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Description
Chief Executive Officer
Los Angeles Education Partnership
Los Angeles, CA
About Los Angeles Education Partnership (LAEP)
Founded in 1984, LAEP was the first nonprofit in Los Angeles to focus exclusively on educational equity and among those at the forefront of the educational transformation movement nationwide. Over the decades, LAEP’s cutting-edge efforts in smaller learning communities, pilot schools, interdisciplinary curriculum, career-themed instruction, inquiry-based teaching, and educator well-being became recognized best practices.
For four decades, LAEP has been at the forefront of creating equitable educational opportunities for all children – from diapers to diplomas. LAEP’s forward-thinking, innovative programming has set the standard around equity and inclusion to ensure that every child has the support they need to thrive. What sets LAEP apart is their ability to come alongside communities, as thought partners and collaborators, empowering them to drive transformation and liberation.
LAEP believes that the strongest supports for a child’s education already exist within the homes and communities they serve. LAEP focuses on building on these strengths and breaking down silos or obstacles through strategic planning, skill-building, and partnering directly with families, teachers, principals, and community-based organizations to ensure sustainable progress. Everything LAEP does is community-centered, trauma-informed, healing-focused, and culturally relevant.
LAEP Mission
Los Angeles Education Partnership (LAEP) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that advances educational equity. Together with families, schools, and the community, LAEP facilitates access to and opportunities for quality educational and wellness practices so that children thrive from diapers to diplomas.
Impact
In fiscal year 2021-2022, LAEP served more than 11,300 children and families through its Early Childhood, Transform Schools, and CORE programs. Among the children served, 92% were Latinx, 6% were African American, 18% were English Language Learners, 15% were students with disabilities, and 96% were socioeconomically disadvantaged.
LAEP achieves impact through three main program areas:
EARLY CHILDHOOD & FAMILY ENGAGEMENT
LAEP’s Early Childhood & Family Engagement programs build school readiness in children ages 0 to 5, their families, and neighboring schools. LAEP fosters catalytic change by working with families and leading community initiatives that improve early childhood systems and access to resources—all at no cost to families. LAEP is also addressing the shortage of qualified early childhood educators through a paid early childhood educator training and education program.
TRANSFORM SCHOOLS (K-12)
LAEP’s Transform Schools model uniquely emphasizes both integrated student supports as well as teaching and learning. Community Schools and Teaching & Learning service areas promote whole-school transformation across each of the Six Core Elements:
- High quality instruction
- Teacher leadership and collaboration
- College and career preparedness
- Parents as partners
- Youth empowerment
- Educational equity
CORE (CULTIVATING ORGANIZATIONAL RESILIENCE & EMPOWERMENT)
Building on LAEP’s expertise in employee wellbeing and shared leadership models, LAEP provides workshops and coaching to help high-stress work environments become trauma-responsive, resilient, and equitable—safe, respectful communities that promote well-being for all members of the workforce.
Learn more about Los Angeles Education Partnership at LAEP’s website: https://www.laep.org
The Opportunity
Los Angeles Education Partnership seeks a visionary, equity-minded, and collaborative leader to serve as its next Chief Executive Officer (CEO). This executive will provide overall leadership for a cutting-edge organization working at the intersection of practice and policy change, and the implementation of the newly adopted Strategic Plan.
As an ambassador of LAEP on the local and national stage, the CEO will have the opportunity to work at the forefront of educational equity and systems change for an organization that has been a pioneer and trusted leader in this space. This is an exciting opportunity to lead an organization on its journey from educational transformation to cultivating liberating ways of educating, learning, and interacting in individual communities that collectively shape how the whole education system operates.
The CEO will be responsible for LAEP’s consistent achievement of its mission, programmatic goals, administration, and financial objectives. Reporting to the Board of Directors, the CEO will have oversight for a staff of 100+ mission-driven and highly talented professionals at its headquarters in Los Angeles and an annual budget of approximately $16.5 million. The CEO will also serve as the primary spokesperson and relationship builder for LAEP with school district partners, community members, city, county, state, and federal agencies, funders, and other key partners.
The CEO will marshal the collective talents of the staff and Board to advance educational equity and will provide the vision and support to unleash their energy, talents, and expertise. The CEO will manage staff through department heads and have total human resources responsibilities for direct reports (organizing and directing the work activities of staff, performing performance evaluations, and making disciplinary recommendations).
As LAEP embarks on its journey of liberation, this is a unique opportunity for a culturally sensitive and equity-minded leader to drive the implementation of the strategic plan and position the organization for even greater impact.
Essential Duties & Responsibilities
The essential functions include, but are not limited to the following:
Organizational Leadership and Management
- Provide creative and interactive leadership – modeling the kind of collaborative, distributed leadership that is a hallmark of LAEP’s approach to working in schools and in communities.
- Effectively coach senior leaders in the distributed leadership model; ensure that staff competencies and the staffing mix align with the needs of the organization and its constituencies.
- Lead and motivate subordinates to advance employee engagement and develop a high performing managerial team.
- Analyze problematic situations and occurrences and provide solutions to ensure LAEP’s survival and growth.
- Enforce adherence to legal guidelines and in-house policies to maintain the organization’s legality and ethics.
- Provide inspired leadership company-wide.
- Develop the organization’s culture, overall company vision, and adhere to core values.
- Create an environment that promotes great performance and positive morale.
Program Excellence
- Be an ally and champion for our staff and communities, ensuring that LAEP’s programs are responsive to the needs of school and community partners and have strong outcomes.
- Identify and cultivate an expansive portfolio of strategic and community-based partnerships that further LAEP’s mission and financial sustainability.
Finance and Fundraising
- Provide strategic guidance and lead efforts in revenue generation through grants, earned income, fundraising events, and marketing of products and services.
- Manage the organization in a fiscally responsible manner within the Board-approved budget, ensuring that policies and systems that support financial control and effectiveness are in place and fully functioning.
Communications and Advocacy
- Serve as a credible and effective spokesperson, in person and in writing, to increase visibility for the organization and to advance a public policy agenda that supports the mission, vision, and work of LAEP.
- Ensure the organization is recognized by school and district leaders, partners, and influencers in the field for its leadership, particularly in designing and delivering early childhood and school transformation services.
Board Relations
- Secure the Board’s trust, confidence, and enthusiasm; regularly provide concise reports to the Board on the state of the organization.
- Work collaboratively with the Board, its committees, and individual members to fulfill the Board’s governance functions.
Other Duties
- Additional duties as necessary
Candidate Profile
The ideal candidate will bring strong executive leadership experience, including Board relations, in a progressive comparably sized organization that provides education-related services and supports in underserved urban neighborhoods. This leader will have a successful track record in securing public and private sector funding, ideally for educational programs. The CEO will bring experience managing organizations through periods of change that include development of new and expanded services; upgrades to operating infrastructure; and staff training, development, hiring, and retention.
Direct experience driving holistic school change and providing community-responsive early childhood programming, including home-based models; familiarity with community schools and teacher-led schools; familiarity with educational change theories (e.g., Michael Fullan, Cognitive Coaching, Adaptive Schools) is ideal. Advanced degree in education, business, public administration, or related field is preferred.
While no one candidate will possess every quality outlined for this position, a successful candidate will bring many of the following professional competencies and personal attributes:
Passion for Mission
The CEO will bring a passion for LAEP’s mission and a broad vision for education that encompasses early childhood education, K-12, and college access. Recognized as a leader in the education field, the CEO will have expertise grounded in equity and data, and a commitment to driving systems change from the ground up and in partnership with the communities that LAEP serves. Possessing the knowledge required to be credible on a local, regional, and national platform, they will also understand and be able to navigate the complex landscape of educational programs and systems in Los Angeles and the state of California. The CEO will approach the work with cultural humility, integrity, and respect for multiple perspectives. Lastly, the CEO will bring a learning mindset and will welcome opportunities for continuous learning on relevant topics.
Commitment to Equity & Liberation
The CEO will bring a deep commitment to equity in all of its forms and a track record of addressing systems of oppression and barriers to equity. This inclusive leader will bring an understanding of the principles of liberation and the ability to lead an organization to operationalize those principles into the fabric of the organization. A dedicated advocate for historically underserved communities, they will excel at developing and implementing equity strategies for all of LAEP’s programs. The CEO will lead from a place of cultural humility, able to work well and in collaboration with communities of color and a multitude of diverse key constituents including staff, Board members, school district partners, community partners, government representatives, and funders. This individual will be a person of unquestioned integrity and honesty.
Visionary and Collaborative Leadership
The CEO will be a visionary and collaborative leader, able to articulate a clear and compelling vision that inspires both internally and externally and drives impact through a model of partnership and collaboration. The CEO will bring an understanding of what it means to lead an organization in a complex landscape during a time of transformation and change, as well as how to leverage and build capacity and resources. This individual will bring a fresh energy and perspective to identify key strategies to respond to current and future organizational needs and challenges while honoring the hard work and key accomplishments of the past. This leader will bring the skills to balance between working on high-level strategic priorities and diving into tactical day-to-day issues.
This empathetic leader will embrace and bring to life the organizational values and commitment to equity and liberation, prioritizing employee wellness and a focus on building culture and community. Approachable and accessible to staff, the CEO will set clear expectations, delegate appropriately, actively listen and seek input, and empower staff to realize their full potential.
Organizational Development and Change Management Skills
The CEO will bring the organizational development skills to assess, identify, and build strong support systems and structures that enable cross-collaboration and transparent communication across the organization. This individual will possess good judgement and critical thinking skills, with the ability to make decisions and justify recommendations based on data as well as a holistic understanding of the needs of the organization. This leader will understand and implement best-in-class nonprofit management practices, ensuring that overall day-to-day operations are streamlined for organizational effectiveness and aligned with strategic goals. With exceptional change management skills and capabilities, this individual will invite participation and collaboration across all levels of the organization in leading key initiatives and will build a culture of trust, transparency, and accountability. The CEO will ensure that strategies are in place to promote the recruitment, professional development, and retention of a diverse staff.
Fundraising Expertise and Business Acumen
The CEO will bring excellent business and financial acumen to identify new revenue opportunities as well as ensure fiscal management and future sustainability. This individual will bring a track record of success in acquiring, building, and stewarding relationships with individual, foundation, and government funders. This executive will develop a strategic and comprehensive fundraising plan to create new and innovative approaches to diversifying revenue streams, while strengthening current development initiatives through thoughtful cultivation of donors.
Excellent Communication & Relationship Building Skills
The CEO will be an engaging and compelling spokesperson, able to elevate LAEP’s prominence as a thought leader in the field of educational equity. This diplomatic leader will be effective in clearly articulating the value proposition of LAEP to a diverse group of constituents with differing and sometimes competing priorities.
The CEO will have a high degree of emotional intelligence and ability to build bridges and sustain excellent relationships with existing and potential partners, government agencies, funders, community partners, staff, Board members, and other key constituents to further LAEP’s mission. An inclusive leader, the CEO will promote open and transparent dialogue internally and externally.
Compensation & Benefits
The starting annual base salary for this role is $190,000 – $230,000 with a competitive benefits package.
Contact
Koya Partners has been exclusively retained for this engagement. Express interest in this role by filling out our Talent Profile: https://apptrkr.com/4980849 or emailing the search team directly at LAEP_CEO@koyapartners.com. All inquiries and discussions are strictly confidential.
Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals living with disabilities. If you are a qualified individual living with a disability and need assistance expressing interest online, please email NonprofitSearchOps@divsearch.com. If you are selected for an interview, you will receive additional information regarding how to request an accommodation for the interview process.
Los Angeles Education Partnership provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws.
About Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group
Koya Partners, a Diversified Search Group company, is the nation’s premier search firm dedicated to mission-driven leadership. Since its founding in 2004, Koya has had an exclusive focus on mission-driven clients and was founded on the belief that the right leader can transform an organization and have a deep and measurable impact on our world. Koya works with nonprofits & NGOs, responsible businesses, and social enterprises in local communities and around the world.
Diversified Search Group is consistently recognized by Forbes on its top 10 list of “America’s Best Executive Recruiting Firms” and is an industry leader in recruiting transformational leaders for a changing world. The firm is deliberately different in its approach, with best-in-class teams who have decades of experience in cultivating inclusive leaders, understanding the dimensions of diversity, and building equitable teams.
Learn more about Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group via the firm's website: http://diversifiedsearchgroup.com/our-brands/koya-partners/