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Program Officer

National Education Strategy

“Empowering young people to transform their lives”

1Raikes Foundation | Program Officer

THE OPPORTUNITY

The Raikes Foundation seeks an innovative, strategic thinker to lead our research efforts as a Program

Officer on our National Education team.

Our education strategy focuses on ensuring that all students, particularly students of color and those

from low-income backgrounds, are engaged in schools that foster learning mindsets and skills, allowing

them to achieve academically and complete a high-quality post-secondary degree to thrive in a rapidly

changing world.

The Program Officer will join a small, collaborative team working to identify the most promising opportunities to bring learning mindsets and skills into the education system at scale. The Program Officer will manage our efforts to leverage insights from scientists, educators, students and families to translate research about learning mindsets and skills to scalable school-based approaches.

To learn more about the organization, please visit www.raikesfoundation.org.

THE RAIKES FOUNDATION

Located in Seattle, Washington, the Raikes Foundation is a private foundation founded by Tricia and Jeff

Raikes, who are actively involved in the organization’s work. With a team of 11 employees and annual grantmaking of over $11 million in 2015, the Raikes Foundation expects to grow its staff and annual giving in the near term. The culture of the foundation encourages creative thinking, an entrepreneurial spirit, collaborative problem-solving and intellectual rigor in the pursuit of innovative approaches to

philanthropy.

The mission of the Raikes Foundation is to empower young people to transform their lives. Our three core grantmaking strategies include a focus on ending youth and young adult homelessness in

King County, improving the quality of after-school programs across Washington State and improving

educational outcomes through our national education strategy. The Raikes Foundation is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion within our organization and its application in our programmatic work.

The foundation believes in the power of catalytic philanthropy. This translates into grantmaking strategies that look for high-leverage opportunities to maximize impact by:

• Convening the right players and supporting projects with impact• Taking calculated risks and supporting under-resourced areas

• Concentrating grantmaking on a discrete set of issues

• Working with urgency, while recognizing that complex challenges take time to solve• Challenging assumptions—including the foundation’s own

• Driving action based on evidence and data

2Raikes Foundation | Program Officer

3Raikes Foundation | Program Officer

NATIONAL EDUCATION STRATEGY

In 2012, the Raikes Foundation launched its national education strategy focused on learning mindsets such as belonging, growth, self-efficacy, purpose and relevance, and skills such as goal-setting, time management and knowing when to ask for help. We selected learning mindsets and skills as our focus area because a growing body of research shows that empowering students with learning mindsets and skills can unlock

their potential to succeed in any subject at any age. By helping the education system prioritize learning mindsets and skills, we hope to ensure every student is motivated to learn and knows how to learn.

This focus has been shown to improve grade point average and academic performance in core subjects like reading and math, lead to higher attendance, course completion, and graduation rates as well as give

students the confidence and skills they need to succeed throughout their lives. We believe that building the knowledge and practices that schools and teachers can use to cultivate learning mindsets and skills is

key to ensuring that all students, particularly students of color and those from low income backgrounds,

are prepared to complete a high quality post-secondary degree and thrive in our rapidly changing world.

Our strategic initiatives include funding basic and applied research, supporting the development of practical

tools that teachers can use with students and expanding opportunities to integrate learning mindsets in the existing education ecosystem. We convene networks supporting schools to adopt and continuously improve research-based practices. Because this is still a nascent field, we are also investing in field-building activities that will establish strong networks of practitioners, researchers and other partners who can

advance the science and practical application for the benefit of all students.

www.waldronhr.com

4Raikes Foundation | Program Officer

www.waldronhr.com

PROGRAM OFFICER ROLE

As we seek to grow the foundation’s impact and capitalize on momentum around learning mindsets

and skills, the Program Officer will manage our efforts to leverage insights from scientists, educators, students and families to translate research about learning mindsets and skills to scalable school-based

approaches.

The ideal candidate will have systems level experience translating research into practice and a passion for including the perspectives of students, families and teachers throughout this work. As a “learning engineer,” our ideal candidate brings research expertise to support discovery of relevant knowledge in the basic and applied research networks we support, and the translation of those findings into solutions that have promise for practical implementation in the U.S. education system. Our ideal candidate brings credibility and experience working with both practitioners and researchers across multiple disciplines and from diverse backgrounds.

Given the foundation’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, we are looking for candidates who

are committed to advancing equity and who also possess knowledge, skills and experience that would enhance our ongoing equity work.

The skills and attributes that will drive success include:

• Ability to “think big” at the strategic level while also being able to focus and prioritize tactical goals• Excellent relationship-building and interpersonal skills• Ability to establish rapport and trust, and work collaboratively with diverse internal and external

partners

• Ability to synthesize research findings and identify implications for the foundation’s strategy as well as the broader field

• Strong writing and presentation skills and the ability to communicate complex ideas effectively with diverse stakeholders such as researchers, practitioners, and parents

• Proactive and comfortable leading by influence in ambiguous environments without positional authority

• Thrives in a fast-paced, collaborative work environment

This position reports to the Director, National Education Strategy and is based in Seattle, Washington.

4

5Raikes Foundation | Program Officer

www.waldronhr.com

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Strategy, Evaluation & Organizational Learning

• Work with education strategy team members to define strategic direction with particular emphasis on:

• Advancing basic research, including identifying gaps in current research that are critical

to our aim of more equitable post-secondary degree completion.• Developing cutting edge approaches to translating research to practice that incorporate

perspectives from science, practice, students and families.

• Collaborate closely with education strategy team to ensure that the foundation’s scaling partners

are informed by the latest research findings. • Collaborate closely with the Director of the National Education Strategy and other team members

to ensure an integrated approach to measurement and evaluation across the portfolio. • Play a proactive role in the foundation’s organizational learning; seek opportunities to collaborate

and contribute to exploring synergies across the foundation’s strategy areas. • Organize grantee visits, learning sessions and other forms of engagement to deepen the foundation

leadership’s knowledge of the strategy and understanding of progress, challenges and lessons

learned.

Grant Portfolio Development & Management

• Conceptualize and cultivate grantmaking opportunities and work with prospective grantees to

develop proposals that advance the strategy.• Conduct due diligence for potential grant opportunities and assess alignment with the foundation’s

strategy.• Prepare grant recommendations and provide feedback to grant applicants.• Manage a portfolio of research grants, including developing milestones, outcome metrics and

reporting requirements. • Build positive and productive relationships and ensure ongoing communication with grantees.• Design and manage research grantee gatherings and field learning opportunities.

External Relations and Thought Leadership

• Build strong relationships with key stakeholders and advance the Raikes Foundation as a thought leader in learning mindsets and skills, as well as translation of research to practice in the U.S. education system.

• Foster relationships with a variety of stakeholders, including current and prospective grantees,

researchers, teachers, education sector leaders or networks, policymakers, etc. • Identify partnership and co-funding opportunities to advance the foundation’s strategies.• As appropriate, scope, identify and manage outside consultants or contractors.• Represent the foundation externally in a variety of settings.• Partner with the foundation’s communications team and external consultants to support strategic

communications and advocacy, including preparing content for the foundation’s communications

channels and integration of the latest relevant research findings about learning mindsets and skills into communications materials.

6Raikes Foundation | Program Officer

QUALIFICATIONS

Candidates must have at least eight to ten years of relevant professional experience. Candidates should combine robust social science research skills and practical knowledge of the education field. A background translating learning research into practice in the education field is ideal. Experience applying research that interfaces with teaching, curriculum design, and instructional practice is highly desired. A track record of building relationships, identifying partners across diverse communities and creating systems

to advance new thinking and change is preferred. A master’s degree or doctorate in a learning science-related discipline such as human development, psychology, neuroscience or education is valued. The position is based in Seattle, WA, but may include up to 25 percent of time on domestic travel.

TO BE CONSIDERED

Please submit your resume and cover letter online at http://candidateportal.waldronhr.com. Cover letters expressing your passion for the mission and fit for the role should be addressed to Melissa Merritt. Materials will be reviewed on a rolling basis until February 14, 2016.