concerning religious charter schools, and designing and executing programs like Partner Fly-Ins, the Congress on Campus school visit program, and earmark advocacy programming. While not directly managing relationships with members of Congress, this role works closely with the Federal Government Relations team to develop the strategy, content, and preparation for these engagements, ensuring effective advocacy. On the partner and state side, the role involves convening and supporting the State Leader Council, engaging CMOs and school/network leaders, and mobilizing coalition partners for grasstops advocacy. The position requires strong judgment under pressure, the ability to build trust across diverse stakeholders, and the discipline to manage complex, parallel programming in collaboration with other teams.

Requirements

8+ years of experience in coalition politics, association management, campaign or program management, field organizing, or legal/policy advocacy.
Experience designing programming that puts advocates in front of policymakers.
Experience building or managing a multi-stakeholder coalition around a high-stakes legal, legislative, or advocacy fight.
Experience partnering with legal counsel on public-facing advocacy strategy.
Experience designing and running a leadership development or coaching program for a network of peer organizations.
Experience planning and executing multi-day convenings or conferences for a professional audience.
Experience delivering complex programs in close partnership with teams that own different parts of the relationship or process.
Familiarity with charter schools, K–12 education policy, state charter associations, or education reform.
Ability to build trust easily with legal counsel, coalition partners, and grassroots and grasstops leaders alike.
Ability to translate complex legal and policy stakes into clear, actionable guidance for a broad, non-legal audience.
Comfort identifying and approaching individuals and organizations who may become plaintiffs, intervenors, or amici.
Ability to move comfortably between institutional leaders and grassroots voices, treating both as essential parts of the same coalition.
Excellent program design and delivery skills, thriving when working alongside teams that hold the relationships programming is built around.
Collaborative and clear about lanes, comfortable coordinating closely with Federal Government Relations rather than owning every piece.
Highly organized and comfortable managing a recurring cadence of calls, convenings, and follow-up across parallel workstreams.
Regular travel required for fly-ins, school visits, SLC convenings, coalition gatherings, and NCSC.

Responsibilities

Lead SCOTUS Coalition Strategy: Build, educate, and mobilize a coalition of legal, political, policy, and school-choice stakeholders, including state association leaders and aligned organizations, in collaboration with the Legal team.
Identify potential litigants, intervenors, and amici for the case and related litigation.
Explain the stakes of the case to the national charter community and provide clarity on activation strategies.
Design and Deliver Congressional Programming: Design and deliver Partner Fly-Ins, coordinating with the Federal Government Relations team on member and staff engagement and with the Manager of Events & Logistics on execution.
Design and deliver the Congress on Campus school visit program, including preparing schools and leaders to be effective hosts and advocates.
Design and deliver earmark advocacy programming, including webinars and technical assistance, in partnership with Federal Government Relations and the federal affairs team.
Develop strategy for effective partner letters (appropriations, bills, Dear Colleague letters), coordinating with Federal Government Relations on congressional targeting.
Partner Across Teams: Serve as the coordination point between External Engagement and Federal Government Relations on all congressional programming.
Equip partners and school leaders with the substance, positioning, and materials they need to be effective once Federal Government Relations has secured the relationship or meeting.
Build State Association Capacity: Convene and connect the State Leader Council (SLC) through monthly virtual calls, including agendas, materials, and speakers.
Lead three annual in-person SLC convenings (Fall, Spring, Summer).
Provide meaningful support for new CSA leaders, including leader-to-leader coaching and, in 2028, implementation cohorts.
Convene CSA leaders on state-specific contingency plans, applying the legal and political coalition work led.
Galvanize School and Network Leaders: Design the vision, agenda, and intention for the SLOC, CEO, and SLC receptions at NCSC, partnering with the Programs team on execution.
Mobilize Coalition Partners and Parent Voice: Build and run a playbook for soliciting partner and network-leader input on proposed rules and policy changes.
Leverage coalition gatherings, small groups, focus groups, and 1:1 meetings to surface on-the-ground challenges and opportunities.
Generate field intelligence reports that translate partner and parent feedback into recommendations for policy, communications, and state associations.

Benefits

Sector-leading salary and benefits package
100% coverage of employee's medical, dental, and vision premiums
50% coverage for spouses and dependents for medical, dental, and vision premiums
HRA to cover 100% of in-network medical deductibles
403(b) retirement account with up to a 6% match after 90 days of employment
Automatic life insurance coverage
Short- and long-term disability coverage
FSA (Flexible Spending Account)
12 weeks of fully paid parental leave
25 PTO days annually
Every federal holiday off
A week off at year-end
Monthly reimbursement for internet and cellular service
$500 home office setup stipend in the first 90 days