Chief Impact Officer

Location: Remote with travel to Washington, DC offices

About Education Reimagined

Education Reimagined is a national nonprofit organization based in Washington DC that harnesses the power of visionaries and communities across the country to create and enact a new design for the public education system that is centered around learners, not schools.

We recognize the obligation of public education to develop and prepare future generations. Education must lead to family-sustaining careers and fulfilling lives — so that all young people are equipped to contribute productively to their communities, economies, and democracy. The current public education system was designed more than 100 years ago to meet a specific, now outdated, need: to instill order and compliance, for predetermined roles in an industrial society. This structure has perpetuated long standing inequities, resulting in the marginalization of entire communities.

Since 2013, Education Reimagined has successfully furthered the effort to build and advance the field of learner-centered education. In seeking to enable learner-centered education as an option for all young people in the United States, we have convened and supported a community of practitioners who are successfully engaging children with learning that nurtures their agency, taps their interests and gifts, and offers experiences to explore and apply concepts in the real world.

Now the organization is laser-focused on advancing the creation of a transformed public education system via the development of community-based, learner-centered ecosystems. We have ignited an R&D acceleration initiative to catalyze this change. In this, we are sharpening the vision, coalescing the partners, marshaling the funding and resources in order to establish these ecosystems as a viable, accountable, and sustainable alternative design for public education. In this work, we are expanding our public presence to reach new audiences, partners, and inventors—those in K-12 education and well beyond. Likewise, we are setting out to dramatically expand our funding pool to not only support our own work but also to fuel the learner-centered education field writ-large.

As we embark on this significant expansion of our portfolio and impact, we are seeking a Chief Impact Officer who will play a central external and internal role in fueling the growth and dynamism of the organization.

About The Position

Education Reimagined is seeking a committed leader to join our executive team as Chief Impact Officer. A new role for the organization, this position will lead external partnerships and fundraising for the organization during an exciting chapter of growth.

This role is designed for a collaborative, entrepreneurial leader who is skilled in building partnerships with a diverse set of organizations and individuals and shares a commitment to transforming the public education system to equitably and powerfully serve each child in the United States.

Reporting to the CEO, the Chief Impact Officer will be responsible for overall strategic direction, leadership, execution, and management of Education Reimagined’s development and fundraising strategies, with accountability for setting and executing against annual and multi-year revenue targets. This role will also serve as a frontline spokesperson and fundraiser—exploring, building, and maintaining relationships with key stakeholders to generate revenue and strategic partnerships to accelerate Education Reimagined’s impact. The organization’s projected annual budgets for 2024-2026 are $5.5-7M, with the goal of raising $30M by 2026 to fuel long-term organizational sustainability.

The Chief Impact Officer will be a key member of a four-person executive team and will contribute significantly to organizational strategy and external relations. They will oversee the growing development team, which currently includes a Director of Development and a consulting firm, and has room to grow, pending need and resources; and will partner with the Board of Directors and Development Committee.

Education Reimagined’s main office is located in Washington, DC; however, candidates do not need to be based in the DMV area. If this person is not DC-based, they should expect to travel to Education Reimagined’s main office in Washington, DC for 3–4 annual trips. Moreover, this position will require travel to varied conferences, events, and fundraising meetings across the country, likely 1-2 times monthly.

Key Responsibilities

Design and lead multi-year fundraising strategies that drive growth and sustainability and enable the organization to 1) raise $30M cumulatively by 2026, 2) steward and increase support from existing institutional and individual supporters, and 3) position the organization to bring in new institutional and individual supporters. This work will build upon the strong development backbone the organization has built and fundraising success to date.
Serve as the lead Education Reimagined spokesperson and represent the organization’s mission, priorities, and impacts to key, diverse audiences at events, on stages, and in the press.
Contribute to Education Reimagined’s strategy development, organizational planning, and execution.
Lead the development of strategic funding partnerships, including generating partnership concepts and components; discovering alignment between investor commitments and the organization’s priorities; overseeing the development of compelling proposals; and collaborating with the Chief Innovation Officer to ensure the execution of grant deliverables.
Build and oversee a development team, creating the conditions for the team’s leadership, ingenuity, and talents to shine in service of reaching organizational fundraising goals.
Identify, cultivate, and close prospective donors, with an eye towards securing high-value, strategically aligned grants/partnerships.
Engage the Board, Executive Team, and broader staff to achieve fundraising targets, build upon existing relationships with major individual or institutional funders, and mobilize their involvement in Education Reimagined’s fundraising initiatives.

Qualifications

Fundraising & Relationship Cultivation

Proven ability to design and implement creative fundraising strategies and focus on the big picture and bold ambition, while simultaneously executing the day-to-day details of a fundraising plan with the support of the Director of Development.
Demonstrated competency in the creation of strong strategic partnerships with investors and donors, with proven ability to align funders’ interests and goals with Education Reimagined’s priorities.
Proven track record of cultivating and sustaining strong, productive relationships with high-value donors and strategic partners, including a commitment to personalized, relationship-centered methods.

External Relations

Strong public speaker and presenter, with experience engaging audiences across varied modalities in bold visions and strategies.
Strong written and verbal communication skills; demonstrated ability to tell a compelling story and communicate complex themes and ideas in an understandable and approachable manner.
Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively with individuals and groups across lived experiences.
Proven track record of success communicating and engaging policy leaders, philanthropic partners, thought leaders, and partners from diverse sectors.

Leadership and Management

Management skills and experience, including but not limited to short- and long-term planning, project management, cultivating and motivating a team, and organizational development.
Strong strategic, conceptual thinker who can drive effectively to a clear and concise synthesis of complex issues and make thoughtful and clear decisions in the face of ambiguity and complexity.
Proven ability to motivate, coach, and lead a team; set objectives, goals, benchmarks; and foster an environment of creativity, collaboration, and professional growth.

Mission Alignment & Industry Knowledge

Strong alignment with and commitment to the vision of a transformed, equitable public education system that supports each child—without exception—to discover who they are, their gifts, and how to contribute those gifts meaningfully to the world.
Interest in and understanding of the K-12 education space and its historic and current trends, including those related to philanthropic giving within it and the public policy landscape. Those with experience in or knowledge of adjacent industries or sectors, such as workforce, industry, technology, and youth development, encouraged to apply.
Excitement about and/or familiarity with the learner-centered education space and its intersections with youth development, workforce development, and early childhood sectors. Demonstrated experience in the learner-centered education space is preferred but not required.

Experience

10+ years of progressively senior leadership roles in dynamic, growth-minded organizations. Nonprofit experience is preferred but not required.
10+ years of professional experience, including direct experience in fundraising and a proven track record of securing institutional grants (general operating and project-based restricted grants) in the six to seven-figure range.
Experience with a diverse donor pool, including foundations, private sector donors/corporations, and high-net-worth individuals.
Proficiency with Salesforce and Google Suite. Experience with Basecamp, a plus.

Compensation

Salary will be based on experience, skills, and location, beginning at $175,000. Education Reimagined’s compensation package also includes medical, dental, and vision coverage; generous paid time off; 17–19 paid holidays per year; a 401(k) plan; and a flexible work environment.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Education Reimagined is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to maintaining and promoting a workforce that reflects diversity at all levels of the organization. We encourage applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, ethnicity, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, veteran status, marital status, disability (including mental disabilities, learning disabilities and history of disabilities), genetic information, record of arrest or conviction or any other basis prohibited by applicable federal, state, or local law.

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Chief Impact Officer, Education Reimagined