Youth Achievement Operations Director

YMCA of Metropolitan Fort Worth•Fort Worth, TX

3d•$65,000 - $75,000•Onsite

About The Position

The YMCA of Metropolitan Fort Worth is seeking an experienced, purpose-driven, and innovative leader to serve as the Youth Achievement Operations Director. The YMCA is committed to strengthening communities through youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility. Under the direction of the District Executive Director, the Youth Achievement Operations Director provides strategic, programmatic, and operational leadership for the YMCA’s comprehensive Youth Achievement portfolio. This includes 59 afterschool sites, grant-funded youth programs, Youth & Government, Reach & Rise Mentor Program, 11 Day Camp, and Specialty Camps. The Director directly supervises and develops three full-time Senior Program Directors who provide leadership across the organization’s program areas and sites. Through these leaders, the Director establishes clear expectations, strengthens program quality, develops staff capacity, and creates systems that support consistent, high-quality experiences for children, youth, families, and staff. This position is both a strategic leader and an active program leader. The Director maintains a visible presence within programs and at program sites, developing a firsthand understanding of the experiences of participants, families, and staff. The Director uses this knowledge, along with program data, feedback, research, and emerging trends, to continuously evaluate and improve the YMCA’s programs. A key responsibility of this role is ensuring that YMCA programming remains relevant, engaging, inclusive, developmentally appropriate, and responsive to the changing needs of children, youth, families, and communities. The Director stays current on trends and emerging practices in school-age childcare, out-of-school time, youth development, mentoring, summer camp, and related fields and translates that knowledge into meaningful program improvements and new opportunities. The Director serves as a developer of people and programs—coaching and mentoring Senior Program Directors, strengthening leadership pipelines, supporting professional development, and building a culture in which staff are equipped and empowered to deliver exceptional youth experiences.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in education, child development, recreation, nonprofit management, business administration, or a related field preferred. Equivalent relevant experience may be considered.
At least five years of progressively responsible youth program management experience, preferably within a YMCA, child care organization, school-age program, camp, mentoring program, or nonprofit agency.
Demonstrated experience leading complex, multi-site youth programs and supervising and developing program leaders.
Proven success in program quality improvement, staff development, leadership development, project management, program innovation, and program growth.
Experience developing and managing operating budgets.
Knowledge of Texas child care licensing standards and regulations applicable to after-school and summer day camp programs.
Grant management, compliance, and reporting experience preferred.
CPR, First Aid, and other certifications may be required within an established timeframe after hire.
Strong commitment to high-quality youth development and exceptional participant and family experiences.
Ability to lead complex, multi-site operations while maintaining consistent standards and empowering leaders.
Strong coaching, delegation, leadership-development, and staff-development skills.
Ability to inspire innovation while maintaining accountability, safety, compliance, and operational consistency.
Strong organizational, project-management, prioritization, and time-management abilities.
Ability to analyze program feedback, operational data, financial information, and quality indicators and translate findings into action.
Ability to stay current with trends, research, and emerging practices in childcare, youth development, out-of-school time, mentoring, and camp.
Strong written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills.
Ability to build authentic relationships with people from diverse backgrounds and at all levels of the organization.
Ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships with school districts, community organizations, funders, families, and volunteers.
High degree of initiative, attention to detail, flexibility, accountability, and follow-through.
Positive, collaborative, curious, and solutions-oriented leadership style.
Ability to manage competing priorities and respond effectively to changing program and operational needs.

Nice To Haves

Grant management, compliance, and reporting experience preferred.

Responsibilities

Provide strategic leadership for Youth Achievement programs, ensuring alignment with the YMCA’s mission, community needs, and youth-development best practices.
Establish and monitor consistent standards for program quality, safety, participant engagement, family communication, and customer service across all locations.
Maintain a visible presence at program sites and use observations, feedback, enrollment data, quality assessments, and program outcomes to identify and implement improvements.
Lead the development of innovative, inclusive, and developmentally appropriate programs that strengthen participant and family connections to the YMCA.
Supervise, coach, and develop three Senior Program Directors responsible for Youth Achievement programs and 59 after-school sites.
Establish clear goals, performance expectations, accountability measures, and professional development priorities for program leaders and staff.
Develop and facilitate training focused on program quality, licensing, safety, organizational priorities, and the participant experience.
Build a strong leadership pipeline and foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, innovation, continuous improvement, and exceptional service.
Develop and implement operating plans that support program quality, enrollment, retention, growth, and financial sustainability.
Ensure consistent operational systems across all program locations, including staffing, site readiness, seasonal start-up, communication, and emergency planning.
Ensure staff follow YMCA safety, supervision, incident-reporting, and risk-management procedures.
Provide operational leadership and support when program, staffing, safety, or service concerns arise.
Ensure School Age Child Care and Day Camp programs comply with Texas child care licensing requirements, YMCA standards, and applicable health and safety regulations.
Stay current on regulatory changes, licensing standards, organizational policies, and emerging best practices, and develop or coordinate updated staff training to support consistent implementation.
Monitor program locations for compliance related to staffing, supervision, documentation, training, and program operations.
Develop corrective action plans and provide coaching when compliance or quality concerns are identified, while maintaining accurate records and ensuring required reports and documentation are completed on time.
Develop, manage, and monitor assigned program and departmental budgets.
Review financial performance and implement strategies that support program quality, enrollment growth, revenue, and responsible expense management.
Manage grant budgets, program requirements, deliverables, outcomes, and reporting.
Use program and financial data to demonstrate impact, strengthen funder relationships, and support future funding opportunities.
Develop and maintain effective relationships with school districts, funders, families, volunteers, community organizations, and YMCA departments.
Identify opportunities to expand programs, improve access, increase enrollment, and respond to changing community needs.
Support marketing, retention, fundraising, family engagement, and the YMCA’s annual campaign.

Benefits

Competitive health, dental, and vision benefits.
Long-term disability.
Medical and dependent care reimbursement plan.
Employee assistance plan.
Free family membership.
Discounts on Y programs including summer camps, enrichment classes, youth sports, childcare and more!
Eligible to enroll in a 403 (b) tax-deferred account at beginning of employment.
12% retirement paid by the YMCA upon meeting eligibility requirements.
Paid time off (PTO) based on hours worked and years of service.
Training and leadership development opportunities.