Director of STEM Networking and Partnerships

WestEd works with education and social service agencies to promote excellence, achieve equity and justice, and enhance outcomes for children, youth, and adults. We support clients to build the relationships, capacity, knowledge, and skills to be successful and achieve outcomes. Among other services, WestEd provides technical assistance and research and development services to the education field at the pre-K-20 levels, including work addressing educator effectiveness, STEM education, school improvement, data use in education, college and career readiness, educational equity, special education, school choice and formative and summative assessment.

Throughout WestEd’s over 50-year history the agency has maintained a strong commitment to staff diversity. Individuals of different ethnicities, races, abilities, gender identities, and sexual orientations, as well as from different cultural, linguistic, and socioeconomic backgrounds, work at all levels of the organization. We value the range of perspectives provided by this diverse workforce and the ways in which those perspectives enrich and inform our agency and the work we do.

SPECIAL NOTICE REGARDING THE WORK LOCATION OF THIS POSITION—Currently, all staff at WestEd are working from home until further notice. Although a remote option may have been listed as one location option for this position, the default location for all WestEd positions is in one of WestEd’s offices. However, candidates may submit a request to work from home.

All WestEd employees are required to provide proof of full COVID-19 vaccination. New employees will be required to provide proof of full vaccination prior to their start date. If you want to be considered for a medical or religious exemption, you will have an opportunity to provide appropriate documentation.

Brief Position Description

WestEd is seeking a Director of STEM Networking and Partnerships to support the development of strategic partnerships that advance our impact and address equity in STEM education. The Director will develop a network of schools that will collaborate with WestEd staff and STEM education product developers to increase access to evidence-based products, and professional learning to support the enhancement of STEM learning for priority students. The leaders, teachers, and students in the school network would serve as co developers of the products and services. The developers would use the network as a testbed for research and development. The schools and developers would engage in collaborative research practice partnerships and use cycles of continuous improvement to increase access and equity in STEM learning. The Director will also seek external funding to catalyze the development the partnerships and networks. A key focus of this work will be to create and implement innovative yet practical solutions that will help expand WestEd’s work into states, districts, and schools. The Director will be responsible for identifying major challenges or needs in the STEM field, seeking out relevant funding opportunities, and designing research-based solutions to address these high-leverage issues.

The ideal candidate will have deep knowledge of the national STEM education field, be recognized as a STEM education leader, have a proven track record managing complex initiatives that involve building partnerships and developing funding through proposal development and experience as a collaborative team member with the desire to build and expand a top-tier team to expand WestEd’s STEM footprint.

Responsibilities

The position has the following major responsibilities:

Strategic Communications

• Conduct outreach and networking to increase awareness of WestEd’s work and impact in the STEM field and contribute to project-specific communications, strategic dissemination, and national eminence (e.g., via digital avenues, peer-reviewed journal publications)
• Work with key STEM leaders at WestEd to increase the demand for strong science education especially in the early elementary grades

Strategic Partnerships

• Collaborate with key WestEd leaders to build a vision and plan for strategic partnerships with organizations, schools and philanthropy
• Identify schools and other organizations and groups for strategic partnerships with WestEd
• Provide input on policy at the state and local levels (e.g., adoption of standards, curriculum, assessments, and professional learning systems)

Business Development

• Act as a connector to national and state-specific projects that can lead to partnerships in STEM work
• Work with leaders across WestEd to identify new opportunities to embed STEM in other areas of work, such as school choice, school improvement, equity assistance, state education agency technical support, early learning, and workforce development
• Collaborate with Science & Engineering Content Area leaders to develop and implement their annual business plan
• Contribute to the development of strategic proposals such as proposals that expand the agency’s work with the National Assessment of Education Progress

Talent and Project Management

• Contribute to WestEd’s mission and commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiative, including through the establishment of partnerships, mentoring staff and recruiting staff candidates.
• Build strong, collaborative teams and provide growth-oriented feedback to staff
• Support the roll out of new projects in the Science & Engineering Content Area at WestEd, including supporting curriculum and the NGSS focused work

Desired Qualifications

• Recognized expert with over 10 years of experience and leadership in STEM education, with influential publications, presentations and memberships in STEM associations
• Strong relationships with the STEM education community and with philanthropy supporting STEM education
• Established track-record of strong networking and ability to establish partnerships
• Commitment to addressing gaps in STEM achievement among racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups
• Expertise in strategic communications to engage educators at all levels
• Experience overseeing and/or managing panels and other groups and committees
• Demonstrated ability to generate, pursue, and secure external funding from a variety of sources including foundations, states, districts, universities, and federal agencies.
• Excellent communicator and writer

Values

• Passionate about driving equity and excellence for all students
• Committed to excellence in research and technical assistance services
• A team player who values the mission to ensure access of STEM education to all
• An advocate who can translating evidence and research findings into practical insights for teachers, learners, and policymakers

Salary And Benefits

Salary for this role is competitive, set at a WestEd level J, and commensurate with experience. WestEd offers a very generous benefits package including medical, dental, and vision coverage, as well as Life, AD&D and Disability insurance. We also offer various retirement plan options and Flexible Spending Accounts for medical, childcare, and commuter expenses. WestEd offers generous paid holidays and paid time off (PTO), among other benefits.

Committed to the diversity of race, ethnicities, perspectives, and opportunities, WestEd offers a variety of social and professional learning communities, such as Employee Resources Groups, the Data Intelligence, Insights, and Innovation PLC, and the WestEd Parent Community, just to name a few. We hope you’ll consider joining us to increase access to the highest quality STEM learning for all students.