IEL Senior Program Manager (Senior Technical Assistance for Vocational Rehabilitation) – Full-Time Remote

The Institute for Educational Leadership

Center for Workforce Development

Position Description: IEL Senior Program Manager (Senior Technical Assistance for Vocational Rehabilitation) – Full-Time Remote

The Institute for Educational Leadership (IEL) is a national expert in community-driven leadership development in the intersecting areas of education, health, and employment. The common thread in our work is supporting community and institutional leaders as they build systems around racial, disability inclusion, and economic equity goals. Since 1964, our journey and experiences have resulted in approaches, tools and practices that reflect the needs of leaders no matter where they sit in communities. The authentic relationships that we build in the process shape the way we engage community leaders, do our work, and provide the foundation for deeper impact as we continue to address systemic challenges in the 400-plus communities that trust us as partners.  

Established in 1991, the Center for Workforce Development (CWD) has designed and implemented programs that promote youth voice through leadership development and advocacy and ensure disability inclusion in youth-serving programs. The CWD team works with service providers at the local, state, and national levels to prepare and support youth and young adults with and without disabilities for successful transitions into productive careers and financial independence. The CWD team focuses is on the linkages between the individual, school or training institutions, and the workplace to promote leadership of youth and adults with disabilities in the nation’s diverse workforce. We also work directly with emerging and existing leaders in the disability community to advance our shared goal of full inclusion. 

CWD’s operational approach is collaboration with other organizations because no one organization has the capacity to have the full range of knowledge and expertise necessary to address these issues. Building bridges requires networking and knowledge of how different stakeholders and systems interact with one another. CWD is dedicated to helping build those bridges to create a more coherent and inclusive workforce development system in the United States.  

Position Overview: 

The IEL Senior Program Manager position will primarily serve as the Senior Technical Assistance (TA) Liaison to work with state agency partners in vocational rehabilitation. The Senior TA Liaison will serve as a direct contact for State Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies (SVRAs) and other critical state agency partners that are seeking assistance to improve their service delivery to individuals with disabilities including transition age youth and potentially eligible students as well as adults. This position will serve under the direction of the Deputy Director of the Center for Workforce Development.  

The Senior TA Liaison will manage the technical assistance and training needs of VR agency staff/clients through direct contact, providing support via one-on-one discussions, webinars, Communities of Practice (CoPs), office hours and web-based resources and training. The Senior TA Liaison will also provide supervision of staff as assigned according to project needs.   

Essential Duties: 

  • Serve as a subject matter expert on vocational rehabilitation (VR) services at the national, state, and local levels; provide a deep understanding of the VR system and laws, regulation, and rules that guide VR services 
  • Conduct statewide needs assessments to inform technical assistance and training (TA&T) planning and implementation 
  • Design, develop, and implement responsive professional development for VR and other employment service providers based on identified needs using a multi-modal approach that considers varied learning styles 
  • Conduct individualized training and provide technical assistance for SVRAs, state-level and local-level partners and related rehabilitation professionals 
  • Conduct in-person and online training 
  • Evaluate TA&T and continuous quality improvement through evaluation, self-assessment, and reflection  
  • Supervise project staff and consultants, including professional development for team members as needed 
  • Create TA&T materials and other publications on topics as requested by the client, and identify, document, and share emerging/innovative practices  
  • Ensure high quality of all training, products, and processes.  
  • Participate and/or lead client calls 
  • Travel as required by client to provide TA&T  
  • Other duties as assigned 

Experience and Skills Required: 

  • Direct experience in the workforce development field at the local, state and/or national level. 
  • Detailed knowledge of local, state, and national Vocational Rehabilitation and workforce development programs. 
  • Demonstrated expertise in disability and employment issues.  
  • Proven leadership abilities in public service roles. 
  • The ability to professionally represent the interests and convey the message of the Institute for Educational Leadership, and funders in person, on the phone, and through other mediums such as email, webinar platforms and social media venues. 
  • Work independently, be a self-starter, and contribute to the development and continuity of project teams. 
  • Management of teams composed of diverse staff with proven cultural competence in supervising and developing team members  
  • The ability to problem-solve challenges including analysis of systems change issues. 
  • Strong networking and communications skills both in person and in writing. 

Education Required 

  • Master’s Degree preferred 
  • Minimum 8 years of experience in a Vocational Rehabilitation setting or role required 

To apply, please submit a cover letter, resume, list of three references, and a writing sample* to Maame Appiah at jobs@iel.org. Please include “CWD Senior Program Manager” in the subject of your email application.   

*WRITING SAMPLE REQUIREMENTS:  

  • Design a 1-hour training (in person or online) on the topic of: principles of universal design, assistive technologies and accommodations to support employment success for employees with disabilities.  
  • Submit a training outline that includes learning objectives, an outline of content to be covered, activities, links to relevant materials (if applicable), and a description of learning activities.  

Location: IEL is a Washington, DC-based organization. This position can be based at IEL’s D.C. office or can be a remotely stationed position with occasional travel to the D.C. office and local communities. 

  

SALARY RANGE $70,000 – $80,000 (Commensurate with Experience and Availability) This position is full-time, but we are open to a part-time work schedule. 

  
IEL is an Equal Opportunity Employer that does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, creed, religion, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran’s status or disabled veterans’ status. IEL is implementing a diversity and supported inclusion strategy and is actively and intentionally encouraging applicants of color and individuals with disabilities to apply.  

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