Position Summary

The Senior Director, Post-Secondary & Workforce Pathways serves as the strategic leader responsible for designing, advancing, and scaling 3DE's national postsecondary and workforce pathway strategy. Grounded in Junior Achievement's commitment to expanding economic mobility and preparing young people for success beyond high school, this role develops the vision, strategy, and implementation model that connects students to meaningful postsecondary, credential, and career opportunities.

Partnering closely with organizational leadership, the Senior Director establishes strategic priorities, success measures, partnership models, and implementation supports that strengthen student transitions to college, credential attainment, employment, and other career-connected opportunities. This role ensures pathway experiences remain relevant, accessible, and aligned with the evolving needs of higher education and the workforce while advancing long-term student success.

The Senior Director also provides strategic leadership for the 3DE Credential framework and postsecondary transition components embedded throughout the 3DE model, including the Senior Capstone experience. By developing scalable systems, partnerships, and implementation strategies, this leader equips market teams to deliver high-quality pathway experiences while helping students earn meaningful credentials, connect learning to future opportunities, and successfully navigate life beyond high school.

Success in this role requires a strategic, collaborative leader who excels at translating vision into scalable implementation, aligning cross-functional stakeholders, and building organizational capacity across a national network. Success will be measured by increased participation in postsecondary and workforce pathways, credential attainment, employer and postsecondary partnerships, and stronger connections between the 3DE experience and students' future educational and career opportunities.

Key Responsibilities

Post-Secondary and Workforce Pathways Strategy

• Lead the development, evolution and execution of 3DE's national postsecondary and workforce pathway strategy, ensuring alignment with Junior Achievement's commitment to advancing economic opportunity for young people
• Establish strategic priorities, implementation frameworks, success metrics, and continuous improvement processes that strengthen student transitions to postsecondary education, credential attainment, employment, and other career-connected opportunities
• Translate strategic priorities into scalable frameworks, playbooks, tools, and implementation supports that enable consistent adoption and execution across JA Market teams
• Guide cross-functional collaboration to align pathway initiatives with organizational goals, student outcomes, and partner needs
• Lead training, coaching, consultation, and capacity-building efforts that equip market teams to implement pathway initiatives with quality and consistency across diverse markets

3DE Credential & Postsecondary Pathway Development

• Collaborate with the Evaluation team on the development, and continuous improvement of the 3DE Credential framework, ensuring credentials remain meaningful, measurable, and aligned to student readiness outcomes
• Develop scalable systems, resources, tools, and implementation supports that enable students to earn and demonstrate 3DE Credentials while supporting consistent implementation across markets
• Establish processes to monitor credential participation, attainment, and student outcomes, using data to strengthen implementation and inform continuous improvement
• Develop articulation agreements and strategic partnerships that connect the 3DE experience and credential attainment to postsecondary credit, degree pathways, and workforce advancement
• Collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to ensure credentials and pathway opportunities remain aligned with evolving postsecondary and workforce expectations

Senior Capstone & Post-Secondary Transition Supports

• Provide strategic leadership for workforce readiness and postsecondary transition structures embedded within the 3DE Senior Capstone experience
• Develop frameworks, resources, implementation guidance, and training that support students as they identify, plan for, and pursue their postsecondary and career goals
• Collaborate with 3DE curriculum design team to ensure Senior Capstone experiences align with credential attainment, employer engagement, and post-secondary pathway objectives while strengthening students' ability to articulate their skills, competencies, and readiness for future opportunities
• Utilize student outcomes, market feedback, and emerging trends to continuously improve postsecondary transition supports and Senior Capstone structures

Employer Engagement & Career-Connected Opportunities

• Develop and advance strategies, in partnership with organizational leadership and JA Markets, that expand employer engagement and career-connected opportunities aligned with student needs and pathway goals
• Equip market teams with the tools, training, and resources needed to build and sustain employer partnerships locally
• Develop scalable frameworks and implementation supports that ensure employer-engagement strategies are delivered with quality and consistency across markets

Alumni Engagement & Post-secondary support

• Partner with leadership to develop and advance a long-term strategy for alumni engagement and postsecondary success
• Design scalable systems, resources, communications, and supports that help students and alumni successfully navigate college, credential programs, employment, and career advancement
• Strengthen connections between alumni, employer partners, post-secondary institutions, and pathway opportunities while fostering ongoing engagement with the 3DE network
• Use engagement, persistence, attainment, and employment outcome data to refine strategies and improve long-term student success

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in education, workforce development, nonprofit management, public administration, business, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant professional experience
• 7+ years of progressive experience in workforce development, college and career readiness, post-secondary success, program leadership, education innovation, or a related field
• Demonstrated success designing and leading strategic initiatives that improve student access to postsecondary, credential, or workforce opportunities
• Experience developing scalable systems, implementation models, or organizational strategies that improve quality, consistency, and impact
• Experience working within K-12 education, postsecondary education, workforce development, youth-serving organizations, or career pathway initiatives
• Experience supporting implementation across multiple markets, regions, school districts, or partner organizations
• Proven ability to build organizational capacity through training, coaching, and supporting distributed teams
• Strong relationship management skills with experience collaborating across education, nonprofit, employer, and community partners
• Experience using data to inform strategy, measure outcomes, and drive continuous improvement
• Excellent communication, facilitation, and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence, align, and build consensus across diverse audiences

Desired Qualifications

• Experience designing or managing competency-based credential frameworks, career readiness initiatives, or learner pathway models
• Experience supporting the implementation of student credential programs and credential attainment strategies within secondary education settings
• Experience developing or supporting articulation agreements, dual enrollment partnerships, transfer-credit models, or similar postsecondary pathway initiatives
• Familiarity with career-connected learning, work-based learning, and workforce readiness frameworks
• Knowledge of post-secondary transition supports related to college enrollment, credential attainment, apprenticeships, military pathways, and employment
• Understanding of economic mobility frameworks and strategies that support long-term student success and advancement

Compensation

The base salary range for this position is $95,000 to $115,000 annually, with the exact salary depending on relevant experience, demonstrated impact, and alignment with the scope and responsibilities of the role.

Benefits

At 3DE, we believe our people are our greatest asset. That's why we offer a comprehensive benefits package that supports your physical, emotional, and financial well-being, empowering you to bring your best to work and life. We offer medical, dental, vision, life insurance, long-term disability, holidays, paid time off, and 401(k).