Use your organizational and administrative skills to help impact our work and effectively support the Bellwether team!

Bellwether is looking for an Executive Assistant to join our team! This role is ideal for someone with a keen attention to detail who enjoys supporting high-functioning leaders, solving logistical challenges, and collaborating with teammates. Our work is national in scope, so our flexible working style allows our professionals to work where they have built their lives. This means Bellwether can hire the best person for each role, regardless of geography, within the United States. We also offer flexible work options if an employee lives near our coworking office space in Washington, D.C., and is interested in a hybrid work model. Up to approximately 10% national travel may be required. 

About Bellwether

We are a national nonprofit whose goal is to transform education in order to ensure systemically marginalized young people achieve outcomes that lead to fulfilling lives and flourishing communities. We work hand in hand with education leaders and organizations to accelerate their impact, inform and influence policy and program design, and share what we learn along the way.

Our Core team ensures that Bellwether is a sustainable, inclusive organization where staff members are supported to do their best and most impactful work.

Our External Relations team develops and implements strategies for Bellwether fundraising and communications and leads Bellwether’s external relations work.

Our Policy and Evaluation practice conducts analyses that inform leaders, organizations, and the broader field on ways to improve their work for America’s underserved students. We produce quantitative and qualitative analyses of contemporary education issues, conduct traditional and innovative evaluations, and generate new ideas and solutions for the sector. We offer recommendations to improve outcomes for underserved youth across the pre-K, K-12, and postsecondary landscape that are informed by rigorous analytical methods; our extensive understanding of the local, state, and federal policy landscape; and our experience working with a wide range of educational and early childhood systems, leaders, and practitioners.

Our Strategic Advising practice is deeply experienced in supporting educational organizations — districts, states, charters, nonprofits, and foundations — to develop ambitious but achievable plans to increase their impact on underserved students. We advise leaders and organizations on their most pressing strategic and operational issues. Our work includes supporting entrepreneurs through business plan development, partnering with established organizations on growth and performance improvement, and assessing new opportunities for impact as the field evolves. We develop highly actionable plans that leadership teams own and run with.

About the Position

Executive Assistants sit on Bellwether’s Core team and work across Bellwether supporting assigned leaders on our Policy & Evaluation and Strategic Advising teams. Under the direction of the Senior Executive Assistant & Administrative Manager, Executive Assistants will support best practices related to scheduling, travel planning, and administrative support. 

The Executive Assistant’s primary responsibilities and duties will be to:

• Own and drive calendar management for complex internal, client-based, and project-based scheduling.
• Be a proactive thought partner for up to four Bellwether senior team members with a focus on managing team members’ time in a fast-paced, high-volume, client services-oriented environment.
• Arrange extensive domestic travel for these team members.
• Prepare, reconcile, and submit expense reports for these team members every month.
• Plan logistics for meetings or convenings as they relate to client projects.
• Regularly add and update contact information in Salesforce.
• Provide other ad hoc assistance to the team members you support, to other Core Team members, and to the Administrative Manager and Director of HR Operations, as needed.

Qualifications

Bellwether is a good fit for professionals who possess strong personal drive and motivation; who demonstrate exemplary professional behavior and values; and who are resourceful, responsible, tenacious, independent, and self-confident.  

Excited? We are too. You should apply if you have:

• A passion for and commitment to transforming education to ensure systemically marginalized young people achieve outcomes that lead to fulfilling lives and flourishing communities in the United States.
• An understanding of and commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion as well as viewpoint diversity. 
• At least four years’ professional administrative experience supporting two or more people while remaining organized and maintaining a high level of attention to detail.
• Professional administrative experience supporting multiple people while remaining organized and maintaining their attention to detail.
• Excellent problem-solving skills.
• Ability to multitask while working on competing priorities. 
• A highly self-motivated work style and willingness to proactively take on projects.
• A track record as an outcome-driven self-starter. 
• Flexibility and the ability to deal well with ambiguity and the fast-paced nature of a rapidly expanding organization.
• Strong communication skills, both verbal and written.
• Comprehensive computer skills including calendaring, word processing, and using spreadsheet and database software.
• Well-rounded interpersonal skills with the capacity to work effectively in a team environment.
• Strong ethics and personal integrity. 
• A professional attitude and client-service orientation.

Compensation

The base salary range for this role for incoming team members is $62,475-$70,000 annually. While the final offer amount will be determined by multiple factors — including previous experience and content knowledge — and may vary from the listed range, Bellwether is committed to transparency and all offers are aligned with our compensation philosophy.

Bellwether provides an attractive benefits package that includes a performance bonus based on individual and organizational success, health care coverage, and a 401(k) plan with an employer-matching contribution policy.

To Apply

Use your application (a custom letter of interest and a current résumé) to show us how you’ve got the skills we’ve listed or why the skills you have are the ones we actually need. We’ll review applications as we receive them until the position is filled. Note: Applicants must be authorized to work for ANY employer in the United States. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time. 

Bellwether is committed to building a team that reflects the varied backgrounds and experiences of the students we seek to serve. It is important to us that you use your application materials to clearly surface the ways in which your background and experiences align with Bellwether’s core values, including our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion and viewpoint diversity.

Bellwether is committed to providing equal opportunities. It is our policy to ensure that all individuals with whom we are in contact are not discriminated against on the basis of age, race, ethnicity, color, disability, gender identity, gender expression, political viewpoint, marital status, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status.

Use your expertise in storytelling, ghostwriting, marketing, and message development to help Bellwether’s experts share the impact of our work. 

Bellwether is looking for a Content Writer to join our External Relations (XR) team and work cross-functionally with Bellwether’s Strategic Advising (SA) practice area as well as its Policy and Evaluation (PE) practice area to write materials for a variety of external audiences and clients with brand fidelity. 

We are a remote-first team and our work is national in scope, which means this role can be based anywhere in the United States. This enables us to hire the best person for the role, regardless of geography. We also offer a coworking space in Washington, D.C., for employees interested in a hybrid work arrangement. Travel up to approximately 10-15% may be required for this role. 

About Bellwether

We are a national nonprofit that exists to transform education to ensure systemically marginalized young people achieve outcomes that lead to fulfilling lives and flourishing communities. We work hand in hand with a diverse range of education organizations to accelerate their impact, inform and influence policy and program design, and share what we learn along the way. 

Our External Relations team leads development and communications efforts and the production of field-facing analyses that resonate with policymakers, donors, advocacy organizations, school leaders, and families.

Responsibilities

The Content Writer will deepen Bellwether’s impact by sharing results and lessons from our consulting work with external audiences, supporting our team members in publishing more commentary on timely issues for the education sector, and generally expanding the number and kinds of resources that Bellwether shares with the field. The Content Writer does this by embedding into project teams, working closely with team members to ghostwrite opinion pieces, and identifying and executing new ways to share stories and lessons from our consulting work.

The Content Writer will work closely with team members on select projects — sometimes reviewing message development and refining materials drafted by teams, often leading the writing of materials. Occasionally, the person in this role will project manage the design and production of these materials.

This role will report to the Editorial Director on the XR team and will: 

• Work closely with project leads and managers in SA and PE to outline and draft materials for external audiences (e.g., marketing materials, op-eds).
• Support multiple projects at once with an attention to detail and a demonstrated ability to manage and meet deadlines.
• Embed with select teams early in the development of a project to conceptualize key messages and formats for external materials.
• Occasionally project manage aspects of deliverable production timelines and milestones with SA and PE teams.
• Routinely collaborate with the Editorial Director and, on occasion, the Design and Visual Senior Associate on publication and marketing collateral.
• Work with select project teams to lead the writing of key materials for clients (e.g., high-priority proposals for new work, presentations, memos, and other deliverables).

Qualifications

Bellwether is a good fit for an ambitious, mission-driven professional with a strong personal drive and a knack for collaboration. The Content Writer should be eager to build trust, rapport, and camaraderie with colleagues. A strong candidate will have the following qualities:

• Demonstrated ability to write for a range of audiences, issues, and types of materials.
• Strong professionalism and alignment with Bellwether’s mission and diversity, equity, and inclusion values.
• Be a self-starter who is deadline-driven and comfortable with ambiguity.
• Extensive experience with time management as well as interpersonal, written, and communication skills (people and projects; internal and external communications; change management).
• Be resourceful, responsible, tenacious, independent, creative, team-oriented, and self-confident.

Skills

• Excellent writing skills and storytelling instincts, with an ability to synthesize complex information and industry jargon into clear and crisp copy.
• Experience writing in adherence to brand standards and/or within the Associated Press Stylebook guidelines.
• Experience working on tight deadlines as a journalist or in a professional association or agency-based writing role is strongly encouraged.
• Familiarity with writing for different voices on a range of topics.
• Knowledge of best practices in communications and XR.
• Strong interpersonal skills building rapport and trust with colleagues; demonstrated ability to work with fidelity to Bellwether’s Core Values, including its commitment to viewpoint diversity.
• Experience in the education and/or nonprofit sectors is a plus (e.g., teaching, tutoring, volunteering, or working in a central administrative office environment).

Compensation

The base salary for this role for an incoming team member is $75,600-$82,163 annually. While the final offer amount will be determined by multiple factors — including previous experience and content knowledge — and may vary from the listed range, Bellwether is committed to transparency, and all offers are aligned with our compensation philosophy. 

Bellwether provides an attractive benefits package that includes a performance bonus based on individual and organizational success, health care coverage, and a 401(k) plan with an employer-matching contribution policy. 

To Apply

Use your application materials (a custom letter of interest, a current resume, two brief writing samples of up to 1,000 words, and a portfolio of previous work if relevant) to show us how you have the skills we listed or why the skills you have are the ones we need. We will review applications as we receive them until the position is filled. Note: Applicants must be authorized to work for ANY employer in the United States. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time. 

Bellwether is committed to building a team that reflects the varied backgrounds and experiences of the students we seek to serve. It is important to us that you use your application materials to clearly highlight ways in which your background and experiences align with Bellwether’s core values, including our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. 

Bellwether is committed to providing equal opportunities. It is our policy to ensure that all individuals with whom we are in contact are not discriminated against on the basis of age, race, ethnicity, color, disability, gender identity, gender expression, political viewpoint, marital status, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran’s status. Further, as described above, Bellwether is committed to building a diverse team and strongly encourages individuals from all backgrounds to apply. 

We are seeking a Contracts Manager to support the financial and administrative processes that enable our teams to help drive impact for students. 

We invite you to join us and use your knowledge of nonprofit contracts and grants to support us in developing a modernized financial infrastructure that is aligned with Bellwether’s core values and supports the organization’s continued growth and impact. 

Role Introduction and Team Explanation 

The Contracts Manager will be a member of the Core team and support the organization-wide client and vendor management process as well as have other general administrative responsibilities. The Core team includes finance, operations, and human resources, and its purpose is to support program teams in driving impact for students. 

We are a remote-first organization and our work is national in scope, which means this role can be based anywhere in the United States. This enables us to hire the best person for the role, regardless of geography. We also offer a co-working space in Washington, D.C., for employees interested in a hybrid work arrangement. Up to approximately 15% travel may be required for this role.

About Bellwether

We are a national nonprofit that exists to transform education to ensure systemically marginalized young people achieve outcomes that lead to fulfilling lives and flourishing communities. We work hand in hand with education leaders and organizations to accelerate their impact, inform and influence policy and program design, and share what we learn along the way.

Our Core team ensures that Bellwether is a sustainable, inclusive organization where staff members are supported to do their best and most impactful work.

Our External Relations team develops and implements strategies for Bellwether’s fundraising and communications and leads Bellwether’s external relations work.

Our Policy and Evaluation practice conducts analyses that inform leaders, organizations, and the broader field on ways to improve their work for America’s underserved students. We produce quantitative and qualitative analyses of contemporary education issues, conduct traditional and innovative evaluations, and generate new ideas and solutions for the sector. We offer recommendations to improve outcomes for underserved youth across the P-20 landscape that are informed by rigorous analytical methods; an extensive understanding of the local, state, and federal policy landscape; and experience working with a wide range of educational and early childhood systems, leaders, and practitioners.

Our Strategic Advising practice is deeply experienced in supporting educational organizations — districts, states, charters, nonprofits, and foundations — to develop ambitious but achievable plans to increase their impact for underserved students. We advise leaders and organizations on their most pressing strategic and operational issues. Our work ranges from supporting entrepreneurs in business plan development to partnering with established organizations on growth and performance improvement to assessing new opportunities for impact as the field evolves. We develop highly actionable plans that leadership teams own and run with. 

About the Position 

Bellwether has an opening for a Contracts Manager. The person in this exciting position will be a member of our Finance team and will be responsible for ensuring the seamless execution of contracts and grants with a wide variety of clients and funders. These are critical facets of our financial infrastructure that enable us to sustainably manage our growth and financial obligations in support of accelerating impact on behalf of young people. The Contracts Manager will report to the Director of Finance.

In that context, the Contracts Manager’sprimary responsibilities and duties will be to:

• Own the contract management process, from executing contracts with clients and funders at the beginning of an engagement to closing out the process when the engagement is complete.
• Draft, evaluate, negotiate, and approve and/or execute various contracts for a range of transactions related, but not limited, to fee-for-service and grant-funded work in coordination with project leadership.
• Consult external legal counsel when necessary to address contract issues.
• Maintain an accurate, up-to-date system to track invoicing for fee-for-service work and receipt of grant funds.
• Track and manage grant budgets and drawdowns in coordination with project leadership. 
• Meet weekly with the Bookkeeper and Director of Finance to facilitate client invoicing and monitor and follow up on outstanding contracts.
• Keep leaders informed with detailed and accurate updates on the contract and payment status of fee-for-service and grant-funded work.
• Maintain correspondence, documentation, and filing standards for all contracts.
• Support the development and maintenance of clear, transparent, efficient, and effective internal best practices around grant and fee-for-service contract management. 
• Support the Director of Finance in all aspects of fiscal sponsorship, including orienting sponsored individuals or entities to Bellwether systems, policies, and procedures.
• Support the Director of Finance in designing and executing financial systems and processes that will allow the organization to grow and scale.
• Develop and maintain documentation of the contract management and finance processes.
• Coordinate complex processes across teams and departments, ensuring efficiency and accuracy. 
• Carry out other duties as assigned.

Qualifications 

Excited? We are, too. You should apply if you have:

• A passion for and commitment to improving education and life outcomes for underserved young people in the United States.
• An understanding of and commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Three to five years of relevant experience, e.g., contract and/or grant budget management (legal, accounting, or nonprofit experience preferred).
• Proven knowledge and a deep understanding of contracts, contract governance, contractual language, and the contract lifecycle. 
• Proven knowledge and a deep understanding of grant management and grant accounting.
• The ability to work on many projects simultaneously and to manage up and across an organization.
• Critical thinking skills and the ability to research and understand legal and financial implications.
• A well-rounded interpersonal skill set with the capacity to collaborate with many diverse stakeholders within the organization, work effectively and collaboratively in a team environment, and facilitate joint problem-solving with the team. 
• A highly self-motivated work style and the willingness to proactively take on roles within project teams and the organization. 
• The ability to give and receive feedback thoughtfully, and experience doing so. 

Compensation

The base salary range for this role for incoming team members is $72,375 to $78,763 annually. While the final offer amount will be determined by multiple factors — including previous experience and content knowledge — and may vary from the listed range, Bellwether is committed to transparency, and all offers are aligned with our compensation philosophy.

Bellwether provides an attractive benefits package that includes a performance bonus based on individual and organizational success, health care coverage, and a 401(k) plan with an employer-matching contribution policy.

To Apply

Use your application materials (a custom letter of interest and a current résumé) to show us how you have the skills we listed or why the skills you have are the ones we need. We will review applications as we receive them until the position is filled. Note:Applicants must be authorized to work for ANY employer in the United States. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time.

Bellwether is committed to building a team that reflects the varied backgrounds and experiences of the students we seek to serve. It is important to us that you use your application materials to clearly surface ways in which your background and experiences align with Bellwether’s core values, including our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.

Bellwether is committed to providing equal opportunities. It is our policy to ensure that all individuals with whom we are in contact are not discriminated against on the basis of age, race, ethnicity, color, disability, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran’s status. 

Bring your passion for education and equity, as well as your curiosity about policy and program evaluation, to a professional summer experience that will hone your skills and help you take the next step in your career.

We are seeking Summer Intern(s) to join our Policy and Evaluation team for the summer of 2024. Bellwether’s Policy and Evaluation team provides skill- and knowledge-building opportunities to a select group of students and professionals developing their careers in education policy and program evaluation. The location of this role is flexible, enabling us to hire the best person for the role, regardless of geography.

About Bellwether 

Bellwether is a national nonprofit that exists to transform education to ensure systemically marginalized young people achieve outcomes that lead to fulfilling lives and flourishing communities. We work hand in hand with education leaders and organizations to accelerate their impact, inform and influence policy and program design, and share what we learn along the way.

Our Policy and Evaluation team conducts analyses that inform leaders, organizations, and the broader field on ways to improve their work for America’s underserved students. We produce quantitative and qualitative analyses of contemporary education issues, conduct traditional and innovative evaluations, and generate new ideas and solutions for the sector. We offer recommendations to improve outcomes for underserved youth across the pre-K, K-12, and post-secondary landscape that are informed by rigorous analytical methods; our extensive understanding of the local, state, and federal policy landscape; and our experience working with a wide range of educational and early childhood systems, leaders, and practitioners.

About the Position

Over the course of a summer, interns on our team work on one to two substantive primary projects matched to their skills and interests. Interns provide both quantitative and qualitative research support to Bellwether staff — this might include writing memos, research summaries, briefings, and blog posts on a range of education topics; quantitative or qualitative data analysis; and contributing to client products, evaluation reports, or publications. 

Interns will work closely with the internship coordinators and project managers to develop individually tailored goals for their time on the Bellwether team. Interns will receive feedback and guidance to help them advance their professional goals during and beyond the internship. Interns also participate in internal and external meetings, and may attend policy forums, briefings, and other events.

Qualifications

Bellwether is a good fit for professionals who possess strong personal drive and motivation as well as demonstrate exemplary professional behavior and values, and who are resourceful, responsible, tenacious, independent, and self-confident. 

Excited? We are too. You should apply if you have:

• Familiarity with the challenges and disparities facing underserved students and pre-K, K-12, and post-secondary education in the United States;
• A commitment to Bellwether’s core values, including diversity, equity, and inclusion;
• A commitment to our work to address policies and practices that lead to inequitable outcomes for marginalized groups;  
• Ability to model a high degree of reflection and self-awareness, build trusted relationships across lines of difference, and seek out and respond to perspectives different from your own;
• Curiosity and willingness to learn more about key topics in education policy and/or program evaluation;
• Experience with research projects; 
• Demonstrated writing, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills;
• A record of academic accomplishment, including enrollment in or completion of an undergraduate degree;
• A self-motivated and independent work style, including time management skills, attention to detail, and willingness to ask questions as necessary; and
• Computer competencies, such as finding articles/databases on a specific topic, slide creation, Microsoft Excel, and/or word processing.

The following traits/skills are ideal, but not required:

• Current or previous enrollment in a degree program in education, public policy, or a related field, or an equivalent level of work/internship experience in education;
• Experience completing semi-independent research projects in an academic or professional setting; and
• For intern candidates interested in program evaluation: qualitative and/or quantitative analysis experience and familiarity with statistical methods.

Length of Internship and Hours Requirements

The Policy and Evaluation team only accepts applications for summer internships. This is a paid internship ($20 per hour) and typically begins in June and lasts for eight to 10 weeks, for no less than 25 and no more than 40 hours per week, depending on an intern’s availability and Bellwether’s needs. 

To Apply

Use your application (a custom letter of interest, a current résumé and 2 professional or academic references) to show us that you have the skills we’ve listed or why the skills you have are the ones we actually need. Applications are reviewed beginning in December 2023. We will review applications as we receive them until the position is filled. Note:Applicants must be authorized to work for ANY employer in the United States. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time.

Bellwether is committed to building a team that reflects the varied backgrounds and experiences of the students we seek to serve. It is important to us that you use your application materials to clearly surface ways in which your background and experiences align with Bellwether’s core values, including our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.

Bellwether is committed to providing equal opportunities. It is our policy to ensure that all individuals with whom we are in contact are not discriminated against on the basis of age, race, ethnicity, color, disability, gender identity, gender expression, political viewpoint, marital status, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran’s status. Further, as described above, Bellwether is committed to building a diverse team and strongly encourages individuals from all backgrounds to apply.

Use your leadership experience in public charter schools, problem-solving skills, and executive advising capability to ensure Texas charter schools grow with quality and deliver on their promises to students from all backgrounds! 

We are seeking an Academic and Program Strategy Specialist who will provide deep instructional knowledge, educational leadership, principles of strong school design, project management experience, strategic acumen, and coaching capacity. The work will include (a) guiding charter school applicants in designing and developing high-quality school models and charter applications, as well as (b) supporting executive teams in existing high-performing charter school organizations to build compelling, actionable strategic growth plans that accelerate growth and exceptional outcomes for all student groups. 

This is a one-year full-time position (ideal start date: February 2024), aligned to the Charter School Incubator (CSI) initiative, led by the Texas Education Agency (TEA). We are also excited to explore the opportunity for continued partnership beyond this initiative and/or a permanent full-time role on the APS team, needs permitting. Though our work is national in scope, and our flexible working style allows our professionals to work where they have built their lives, Texas residence is strongly preferred. This position will be expected to travel as needed, based on team, client, and candidate needs. 

About Bellwether and Strategic Advising

Bellwether is a national nonprofit that exists to transform education to ensure systemically marginalized young people achieve outcomes that lead to fulfilling lives and flourishing communities. Founded in 2010, we work hand in hand with education leaders and organizations to accelerate their impact, inform and influence policy and program design, and share what we learn along the way. For more, visit bellwether.org.

Our Strategic Advising team is deeply experienced in supporting education organizations — districts, states, charters, nonprofits, and foundations — to develop ambitious but achievable plans to increase their impact on underserved students. We develop highly actionable plans that leadership teams own and run with.

Our Academic and Program Strategy (APS) team, a subset of the broader Strategic Advising practice, is deeply experienced in supporting schools and network leaders — district, charter, and independent, pre-K through 12 — to develop actionable plans to close the gap between current student performance and actual potential. 

About the Charter Incubation Initiative 

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) Charter School Incubator (CSI) is a multiyear project that Bellwether is leading in partnership with TEA. The goal of the CSI is to grow the capacity of school leaders — and districts and networks — to deepen their impact through exceptional programming and operations and to extend their impact through strategic design, expansion, and/or replication as an in-district (Subchapter C) or open enrollment (Subchapter D) charter organization. The leaders’ work creates schools that will close learning gaps for students, expand choice options for families, and open new career opportunities for strong educators.

Through the program, school leaders: 

• Design their mission and vision, and their academic, school culture, and operational models
• Develop multi-year strategic plans that enable high-quality school outcomes through design, expansion, and replication — and, in doing so, prepare for a quality application to make this plan a reality
• Join an enduring learning community of participants across the state who collaborate and learn from one another
• Access best practices and examples from comparable high-performing district and charter schools and emerging networks across the country
• Access tools, templates, and frameworks to enhance data collection and decision-making
• Strengthen adaptive leadership skills

Responsibilities 

The Academic and Program Strategy Specialist (APSS) will join the team for their third cycle of the Texas Charter School Incubator. The APSS’ responsibility will be to bring leadership experience in a charter school or network, a nuanced understanding of relevant issues in Texas education, a keen strategic lens, and a team-oriented spirit. 

In this position, your responsibilities will be as follows: 

• (65%) For the experienced leaders cohort, lead and support the Bellwether team and external contractors who deliver the CSI programming to:
• Internalize the new charter school application requirements 
• Coach leaders to build impactful and cohesive school designs
• Build adaptive skills within leaders
• Support leaders through feedback and project management to submit strong applications that meet community demand for new school models
• Guide and advise leaders in thoughtful stakeholder engagement
• (35%) For the replicate and expand cohort, support existing charter school leaders in Texas to deepen their impact and grow their capacity by:
• Coaching them to address the highest opportunities within their academic programs
• Ensuring they have a plan to address the needs of all students as they expand
• Supporting them to think through the academic, program, talent, and network model in order to replicate effectively
• Collaborating with the rest of the Bellwether team to provide cohesive recommendations to clients and a high-quality cohort experience

Qualifications 

This partnership role with Bellwether is a good fit for professionals who possess strong personal drive and motivation, and who are resourceful, responsible, tenacious, strategic, and self-confident. Excited? We are too. You should apply if you have: 

• A clear passion and commitment to improving schools serving underserved students.
• Experience with the Texas charter landscape and open enrollment charter application process specifically.
• A strong record of student achievement in the following: at least seven years’ professional experience in a school or network/district-based setting, including at least two of teaching and three of school leadership experience. School network/district-level experience in Texas and coaching school leaders is strongly preferred.
• A clear vision of rigorous, high-impact instruction and assessment, as well as related academic program and leadership practices necessary to drive meaningful school improvement and/or network/district growth.
• Experience managing program implementation through teachers and school-based leaders.
• Experience planning and facilitating professional learning sessions for school and/or school network-based leaders.
• Experience leveraging project management tools and processes, research, and analytical problem-solving skills to drive extraordinary outcomes.  
• A well-rounded interpersonal skill set with the capacity to build strong senior client relationships, work effectively in a team environment, persuade leaders, and lead iterative processes that enable joint problem-solving and inclusive decision-making with clients and teams.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to tailor communications to the needs of various stakeholders.
• A track record as a proven coach and people developer.
• An ability to model a high degree of reflection and self-awareness, build trusted relationships across lines of difference and positional power, and seek out and respond to perspectives different from your own.
• A learning mindset and the ability to seek out and synthesize new information.
• A commitment to Bellwether’s core values, including diversity, equity, and inclusion and a variety of viewpoints.

This position runs the duration of the next CSI initiative, January to December 2024. At that time, we would be eager to consider a continued partnership throughout the fourth cohort of “Replicate and Expand,” or a permanent full-time role on the APS team, needs permitting.

Compensation 

The base salary range for this role for incoming team members is $160,000 to $175,000, with a bonus potential of $15,960 annually. While the final offer amount will be determined by multiple factors — including previous experience and content knowledge — and may vary from the listed range, Bellwether is committed to transparency, and all offers align with our compensation philosophy. 

Bellwether provides competitive compensation and an attractive benefits package that includes a performance bonus based on individual and firm success, health care coverage, and a 401(k) plan with an employer matching contribution policy. 

To Apply 

Applications or inquiries about the position should be directed to Chantavia Moore, Chief of Staff, via an online application. Use your application — a custom letter of interest, a current résumé, and three professional references — to show us how you’ve got the skills we’ve listed or why the skills you have are the ones we actually need. This role has a priority application deadline of January 12. While we prioritize applications received on or before that date, we will review applications as we receive them until the position is filled. Note:Applicants must be authorized to work for ANY employer in the United States. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time.

Bellwether is committed to building a team that reflects the varied backgrounds and experiences of the students we seek to serve. It is important to us that you use your application materials to clearly surface ways in which your background and experiences align with Bellwether’s core values, including our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion and viewpoint diversity.

Bellwether is committed to providing equal opportunities. It is our policy to ensure that all individuals with whom we are in contact are not discriminated against on the basis of age, race, ethnicity, color, disability, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, political ideology, or veteran’s status. Further, as described above, Bellwether is committed to building a diverse team and strongly encourages individuals from all backgrounds to apply.

Use your ability to develop innovative solutions to seemingly intractable problems, your executive advising skills, and your strong organizational leadership skillsto ensure that young people achieve outcomes that lead to fulfilling lives and flourishing communities. 

We are seeking a Partner, Strategic Advising to guide executive teams in building compelling and actionable strategies that accelerate equity and excellence. In addition to providing day-to-day management of Strategic Advising projects and teams, the Partner brings a “business owner” mindset to the organization and supports Bellwether’s growth and strategy.

We are a remote-first team, and our work is national in scope, which means this role can be based anywhere in the United States. This enables us to hire the best person for the role, regardless of geography. We also offer a flexible office if an employee lives near our physical co-working space in Washington, D.C., and is interested in a hybrid work model. Travel up to approximately 20% to 30% may be required. 

About Bellwether 

We are a national nonprofit that exists to transform education to ensure that systemically marginalized young people achieve outcomes that lead to fulfilling lives and flourishing communities. We work hand-in-hand with a diverse range of education organizations to accelerate their impact, inform and influence policy and program design, and share what we learn along the way.

Our Strategic Advising team supports education organizations — districts, states, charters, nonprofits, and foundations — in developing ambitious plans to increase their impact and solve their most critical strategic challenges. We develop highly actionable plans in partnership with the leadership teams who own and implement the plans.

Responsibilities

This role will include the following key responsibilities:

Client Engagement

• Build, sustain, and cultivate strong relationships with our clients in partnership with project team members.
• Serve as a trusted resource and advisor, helping our clients solve organizational or strategic challenges and build strong ownership of plans across client teams.
• Lead iterative processes that enable joint problem-solving and inclusive decision-making with clients and teams.
• Ensure that clients’ needs are met from the beginning to the end of each engagement, and intervene if needed to course-correct during a project.

Team Leadership

• Foster a culture that supports our core values, including our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion as well as viewpoint diversity. 
• Guide Bellwether teams to help clients achieve outstanding results through rigorous, practical, and tailored advice.
• Supervise, manage, and develop the Strategic Advising team’s leaders and managers to ensure strong functioning of project teams, including the coaching, professional development, and mentoring of strong, mission-aligned staff.

Client Development, Fundraising, and Network Cultivation

• Tell Bellwether’s story in compelling ways, describing who we are, what makes us unique, and why our work is impactful to organizations.
• Collaborate with Bellwether’s partners on client development efforts, eventually increasing self-directed business development.
• Initiate, cultivate, and extend strategic relationships, with an emphasis on developing new partnerships.
• Leverage and expand your personal network with senior executives, funders, and other leaders in the field.
• Represent Bellwether externally (as appropriate to your expertise), including but not limited to speaking at conferences, participating on panels, and writing articles and opinion pieces.

Senior Leadership

• Serve as a key member of the Bellwether partner team, supporting the development of our own high-impact business strategies and the implementation of these plans with a focus on exceptional quality.
• Guide the strategic direction of the Strategic Advising practice area, including participating in annual planning and goal setting, leading critical internal initiatives, and engaging in hiring and onboarding to build a diverse team.
• Serve as a steward of the organization’s culture and shared values.

Qualifications

Bellwether is a good fit for professionals who possess strong personal drive and motivation and are resourceful, responsible, tenacious, independent, and self-confident. 

In this role, you will bring the following skills with you: 

Strategic Problem Solver and Learner

• You enjoy developing innovative solutions to seemingly intractable problems.
• You have an empirical mind, and you like to roll up your sleeves and work hard to understand what the evidence and data are telling you about the current state of your clients’ work.
• You are a self-starter who likes to have several things going on at once. You are able to balance competing priorities.
• You are always reflecting on your work and your development as a leader, assessing your own strengths and growth areas and openly seeking feedback.
• You are a learner first, seeking to fully understand clients’ issues, seeking out new areas in the field, and keeping abreast of challenges that people are trying to solve. You’re constantly on a journey to expand your knowledge base.
• You demonstrate excellent execution and leadership skills, including acute attention to detail, and can balance overarching goals with detailed steps to achieve your objectives.

Extraordinary Influencer and Connector

• Connecting purposefully and intentionally with others in various ways is clearly a strength in your repertoire of skills as an executive and leader. You express yourself with clarity, respect, and awareness in conversations and interactions with others.
• You build trust and credibility through transparency and authenticity in your communication with staff and clients.
• You listen compassionately with an open mind — seeking to fully understand clients’ needs before recommending any direction forward.
• Cultivating relationships has been a focus for you at every stage of your leadership journey. You recognize the power and exponential nature of connections.

Inclusive Leader

• You model cultural fluency and sensitivity to establish a culture and mindset of growth to help meet the needs of diverse staff and clients.
• Either through personal experience or empathy, you solicit, elevate, understand, and value the perspectives of a wide variety of stakeholders.
• You seek out and build authentic relationships across lines of difference (race, gender, age, political viewpoint, socioeconomic background, LGBTQ status, etc.) through self-reflection, empathy, and a clear personal identity.
• You are confident addressing matters of equity, race, and bias in decision-making with clarity, confidence, openness, empathy, and a historical context.

Culture Keeper

• As a leader, your words and actions are consistent. You demonstrate trust in and respect for others no matter what. You understand deeply that trust must be earned.
• You keep confidences, accept responsibility, maintain transparency, and lead by example.
• You astutely assess team strengths and challenges and foster a working environment where all voices are valued, team members’ strengths are elevated, and team members can enjoy work while making a positive impact.
• You are known for your impeccable work ethic, accountability, and follow-through.

Excited? We are too. You should apply if you have:

• Experience with the challenges and disparities in PreK-postsecondary education and workforce readiness in the United States, especially with regard to students historically denied opportunities based on race, ethnicity, or income.
• A minimum of 15 years of professional experience, including senior leadership experience in an entrepreneurial, innovative environment. 
• A commitment to Bellwether’s core values, including diversity, equity, and inclusion as well as viewpoint diversity.
• A commitment to our work of addressing policies and practices that lead to inequitable outcomes for marginalized young people.
• A track record of problem solving, strategic planning, and experience in an executive leadership role (in business, education, philanthropy, or the nonprofit sector). Bonus points for advisory or client services experience.
• Experience translating recommendations into action and well-developed persuasion skills, and are comfortable working with others.
• A strong network of relationships with senior executives of education organizations, funders, and/or policymakers in the field of education reform. Bonus points for experience in business or client development.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to tailor communication to the needs of various stakeholders.
• The ability to model a high degree of reflection and self-awareness, build trusted relationships across lines of difference and positional power, and seek out and respond to perspectives different from your own.
• A highly self-motivated work style and a willingness to proactively take on a leadership role within project teams and the organization.
• A learning mindset and the ability to seek out and synthesize new information.

Compensation

The salary range for this role is $225,000 to $270,000 annually, with performance bonus potential of $35,000+ and the opportunity for compensation to increase over time commensurate with performance. While the final offer amount will be determined by multiple factors — including previous experience and content knowledge — and may vary from the stated range, Bellwether is committed to transparency, and all offers align with our compensation philosophy.

Bellwether provides competitive compensation and an attractive benefits package that includes a performance bonus based on individual and firm success, health care coverage, and a 401(k) plan with an employer matching contribution policy.

To Apply

Applications for or inquiries about the position should be directed to Rebecca Gifford Goldberg, Senior Partner and Strategic Advising Practice Leader, online.Use your application — a custom letter of interest and a current résumé — to show us you’ve got the skills we’ve listed or why the skills you have are the ones we actually need. This role has a priority application deadline of January 19, 2024. While we prioritize applications received on or before that date, we will review applications as we receive them until the position is filled. Note: Applicants must be authorized to work for ANY employer in the United States. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time.

Bellwether is committed to building a team that reflects the varied backgrounds and experiences of the students we seek to serve. It is important to us that you use your application materials to clearly highlight ways in which your background and experience align with Bellwether’s core values, including our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion as well as viewpoint diversity.

Bellwether is committed to providing equal opportunities. It is our policy to ensure that all individuals with whom we are in contact are not discriminated against based on age, race, ethnicity, color, disability, gender identity, gender expression, political viewpoint, marital status, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status. Further, as described above, Bellwether is committed to building a diverse team and strongly encourages individuals from all backgrounds to apply.

Use your knowledge of data and your communication skills to strengthen the impact of education organizations that are working to eliminate achievement gaps among students furthest from opportunity.

Bellwether is excited to launch the search for Summer Fellow(s) to join the Strategic Advising team in summer 2024. The ideal candidate(s) for this position will have success in a similar role requiring analytical thinking and problem-solving, bring a sophisticated understanding of relevant issues in education reform, and possess an entrepreneurial spirit. We are a remote-first organization and our work is national in scope, which means this role can be based anywhere in the United States. This enables us to hire the best person for the role, regardless of geography. We also offer a co-working space in Washington, D.C., for fellows interested in a hybrid work arrangement. Up to approximately 30% travel may be required for this role, including travel for in-person Kickstart Training and potentially 1-2 trips over the course of the fellowship, depending on the specific client.

About Bellwether 

Bellwether is a national nonprofit that exists to transform education to ensure systemically marginalized young people achieve outcomes that lead to fulfilling lives and flourishing communities. We work hand in hand with education leaders and organizations to accelerate their impact, inform and influence policy and program design, and share what we learn along the way.

Our Strategic Advising practice advises leaders and organizations on their most pressing strategic and operational issues. Our work ranges from supporting entrepreneurs through business plan development, to partnering with established organizations on growth and performance improvement, to assessing new opportunities for impact as the field evolves.

Responsibilities 

Summer Fellows work as members of small teams and take on leadership roles in our strategic advising work with clients. Summer Fellows play an important role within Bellwether teams on client engagements by identifying issues, forming hypotheses, designing and conducting analyses, building models, synthesizing conclusions into recommendations, developing work plans, and ultimately helping to implement change with our clients. Throughout an engagement, a Summer Fellow is directly involved in discussions and presentations with senior client leadership. Fellows will also have the opportunity to contribute to internal capability building. Throughout the fellowship, fellows will work closely with Bellwether Associate Partners, Senior Advisors, Senior Associate Partners, and Partners to execute projects.

Summer Fellows are managed by  Associate Partners and Senior Associate Partners within Bellwether who, in turn, guide their work and invest in their professional development. While the Summer Fellow will have exposure across Bellwether’s program areas to broaden his/her skills and perspectives, the majority of time will be allocated to supporting Strategic Advising.

In that context, the Summer Fellow’s primary responsibilities and duties will be to:

• Take on client strategic advising responsibilities, as described above;
• Partner with clients and senior Bellwether team members to develop high-impact business strategies and implementation plans in response to real-world, time-sensitive challenges brought forward by the client;
• Develop work plans and execute against these plans with independence and a high degree of ownership;
• Perform quantitative and qualitative analysis on core strategic issues for clients and synthesize insights;
• Identify key data sources and gather data through interviews and secondary research;
• Manage client interactions, including strong meeting preparation and follow-up;
• Serve as a thought partner, leveraging internal and external networks to engage in team problem-solving, share evolving business trends and best practices, and contribute to knowledge creation initiatives;
• Write and deliver presentations, strategic plans, and research briefs; and
• Generate creative, action-oriented insights and recommendations for both internal and external improvement.

Qualifications

Bellwether is a strong fit for professionals who possess strong personal drive and motivation; demonstrate exemplary professional behavior and values; and who are resourceful, responsible, tenacious, independent, and self-confident.

Excited? We are too. You should apply if you have:

• Familiarity with the challenges and disparities facing underserved students, PreK-20  education, and workforce through age 24 in the United States;
• A commitment to Bellwether’s core values, including diversity, equity, and inclusion;
• A commitment to our work to address policies and practices that lead to inequitable outcomes for systemically marginalized groups;  
• Ability to model a high degree of reflection and self-awareness, build trusted relationships across lines of difference, and seek out and respond to perspectives different from your own;
• At least three years’ professional experience in a role requiring strategic consulting, project management, research, and analytical problem-solving;
• A well-rounded interpersonal skill set with the capacity to build strong client relationships, work effectively in a team environment, and facilitate joint problem-solving with clients and internal teams;
• Excellent quantitative analytical skills (including a high degree of comfort with financial modeling and data analysis), creativity in problem-solving, and a keen business sense;
• Strong communication skills, both verbal and written;
• A highly self-motivated work style and willingness to proactively take on leadership roles within project teams and the firm;
• Maturity, flexibility, and comfort with working in a small organization;
• Currently enrolled as a student in a graduate program;
• A strong academic record, ideally in business; and
• Comfort with some travel.

Compensation

Summer Fellows will be paid $2,271 per week, before applicable taxes and other withholdings, for the duration of the 10-week fellowship.

To Apply

Use your application (a custom letter of interest and a current résumé) to show us how you've developed the skills we're looking for and examples of how you've applied them in a professional setting. This role has a priority application deadline of January 8, 2024. While we prioritize applications received on or before January 8, 2024, we will review applications as we receive them until the position is filled. Note:Applicants must be authorized to work for ANY employer in the United States. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time.

Bellwether is committed to building a team that reflects the varied backgrounds and experiences of the students we seek to serve. It is important to us that you use your application materials to clearly surface ways in which your background and experiences align with Bellwether’s core values, including our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.

Bellwether is committed to providing equal opportunities. It is our policy to ensure that all individuals with whom we are in contact are not discriminated against on the basis of age, race, ethnicity, color, disability, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran’s status. Further, as described above, Bellwether is committed to building a diverse team and strongly encourages individuals from all backgrounds to apply.