Reading Partners is changing the education landscape. We are a leader in working to solve the literacy crisis in our country by leveraging AmeriCorps members and community volunteers in under-resourced schools. Our diverse and expansive volunteer base provides one-on-one tutoring to students twice weekly. Our program is proven to help children master the reading fundamentals they need to unlock their potential as successful, happy, and confident readers in school and in life. The people at Reading Partners are our heartbeat and our greatest resource. We are all passionately rallied around our mission to help children become lifelong learners by empowering communities to provide individualized instruction that works. Join our stellar team leading the charge to deepen our impact and expand our national service.

The Reading Partners program is a proven, evidence-based national model leveraged to support students who have fallen behind in reading. A 2015 MDRC study concluded that Reading Partners has a positive and statistically significant impact on reading comprehension, sight-word reading, and reading fluency. The impact was equivalent to 1.5 to 2 months of additional growth in literacy in one year. At the heart of Reading Partners’s new strategic plan, we will focus on innovating to scale, building partnerships, and centering students through racial equity. Over the next three years, Reading Partners will expand our impact to reach tens of thousands of students annually through direct service and partnerships. Also, Reading Partners is the recent recipient of a $8 million grant from the Department of Education and an unsolicited $20 million gift from MacKenzie Scott. Watch this video to learn more about Reading Partners.

THE OPPORTUNITY

The National Community Engagement Associate (NCEA) is part of an energetic team working together to leverage community volunteers to achieve Reading Partners’ mission in the community. Reporting directly to the Director of National Community Engagement the NCEA’s main role is to create capacity and lead on the fundamental administrative duties for the department, lead on background check compliance management, and serve as a support to regional community engagement teams.

This is an exciting opportunity for someone who loves details and planning, has excellent customer service skills, and desires a successful career in nonprofit operations.

IDEAL CANDIDATE

The NCEA is an entry-level position. This individual adds and creates capacity for the National Community Engagement team and is committed to volunteerism and community engagement operations, specifically. This candidate will be largely internal and highly administrative.

RESPONSIBILITIES

The NCEA’s primary responsibilities include:

Administrative Duties (50%)

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  Ensure best-in-class customer service through the volunteer phone line and email inbox
• Support national and regional communications through maintenance of email listserv and maintenance of online systems storing resources and materials for community engagement network (Google Drive, Library)
• Manage the national community engagement calendar, including scheduling/logistics for national community engagement calls, nationally-led trainings, etc. Lead on scheduling and note-taking.
• Manage weekly Newsday announcements, as well as an annual appreciation/recognition calendar
• Support volunteer recruitment nationally through management of the online recruitment postings
• Enable regional best practice sharing through regular maintenance and updates to the Library, with a focus on national community engagement’s recruitment and engagement toolkits
• Support annual refresh and update of community engagement resources for regional teams and volunteers
• Conduct market research to help the team identify volunteer trends and best practices, nationwide

Data Entry, Management, and Analysis (30%)

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  Background check processing and compliance
• Ensure all necessary volunteers are checked in the national sex offender (NSOPW) database
• Manage daily processing of all necessary volunteers in the Live Scan and Sterling Volunteer databases
• Manage Live Scan expiration process and unsubscribing dropped out/inactive volunteers from the DOJ inbox
• Manage a Background Check Issues resource in order to ensure volunteers’ background checks are be processed and communicated expeditiously
• Serve as the main point person for all background check related questions. Communicate with the Reading Partners’ Sterling Volunteers representative and the DOJ, as needed, to support with background check related inquiries
• Contribute to strong data fidelity by supporting regional teams with data collection, entry, and auditing
• Support with contact merges and other Salesforce-specific projects
• Support tutor survey execution; create clear and effective ways to present information to stakeholders

National and Regional Team Support (20%)

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  Support National CEMs with Reading Partners AmeriCorps Orientation and Ongoing training
• Facilitate a select amount of RPAO trainings and ongoing trainings
• Join national CE-led calls and take notes
• Support annual campaign work (refer a friend, tutor for a day, commit to the next chapter, volunteer week, regional campaign support)
• Review and edit national CE resources
• Participate in a summer engagement series for volunteers
• Participate in an annual virtual CE retreat
• Provide additional hands-on regional support, as requested

PRIORITIES AND COMPETENCIES

A successful first year in this role for the new NCEA will include:

Relationship Development and Collaboration:

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  Ability to build strong relationships with regions and other national departments.
• Approach all work with a strong sense of customer service, equity, and a commitment to operational excellence.

Communication:

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  Ability to genuinely promote Reading Partners, our mission, and our REDI values, through a variety of strategies.
• Ability to execute details quickly and accurately and to communicate effectively to a wide group of stakeholders.
• Provide excellent, responsive customer service. Anticipate stakeholder needs.
• Be able to give and receive feedback and enter into difficult conversations with grace and ease.

Project Management:

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  Ability to take personal initiative and execute on key priorities.
• See the bigger picture and also drill down to smaller details to connect the dots.
• Strong organization and prioritization skills.
• Commitment to detail and thoroughness.
• Anticipate challenges and/or questions, and proactively execute solutions.
• Be able to make sound and thoughtful decisions that consider all stakeholders.

QUALIFICATIONS

Our ideal NCEA candidate will be/will possess the following qualifications:

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  Demonstrated commitment to Reading Partner’s mission and core values. Deep commitment to the mission and vision of Reading Partners; deep commitment to race, equity, diversity, and inclusion (REDI)
• Culturally responsive and self-reflective individual who understands the effects of race, class, ethnicity, income, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, and other issues of difference in society and is able to have direct conversations about them
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience desired
• Have 1+ years of experience in customer service, marketing, client management, community organizing or similar field
• History of working with and/or serving with AmeriCorps, Peace Corps, or other national service program
• Are flexible, adaptive, organized, and want to work on a high-performing, fast-paced team
• Have a proven track record of exceptional judgment and handling confidential and sensitive information with discretion and care
• Possess strong interpersonal and communication skills and can communicate easily with a variety of people
• Have database management experience and high level of comfort with Microsoft Office, Google Apps, and SalesForce
• Wisdom, curiosity, empathy, and high emotional intelligence
• Adept at conflict management and calm in a crisis
• Can prove eligibility to work in the U.S. legally
• COVID-19 vaccination is required unless a medical or religious accommodation is requested and approved. Please review our Vaccination Policy

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

This position offers a competitive salary range of $50,000 - $55,024 annually and robust benefits. Our benefits include medical, dental, vision, disability, life insurance, flex spending accounts, generous paid time off, commuter benefits, 403(b) option, and Employee Assistance Program (EAP). More details can be provided upon request.