Sandy Hook Promise, Vice President of Strategic Programs and Delivery

ORGANIZATION

Sandy Hook Promise (SHP) is a national nonprofit organization with a mission to end school shootings and create a culture change that prevents violence and other harmful acts that hurt children. Through its life-saving, evidence-informed Know the Signs prevention programs, SHP educates and empowers youth and adults to recognize, intervene, and get help for individuals who may be socially isolated or at risk of hurting themselves or others. SHP is a moderate, bipartisan organization that supports sensible policy solutions that address the human side of gun violence and make schools safer.

SHP is led by several family members whose loved ones were killed in the tragic mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14, 2012. 

Commitment to Racial Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

SHP strives to ensure its culture and work environment reflect the values of race, diversity, equity, and inclusion (REDI) and is responsive to the views and issues of the diverse communities with which we live and work. SHP encourages individuals who have demonstrated a commitment to equity and inclusion to apply.

To learn more about Sandy Hook Promise, please visit https://www.sandyhookpromise.org/.

OPPORTUNITY

Under limited supervision of the Chief Program Officer, the VP of Strategic Programs and Delivery will be responsible for a developmentally progressive youth violence prevention program model from creation through implementation, which includes provision of coaching, training, and other capacity-building activities. This is a standout opportunity for a proven strategic and innovative leader with a strong command of educational pedagogy, risk reduction and health promotion, youth engagement, Culturally-Relevant Approaches, and Adult Learning Principles.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Key Responsibilities of the Vice President, Strategic Programs and Delivery include:

Portfolio Strategy Development & Execution

• Set direction for universal skill promotion and targeted program interventions. by refining, determining knowledge, skill, and topical gaps, and overseeing the implementation of a developmentally progressive violence prevention and resiliency program model for youth and adult programs based on the SHP Theory of Change.
• Develop a product strategy for the program portfolio that defines strategies and growth metrics for scaling specific programs and services on an annual basis. Communicate the product roadmap for organizational alignment with the VP, Business Development & Relationships, VP, Research, Evaluation & Quality Improvement, VP of Technology, and VP of Marketing to identify dependencies and shared accountabilities.
• Develop and oversee a student and adult train-the-trainer approach to support scalability based on the overarching program model, defining training objectives, skills, knowledge, and topics that best support core program concepts e.g., warning signs, trusted adults, peer-to-peer support, etc., and theory of change outcomes.
• Establish fidelity measures and indicators for curriculum and programs within the program model to evaluate program effectiveness and partner with the VP, Research, Evaluation & Quality Improvement to determine evaluation plans for all programs in the portfolio. Use evaluation findings to define core implementation models and program dosage. 
• Codify youth engagement strategies and translate them to youth leadership programs and youth-led national advisory boards. 
• In partnership with the State & Communities Partnership Team, support the design and implementation of place-based learning projects to expand reach and deepen impact. Use findings to lead the team in co-developing new resources with learning project partners and adapting existing programs in the portfolio. 
• In partnership with the VP, Business Development and Relationships, define and manage components of the relationship management lifecycle to include program launch, program onboarding, offboarding, and training and coaching.

Operations: Program & Training Design, Development and Implementation

• Conduct annual literature reviews to inform updates and adjust program design, development, and implementation strategies.
• Develop and oversee a multi-year program and training development plan and ongoing content update cadence based on the program model. 
• Establish a curriculum, content, and training development cadence with guidelines for updating existing content, developing new content, and sunsetting content based on partner feedback.
• Define and standardize curriculum and content development to include establishing templates for all curriculum, content, program, and training materials, establish internal review and sign-off processes, pilot plans, and dissemination processes. 
• Identify and manage external partnerships with national organizations and universities to build a pipeline of co-development, content curation, and thought leadership partners.

Operations: Departmental and Organizational Leadership

• Foster relationships with external stakeholders, including funders, national youth serving organizations, community organizations, K-12 school districts, and professional associations to advance programmatic goals.
• Develop internal processes that communicate the product strategy with Business Development, Partner Success, K-12 Education Marketing, and Technology teams and establish feedback loops with those teams so internal and external insights inform the program portfolio design and offerings.
• Develop evaluation plans for place-based learning projects in partnership with the VP of Research, Evaluation and Quality Improvement.
• Ensure evaluation findings are translated into actionable strategies and reports for internal and external stakeholders, to include program adaptations for diverse audiences. 
• Serve as a liaison between Programs, Development, and Finance Departments to align operational goals with funding models and programmatic pipelines.
• Partner with the VP of Engagement to define how the adult program portfolio supports the organizational engagement strategy, ensuring adult programming topics support the needs of the Promise Leader Program where applicable. 
• Conduct annual workforce, strategic, and operational planning processes, including budget development, key performance indicator (KPI) analysis, and reporting.

Operations: Educational Technology Strategy and Delivery

• Develop a multiyear strategy for educational technology platform implementation across all programs in the portfolio, ensuring alignment with organizational goals, adult and youth engagement needs.
• Define year over year user growth metrics based on organizational baselines towards an established growth of 11M annual users by 2028. 
• Identify and evaluate an educational technology platform, analyze associated cost models, and create a business case for adoption, focusing on scalability, ROI, and alignment with engagement objectives.
• Lead the pilot, rollout, and training for the platform, establishing protocols for operational fidelity, addressing challenges, and ensuring staff readiness through comprehensive training programs.
• Translate youth engagement strategies into the digital space by integrating gamification, personalization, and interactive learning, supported by data-driven enhancements to foster sustained engagement.
• Implement data-driven systems to monitor platform usage, assess effectiveness, and optimize functionality based on feedback and performance data for continuous improvement.

People Leadership

• Demonstrated experience in talent development and/or talent acquisition to acquire, retain, and develop highly effective and results-driven new and existing staff.
• Evidence of ability to anticipate challenges and problems before they occur, and quickly lead others in implementing a variety of effective and realistic solutions in a timely manner.
• Adaptive and relational; evidence of experience leading through influence and emotional intelligence.
• Cultivate a nurturing and inclusive environment where team members feel psychologically safe to share ideas, take risks, and grow professionally.
• Establish clear goals and accountability measures, providing ongoing coaching and development to ensure team members achieve their objectives while maintaining a supportive culture.
• Identify team growth opportunities aligned with business needs, ensuring that skill gaps are addressed and organizational objectives are supported.
• Strategically plan and implement team expansion or reorganization while balancing capacity constraints to maintain operational efficiency and effectiveness.

Requirements

To fulfill these responsibilities, the ideal Vice President, Strategic Programs, and Delivery candidate will bring:

• A Master's degree and/or applied experience in Developmental Psychology, Sociology, Public Health, Education, Organizational Change Management, Youth Development, Implementation Science, or a related field. 
• Minimum of 8-10 years of experience in child and youth development, instructional design, training, technical assistance, change management, and continuous quality improvement systems.
• Experience building and leading highly effective and results-driven teams.
• The ability to travel up to 20% of the time.
• Proven ability to understand and anticipate the relationship between future business trends and external education/youth development trends.
• Experience advising on developing credible, validated, and breakthrough strategies to advance organizational priorities. 
• An understanding of effective strategies for youth-centered learning and how those are applied in the design and development of program experiences. 
• Demonstrated understanding of how adults learn to lead youth experiences and mobilize other adults. 
• A strong command of national education trends, regularly benchmarking initiatives of peer organizations to ensure all programs, training, and initiatives are best-in-class in violence prevention.
• An exceptional ability to write, design, and advise on developing curriculum, training, and other program resources.
• Experience identifying new opportunities to strengthen existing strategies and leverage opportunities to advance the direction of work. 
• Ability to and comfort with taking calculated business risks, considering the future state of programs and initiatives.
• Demonstrated experience embedding equity into program design, delivery, and organizational culture.
• Deep understanding of K-12 education systems and the integration of prosocial behavior skills and practices and equity-focused programming.

Benefits

The starting salary for this position is $147,000 - $150,000 and offers a competitive benefits package, including:

• Unlimited PTO
• Flexible schedules
• Paid holidays
• Paid parental leave
• Health, dental and vision
• Employer paid life insurance and short and long-term disability
• 401K Match
• Professional development stipend
• Wellness and mental health support
• Employer Paid Employee Assistance Program

More details can be provided upon request.

TO APPLY

Please submit a resume online at https://apply.workable.com/j/A99A33C218/. For additional questions about this position or to speak with someone about your interest, please contact Mara Cooper at [email protected].

SHP is proud to be an equal-opportunity employer. We strive to be an employer of choice: where a diverse mix of talented people want to come and do their best work. All applicants will receive consideration for employment regardless of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic. We are focused on promoting diversity, multiculturalism, and inclusion and believe deeply in having a workforce comprised of people of all beliefs and backgrounds who seek to prevent gun violence and stop the tragic loss of life. Members of all under-represented groups are encouraged to apply.