Interested candidates should send a cover letter and resume to:
JOB GOAL:
The Director of Family Engagement will work collaboratively with the Office of the Superintendent and the principals of all the regional elementary schools in the Archdiocese of New York to enhance the experience of families currently attending, or looking to join, our Catholic schools.
This person will be responsible for developing, implementing, and overseeing all family and community engagement initiatives within the Archdiocese of New York. By increasing communication with, and participation among, our parents and guardians, this individual will lead the charge to strengthen the sense of community within each of our schools and the Archdiocese as a whole.
The Director of Family Engagement will work with the goals of boosting both enrollment and student achievement within our regional Catholic schools.
REPORTS TO: Associate Superintendent for Enrollment and Scholarship Processing
PRIMARY DUTIES:
The Director of Family Engagement is primarily responsible for drawing in new families and supporting current families.
The Director of Family Engagement is responsible for helping school leadership to encourage student achievement and retention via various family engagement and follow-up activities.
- Provide professional development to principals on how to engage families in meaningful ways
- Ensure that schools create or maintain an active, functioning group to connect parents and guardians with school administration, faculty, and staff in a mutually-beneficial relationship (Ex: parent/teacher organization; home/school association; etc.)
Serve as the primary liason for Spanish-speaking families and establish local initiatives for engagement with the Hispanic/Latino community
- Plan outreach events to identify and reach out to Latino families, particularly middle-income, educating them on the advantages of Catholic schools
- Plan community-building events within schools , to retain current Latino students
- Assist the regional Directors of Enrollment with communicating with parents and guardians whose primary language is Spanish
- Translate written communication that is distributed to families
Establish a more inclusive, resourceful, and culturally-informed support network for parents within our school communities
- Train school staff on how to be sensitive to the needs of families from various backgrounds: Ex. consideration for schedules of working parents, etc.
- Develop marketing strategies and materials that are culturally responsive, emphasizing the message that Catholic schools are affordable and accessible for families of various backgrounds
The Director of Family Engagement will work to identify, plan and coordinate community outreach opportunities to increase visibility and promote the schools to prospective families.
- Work with regional school principals to plan at least one large-scale community event for each of the regions over the course of the school year
- Provide suggestions for events at the local level that can increase the visibility of the school community for new families
- Develop a plan for connecting new and current families to strengthen the communities within our schools
The Director of Family Engagement will provide oversight for correspondence with parents and guardians.
- Create a calendar for family outreach, including dates for coordinated communications from the central office
- Work with Superintendent of School staff to ensure accountability
- Support school progress through implementation of school experience surveys and focus groups for parents/guardians
- Create and manage a system for tracking family engagement data
This individual will work closely with other teams in the Superintendent of Schools office to address the needs of our parent body:
- Collaborate with the team of Directors of Enrollment to support student recruitment efforts through outreach to new families, and to better understand and address the family concerns which are resulting in attrition
- Collaborate with the team of Instructional Specialists to help parents understand new academic initiatives being implemented in their schools, and ways they can support their child’s academic growth at home
The Director of Family Engagement will perform other duties as required to meet organizational needs and goals for engaging with families in order to enhance families’ satisfaction with school programs and communication, in order to stabilize and boost enrollment.
Qualifications:
- A commitment to the mission of Catholic elementary education, vision and core values is required.
- A bachelor’s degree required; Master’s degree preferred
- Candidate must a bilingual Spanish speaker with the ability to communicate orally and in writing with Hispanic families
- Minimum of three years experience in an educational setting; additional experience with community organizing, communications, public relations, marketing, or a related field is beneficial
- The ideal candidate will be able to think critically, problem-solve, take initiative, handle multiple projects simultaneously, and efficiently meet deadlines
- Organized, effective time manager with strong attention to detail and the ability to prioritize multiple tasks with minimal supervision
- Excellent public communication, writing, and presentation skills
- Excellent interpersonal skills to work effectively with a diverse group of people, including parents, students, principals, Superintendent’s Central Office staff, Marketing and Communications staff, and other members of local communities
- Sense of humor, creativity, and flexibility
- Strong work ethic with a high degree of professionalism
- Knowledge and experience with Microsoft Office Suite required
- The ability to work a flexible schedule that includes evening or weekend hours when needed for outreach and follow up efforts with families