Associate, External Affairs - Uncommon Schools

Uncommon Schools  is a nonprofit network of high-performing, public charter schools providing an outstanding K-12 education in historically under-resourced communities. We have proudly built schools that reflect our student population, with more than 60% of our teachers and staff across our network identifying as a person of color. Uncommon currently manages 53 schools serving more than 20,000 students in five cities: Boston, Camden, New York City, Newark and Rochester. We are proud that Uncommon graduates persist in and graduate from college at five times the rate of their peers nationally. We achieve this by offering strong academic, co-curricular, and social-emotional learning that prepares students for success in college and beyond.

The Associate will organize and empower our parents and schools to ensure high-quality schools for every family through local and state level advocacy. They will establish and cultivate relationships with key elected officials and community leaders to ensure that they know, support and protect our schools; as well as design and complete programs and initiatives that deepen the relationships between the schools and
the communities we serve. The Associate will also advance our parent engagement, leading our Parent Partners for Advocacy group as well as our campus-based Family Councils. Other duties include website and social media oversight, logistical support of external events and board meetings, and other administrative responsibilities. The position will report directly to the Regional Senior Director for Boston.

Responsibilities:

• Analyze and navigate the education and political landscape in Boston and Massachusetts.
• Develop and cultivate relationships with elected representatives at the local, county, and state levels.
• Attend community events regularly in the communities we serve.
• Educate community leaders, advocates, and elected officials about our schools through relationship-building, school visits, community events, etc.
• Lead and conduct outreach to Roxbury Prep families and communities associated with our schools regarding opportunities for advocacy and involvement.
• Lead non-partisan voter registration and get-out-the-vote campaigns among families in coordination with schools.
• Organize events and activities that provide families with an opportunity to have their voices heard in their community and by city, state, and national leadership.
• Identify and train parent leaders at each of our schools to engage with elected officials and community leaders, mobilize large groups of parents for advocacy events, and lead school-based community engagement efforts.
• Design, initiate, and implement events and initiatives that deepen the connections between our schools and the communities our schools serve.
• Run partner database, ensuring data entry and data integrity in databases
• Track progress around all outreach efforts, analyze progress data, and design plans to adjust to real-time data.
• Run regional website updates, social media platforms and school and Board of Trustee newsletters
• Provide logistics support for events (e.g. advocacy rallies, professional development workshops for district partners, board meetings)
• Implement actions step for board meeting preparation (e.g. monthly communications, information gathering, packet creation, meeting minutes, etc.)
• Handle purchasing and invoicing tasks and processes

Education Requirements:

• Bachelor's Degree required

Experience Requirements:

• 3+years of professional experience:
  • 3 + years experience in organizing, community engagement, or other relevant work with schools and families in communities similar to those we serve.
  • Experience planning and leading large-scale projects.
  • Experience with grassroots field organizing, including experience in political or issues campaigns, or leading a field organizing team
  • Knowledge of Massachusetts and Boston public education, charter schools, and political landscape.
  • Cultural competency and experience working with families from diverse ethnic and class backgrounds.
  • Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint), Google Applications and Social Media Platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram).
  • Flexibility of schedule for early morning, evening and weekend meetings and events.
  • Fluency in Spanish preferred.
  • Must have access to a personal vehicle to travel to our schools and community events.

Our people are what make us uncommon. It’s important to us that our compensation practices align with our values and enhance our ability to attract and retain talent.  Our compensation philosophy is focused on equity and fairness, retaining our talented staff and valuing their expertise, and transparency and clarity.

Compensation for this position:  Candidates who meet all job description requirements will likely receive an offer of $69,100. The starting compensation for this role is between $65,300 to $76,800.  The starting pay will depend on various factors including but not limited to relevant professional experience, education, certifications, and tenure with Uncommon Schools.  To receive an offer at the top of the range, candidates will need significant experience beyond the job description requirements.  Because we value staff tenure in a role, we do not currently cap salary ranges for current staff members. 

Other Benefits:

• Regional staff will have the same holidays and sustainability days as school-based staff in their region, flexible summer PTO
• Extensive, best-in-class training and development  
• Choice of 3 comprehensive health insurance plans
• Pre-tax flexible spending and health saving accounts
• Financial planning & wellness
  • 403(b) retirement savings program + employer match
  • 529 college savings program
  • Public Service Loan Forgiveness application assistance
  • Financial  planning tools and assistance
• Dependent Care FSA, back up childcare and daycare discounts, pet care insurance
• Paid leave of absence 
  • Fully paid parental leave
  • Fully paid medical leave
  • Additional paid Short Term and Long Term Disability insurance 
• Mental health and counseling support + wellness benefits

Uncommon believes in the importance of being a diverse, equitable, and inclusive organization that enables our students and staff to thrive. We are committed to building an exceptional team that reflects the diverse backgrounds and experiences of our students. We also strive to ensure an inclusive community by creating a space for meaningful dialogue about issues of race and identity for our staff and students. As an equal opportunity employer, Uncommon provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. We also ensure that individuals with disabilities receive all privileges and benefits associated with employment and are provided reasonable accommodations for the interview process and to perform core job functions. If you would like to request an accommodation, please email recruitment@uncommonschools.org.