Chief Impact Officer

About Education Reimagined
Education Reimagined is a national nonprofit organization based in
Washington DC that harnesses the power of visionaries and
communities across the country to create and enact a new design for
the public education system that is centered around learners, not
schools. 

We recognize the obligation of public education to develop and
prepare future generations. Education must lead to
family-sustaining careers and fulfilling lives — so that all young
people are equipped to contribute productively to their
communities, economies, and democracy. The current public education
system was designed more than 100 years ago to meet a specific, now
outdated, need: to instill order and compliance, for predetermined
roles in an industrial society. This structure has perpetuated long
standing inequities, resulting in the marginalization of entire
communities. 

Since 2013, Education Reimagined has successfully furthered the
effort to build and advance the field of learner-centered
education. In seeking to enable learner-centered education as an
option for all young people in the United States, we have convened
and supported a community of practitioners who are successfully
engaging children with learning that nurtures their agency, taps
their interests and gifts, and offers experiences to explore and
apply concepts in the real world. 

Now the organization is laser-focused on advancing the creation of
a transformed public education system via the development of
community-based, learner-centered ecosystems. We have ignited an
R&D acceleration initiative to catalyze this change. In this,
we are sharpening the vision, coalescing the partners, marshaling
the funding and resources in order to establish these ecosystems as
a viable, accountable, and sustainable alternative design for
public education. In this work, we are expanding our public
presence to reach new audiences, partners, and inventors—those in
K-12 education and well beyond. Likewise, we are setting out to
dramatically expand our funding pool to not only support our own
work but also to fuel the learner-centered education field
writ-large. 

As we embark on this significant expansion of our portfolio and
impact, we are seeking a Chief Impact Officer who will play a
central external and internal role in fueling the growth and
dynamism of the organization. 
 
About the Position
Education Reimagined is seeking a committed leader to join our
executive team as Chief Impact Officer. A new role for the
organization, this position will lead external partnerships and
fundraising for the organization during an exciting chapter of
growth.

This role is designed for a collaborative, entrepreneurial leader
who is skilled in building partnerships with a diverse set of
organizations and individuals and shares a commitment to
transforming the public education system to equitably and
powerfully serve each child in the United States.

Reporting to the CEO, the Chief Impact Officer will be responsible
for overall strategic direction, leadership, execution, and
management of Education Reimagined’s development and fundraising
strategies, with accountability for setting and executing against
annual and multi-year revenue targets. This role will also serve as
a frontline spokesperson and fundraiser—exploring, building, and
maintaining relationships with key stakeholders to generate revenue
and strategic partnerships to accelerate Education Reimagined’s
impact. The organization’s projected annual budgets for 2024-2026
are $5.5-7M, with the goal of raising $30M by 2026 to fuel
long-term organizational sustainability.

The Chief Impact Officer will be a key member of a four-person
executive team and will contribute significantly to organizational
strategy and external relations. They will oversee the growing
development team, which currently includes a Director of
Development and a consulting firm, and has room to grow, pending
need and resources; and will partner with the Board of Directors
and Development Committee.

Education Reimagined’s main office is located in Washington, DC;
however, candidates do not need to be based in the DMV area. If
this person is not DC-based, they should expect to travel to
Education Reimagined’s main office in Washington, DC for 3–4 annual
trips. Moreover, this position will require travel to varied
conferences, events, and fundraising meetings across the country,
likely 1-2 times monthly.
 
Key Responsibilities

Design and lead multi-year fundraising strategies that drive
growth and sustainability and enable the organization to 1) raise
$30M cumulatively by 2026, 2) steward and increase support from
existing institutional and individual supporters, and 3) position
the organization to bring in new institutional and individual
supporters. This work will build upon the strong development
backbone the organization has built and fundraising success to
date.

Serve as the lead Education Reimagined spokesperson and
represent the organization’s mission, priorities, and impacts to
key, diverse audiences at events, on stages, and in the press.

Contribute to Education Reimagined’s strategy development,
organizational planning, and execution.

Lead the development of strategic funding partnerships,
including generating partnership concepts and components;
discovering alignment between investor commitments and the
organization’s priorities; overseeing the development of compelling
proposals; and collaborating with the Chief Innovation Officer to
ensure the execution of grant deliverables.

Build and oversee a development team, creating the conditions
for the team’s leadership, ingenuity, and talents to shine in
service of reaching organizational fundraising goals.

Identify, cultivate, and close prospective donors, with an eye
towards securing high-value, strategically aligned
grants/partnerships.

Engage the Board, Executive Team, and broader staff to achieve
fundraising targets, build upon existing relationships with major
individual or institutional funders, and mobilize their involvement
in Education Reimagined’s fundraising initiatives.

Qualifications

Fundraising & Relationship Cultivation

Proven ability to design and implement creative fundraising
strategies and focus on the big picture and bold ambition, while
simultaneously executing the day-to-day details of a fundraising
plan with the support of the Director of Development.

Demonstrated competency in the creation of strong strategic
partnerships with investors and donors, with proven ability to
align funders’ interests and goals with Education Reimagined’s
priorities.

Proven track record of cultivating and sustaining strong,
productive relationships with high-value donors and strategic
partners, including a commitment to personalized,
relationship-centered methods.

External Relations

Strong public speaker and presenter, with experience engaging
audiences across varied modalities in bold visions and
strategies.

Strong written and verbal communication skills; demonstrated
ability to tell a compelling story and communicate complex themes
and ideas in an understandable and approachable manner.

Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively with
individuals and groups across lived experiences.

Proven track record of success communicating and engaging
policy leaders, philanthropic partners, thought leaders, and
partners from diverse sectors.

Leadership and Management

Management skills and experience, including but not limited to
short- and long-term planning, project management, cultivating and
motivating a team, and organizational development.

Strong strategic, conceptual thinker who can drive effectively
to a clear and concise synthesis of complex issues and make
thoughtful and clear decisions in the face of ambiguity and
complexity.

Proven ability to motivate, coach, and lead a team; set
objectives, goals, benchmarks; and foster an environment of
creativity, collaboration, and professional growth.

Mission Alignment & Industry
Knowledge

Strong alignment with and commitment to the vision of a
transformed, equitable public education system that supports each
child—without exception—to discover who they are, their gifts, and
how to contribute those gifts meaningfully to the world.

Interest in and understanding of the K-12 education space and
its historic and current trends, including those related to
philanthropic giving within it and the public policy landscape.
Those with experience in or knowledge of adjacent industries or
sectors, such as workforce, industry, technology, and youth
development, encouraged to apply.

Excitement about and/or familiarity with the learner-centered
education space and its intersections with youth development,
workforce development, and early childhood sectors. Demonstrated
experience in the learner-centered education space is preferred but
not required.

Experience

10+ years of progressively senior leadership roles in dynamic,
growth-minded organizations. Nonprofit experience is preferred but
not required.

10+ years of professional experience, including direct
experience in fundraising and a proven track record of securing
institutional grants (general operating and project-based
restricted grants) in the six to seven-figure range.

Experience with a diverse donor pool, including foundations,
private sector donors/corporations, and high-net-worth
individuals.

Proficiency with Salesforce and Google Suite. Experience with
Basecamp, a plus.

 
Compensation 
Salary will be based on experience, skills, and location, beginning
at $175,000. Education Reimagined’s compensation package also
includes medical, dental, and vision coverage; generous paid time
off; 17–19 paid holidays per year; a 401(k) plan; and a flexible
work environment.

Equal Opportunity Employer
Education Reimagined is an equal opportunity employer and is
committed to maintaining and promoting a workforce that reflects
diversity at all levels of the organization. We encourage
applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race,
color, ethnicity, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, sexual
orientation, gender identity and expression, age, veteran status,
marital status, disability (including mental disabilities, learning
disabilities and history of disabilities), genetic information,
record of arrest or conviction or any other basis prohibited by
applicable federal, state, or local law.