UNCF Job Opening: Sr. Program Manager, Social Justice Program

The position is responsible for creating pathways for the most at-risk students to earn college degrees, become career ready, and lead the fight for social justice and equity.

Job Title: Sr. Program Manager, Social Justice Program
Location: Washington, DC

Job Description

The Sr. Program Manager of the Social Justice Program will deliver and follow through a work plan that advocates public policy innovation and changes to social justice programming that impacts the Second Chance Pell Program for incarcerated individuals, criminal justice reform, social justice issues, and breaking the cycle of incarceration.

The Sr. Program Manager is responsible for creating pathways for the most at-risk students to earn college degrees, become career ready, and lead the fight for social justice and equity. The position requires an evidenced leader with a strong Public Policy and Government Affairs background, analytical skills, sound judgment, and a strong work ethic to facilitate groundbreaking results and solutions to best uplift students and families impacted by incarceration and inform the ways in which UNCF serves as an advocate, on behalf of students and families, to Congress and policymakers.

Responsibilities and Duties

Develop, articulate, and implement a strategic vision for the program plan and timeline.
Active management of the day-to-day operations related to the development and successful execution of program component.
Continuously identify and implement strategies and upgrades that best support students who meet the criteria of the program.
Communicate priorities and policies to important stakeholders, including federal, state, and local policy makers.
Align activities with the program mission, cultivating positive client service relationships with donors, students, partner and member schools, faculty, Congress and UNCF leaders.
Oversee budget and UNCF deliverables for the multi-phased program rollout, soliciting input from and integrating the contributions of internal UNCF divisions: Scholarships and Programs, IT, Communications, the Office of the General Counsel, Development and Finance to inform program design and execution.
Manage the development and dissemination of all program materials.
Create program performance reports for UNCF leadership and donor, according to program specifications.
Critically manage and monitor the financial activity of the program, evaluating expenses and reconciling discrepancies, assuring accuracy in all aspects of the program budget, and coordinating all budget reporting with appropriate UNCF staff.

Requirements and Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree from a four-year college or university required; Master’s preferred. Requires at least 5-10 years of public policy, social justice or government affairs experience.

Other Skills and Abilities:

High degree of interpersonal and relational skill building in a fast-paced environment.
Team player who can collaborate and work effectively with diverse groups of people at all levels of the organization.
Exceptional attention to details.
Ability to handle a variety of stakeholders, manage multiple tasks simultaneously, and thrive in a complex environment with multiple priorities.
Ability to foster quality focus in others.

Supervisory Responsibilities

Carries out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with the organization’s policies, performance guidelines and applicable laws.

Language Skills

Strong written and oral communication skills with ability to be a persuasive, credible, and polished communicator; ability to read, analyze, and interpret general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations. Ability to develop and write reports, business correspondence, power point presentations and procedural guidelines. Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of managers, clients, customers, and the general public.

Mathematical Skills

Ability to calculate figures and amounts such as discounts, interest, commissions, proportions, and percentages. Ability to apply concepts of basic algebra and geometry. Ability to recognize inconsistencies in data patterns and resolve outliers. Skills in using software applications such as Microsoft Excel for data analysis and budgeting a plus.

Reasoning Ability

Ability to apply critical thinking skills to solve practical problems dealing with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists. Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form.