Senior Director of Program

DC Prep • Washington, DC

1d • Onsite

About The Position

The Senior Director of Program is responsible for ensuring the clarity, quality, and continuous improvement of DC Prep’s academic and student support program so that all students achieve strong academic and social-emotional outcomes. This role drives impact indirectly by developing the capability of DC Prep’s Program Directors and ensuring the organization maintains a clear and coherent vision for excellent teaching, learning, and student support. The Senior Director serves as both a coach of coaches and the holder of the program bar for the organization. The Senior Director of Program manages a team of Directors across academic content, social-emotional learning, and special populations. Through strong coaching and leadership, they ensure these leaders effectively support school leaders to strengthen instruction, improve systems, and drive measurable improvements in student outcomes across campuses. This is a senior leadership role within the organization. The Senior Director operates at a network-wide level and is responsible not only for the success of their team, but also for shaping the broader program strategy and ensuring strong results across schools. Success in this role requires the ability to lead through influence, manage complex cross-team work, and take ownership for outcomes that are delivered through multiple layers of leadership. As a senior leader, the Senior Director is expected to: Operate with a strong sense of ownership for student outcomes across the network Develop and lead other leaders, building the capacity of the Program Team to drive results Shape and refine DC Prep’s program model based on evidence, implementation feedback, and student needs Partner closely with other senior leaders to align strategy, execution, and organizational priorities Navigate complex organizational challenges while maintaining clarity, alignment, and forward progress The Senior Director of Program reports to the Chief Program Officer and collaborates closely with the Senior Director of Schools and other network leaders to ensure alignment between program design and school implementation.

Requirements

• Deep commitment to DC Prep’s mission, vision, and values
• Strong belief in the potential of all students and the importance of equitable educational outcomes
• Strategic Leadership: Ability to set a clear vision for the network’s program and translate it into actionable steps that drive results across schools and teams
• Data Analysis & Evidence-Based Decision Making: Comfortable analyzing student outcome data, program implementation data, and qualitative feedback to diagnose root causes, evaluate effectiveness, and guide program refinements
• Program & Organizational Strategy: Skilled at designing, implementing, and evolving multi-campus initiatives, ensuring fidelity and impact across academic, SEL, and Special Populations programming
• Leader Development & Coaching: Exceptional ability to coach Program Directors to become highly effective coaches of school leaders, driving measurable improvements in teacher practice and student outcomes
• Influence & Collaboration: Builds alignment across the Schools Team, Program Team, and other network leaders to ensure coherent execution of priorities
• Problem Solving & Judgment: Identifies and addresses systemic challenges, prioritizes initiatives for greatest student impact, and makes high-quality decisions in complex or ambiguous situations
• Communication & Alignment: Clearly communicates program expectations, vision, and results across stakeholders, and ensures clarity and accountability for all teams
• Equity Mindset: Uses data and observation to identify opportunity gaps and ensure program design and implementation advance equitable outcomes for all students
• Resilience & Adaptability: Maintains focus and calm under pressure, models growth mindset, and adjusts strategies as evidence and needs evolve
• Minimum of ten years of professional experience
• Significant leadership experience within K–12 education
• Demonstrated success managing and developing leaders to achieve measurable results
• Experience leading complex initiatives across teams or organizations
• Experience analyzing student outcome data and using it to inform strategy and improvement

Nice To Haves

• School leadership experience (such as a principal role) strongly preferred

Responsibilities

• Deliver exceptional student results—both academic and social-emotional—for ALL students
• Develop and Lead a High-Impact Program Team
• Drive Results Across Campuses Through Indirect Leadership
• Maintain the Program Bar for Teaching, Learning, and Student Support
• Lead Ongoing Program Improvement

Benefits

• Highly competitive salary
• Comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, vision, short- and long-term disability insurance; maternity, paternity, and adoption leave; and a 403b retirement plan

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed