CareerBank

Egmont Associates

Full Time

Boston, MA

05/11/2008

06/11/2008

segmont@egmontassociates.com

Boston After School & Beyond, a public/private partnership working to ensure high-quality out-of-school time opportunities for all of Boston’s children and youth, is seeking a dynamic new Executive Director. The Organization: In 1998, Mayor Thomas M. Menino launched the Mayor’s 2:00 to 6:00 After School Initiative, the first in the nation mayoral initiative dedicated to this issue. In 2001, twelve Boston civic and business leaders came together to form Boston’s After-School for All Partnership, a funding collaborative. The Partnership launched a year-long planning process funded by The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in 2003 and solicited input from more than 85 stakeholders to strengthen Boston’s system of out-of-school time programs. Boston After School & Beyond (Boston Beyond) was created in 2004 as the successor to the Partnership and the Mayor’s 2:00-6:00 After-School Initiative. Boston Beyond is a public/private partnership focused on expanding, strengthening and sustaining Boston’s system of out-of-school time (OST) programs to ensure high-quality opportunities for all of Boston’s young people. Because children and youth spend only 20% of their waking hours in school, the activities they pursue outside school are a critical part of their development. Boston is one of the nation’s leading cities in providing opportunities to help children and youth achieve their academic potential, prevent them from risky behavior, expose them to sports, arts, music and drama, and support their working parents’ need for safe child care. A broad array of out-of-school time providers and programs has evolved in Boston, and in the last decade, the percentage of children and youth participating in these programs has doubled. While there is great potential, there are challenges as well. The sector is decentralized and fragmented, and funding streams are disparate and not sustainable. There is a need for greater alignment between schools, other public agencies, private entities and the OST sector. There is inconsistent data collection and outcome and impact measurement. Boston Beyond is the entity charged with addressing these realities to realize the vision of an effective continuum of program models serving children at various development stages, carrying young people toward success from kindergarten through high school graduation. Boston Beyond advocates for the power of out-of-school time in youth development and is rooted in the principles of learning what works and supporting the public and private stakeholders to act on what works. Core functions include:  Research and Information, facilitating the development of citywide data tools to link multiple systems, to help funders and policymakers understand gaps and needs, and to create a system that is accessible to families and youth.  Communications to leverage a dynamic network of hundreds of providers, intermediaries, funders and other stakeholders and to raise visibility of the importance of OST.  Advocacy to eliminate barriers to expansion and quality improvement in Boston and to build the case for increased public and private resources to support OST expansion in collaboration with other advocacy organizations.  Incubation of initiatives to address gaps in the system and align school and OST opportunities for children such as Partners for Student Success; BOSTONavigator, a comprehensive citywide online directory of OST programming created in collaboration with the City and BOSTnet; and The Teen Initiative, supporting development and expansion of OST models that effectively engage teens most likely to drop out of school. A Board of Directors composed of key public and private leaders governs the organization with Mayor Thomas M. Menino serving as Honorary Chairman of the Board. Boston Beyond has a staff of eight with an annual operations budget of just over $1 million. It has an ongoing commitment of financial support from the City of Boston and has been generously supported by local and national foundations focused on education and youth development. The Board has recently completed a strategic review, and a strong Interim Director will assist in the transition. Boston Beyond is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Please visit www.bostonbeyond.org.

The Executive Director will build, retain and nurture respectful and productive collaborations across many sectors and types of organizations. Responsibilities include: Cross-sector networking and partnership building  Facilitate strong and sustained partnerships with members of the OST field including the City  Support alignment and leverage of resources, efforts and activities in the nonprofit and public sectors, knowing no sector can meet the challenge alone  Serve as a proponent for out-of-school time, demonstrating its importance to policymakers, funders, and other stakeholders, and as a go-to person in the OST field.  Communicate clearly and regularly with board, staff, partners and the public. Management  Establish and fulfill specific, unambiguous and timely outcomes and deliverables  Develop sustainable funding for core deliverables and for special initiatives and projects  Support a governance structure that both provides broad, high-level representation from the sector and a board that focuses on mission and financial oversight  Attract a quality team. Hire, lead, manage, assess and coach a purposely lean staff.  Develop and manage the budget and oversee financial operations.

Qualifications The successful candidate will be a creative high-energy person of integrity and dedication. S/he will be an articulate communicator and serve as an entrepreneurial connector, forging opportunities and solutions with partners. Acting as a catalyst, the Executive Director will take advantage of Boston’s depth of experience and knowledge to create consensus, all the while driving change. S/he will understand the difference between a network and an organization and how to serve as a catalyst/facilitator of a network while effectively managing the internal workings of the organization day-to-day. • Political savvy and ability to identify and take advantage of opportunities • At least a ten-year record of success in complex and dynamic work facilitating public/private partnerships and experience building consensus across multiple entities. Experience working in or with city government desirable. • Successful public and private fundraising experience and expertise • Experience in education and youth development essential • Strategic thinking with the ability to develop a vision and to knit the community together around common goals, resisting the temptation to “do-it-yourself” • Comfort with open structure and intermediary role • Experience working successfully with diverse communities and organizations • Understanding and experience of neighborhood-based initiatives • Nonprofit management experience essential • Knowledge of Boston desirable • BA required; masters in related field desirable.

To apply, send cover letter, resume and salary history to: segmont@egmontassociates.com, Egmont Associates, 85 East India Row #24F, Boston, MA 02110. E-mail preferred, Word attachments only. Please do not mail duplicate application.