SY2025-26 Communications and Development Manager

NOTICE: All Ingenuity Prep employees must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 before their start date. All persons offered a position will be required to provide valid proof of vaccination prior to starting employment or must be approved for a medical or religious exemption.

Ingenuity Prep is a supportive school community dedicated to academic rigor and civic leadership, preparing students for the path to colleges and careers of their choosing. Our innovative instructional model promotes small group learning for students, collaborative teaching teams, and robust coaching and professional development opportunities for teachers and staff. We are one of the highest performing schools in Ward 8 and proud recipient of a Bold Performance School award.  

We are looking for a Communications and Development Manager with 3 or more years of experience and a strong desire to lead Ingenuity Prep’s communications and external engagement efforts. Strong candidates will bring a deep commitment to closing opportunity gaps, a proven ability to develop compelling messaging, and experience managing a range of communication channels to drive awareness and support.

WHAT WE’RE ABOUT

• Mission: We’re closing the opportunity gap. Students and families in Southeast D.C. have too few options for high-quality elementary, middle, and high schools.  Ingenuity Prep aspires to right this systemic injustice providing an exemplary educational option for Southeast D.C.’s students and families.
• Model: We pair high expectations with high support. Too often, our students are underestimated.  At Ingenuity Prep, an innovative teacher development model, paired with best-in-class training from strong instructional leaders, allows us to grow great teachers who, ultimately, lead high-expectation and high-support classrooms.
• Results: Our students are defying expectations. Ingenuity Prep’s students outperform their neighborhood peers on rigorous, national, college-track assessments.  Already out-performing many of their more privileged peers around the city, in the coming years, Ingenuity Prep’s students will provide an expectation-defying and achievement-gap-closing proof point — showing what our kids are capable of when we provide the right opportunities, expectations, and support.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

As the Communications and Development Manager, you will:

• Develop and implement marketing and public relations strategies to promote the school’s mission, programs, and achievements to key audiences – the broader public, potential donors, and community stakeholders.
• Oversee the school’s website, social media accounts, and other digital communications tools to ensure consistent, mission-aligned messaging.
• Develop compelling and high-impact materials such as, newsletters, annual reports, and other publications that effectively tell the school’s story and foster external engagement.
• Cultivate relationships with media outlets, write and distribute press releases, and serve as the school's spokesperson as needed.
• Represent the school at community events and other public forums to elevate its visibility and strengthen community ties.

Plan and coordinate development-related events, including donor and board visits and fundraising receptions in partnership with school staff and volunteers.

• Provide regular updates to school leadership and the board on communications activities, progress toward engagement goals, and trends in the external landscape.
• Work with the outsourced company handling grants to ensure the alignment of grants with the school's needs and objectives. Review and approve grant proposals and reports, and manage communications with grant funders.
• Keep accurate records of all donors, donations, and other development activities. Coordinate with the finance to ensure accurate accounting of all funds received.

Ingenuity Prep may be the right fit for you if:

• You have 3+ years of social media and communications experience. 
• You are passionate about cultivating relationships that support the mission of a school
• You have excellent verbal and written communication skills and a knack for capturing an organization's work and impact in a way that will compel external audiences. 
• You have an outgoing and inviting personality, and you work well with others
• You are a self-starter who enjoys pitching new ideas on how to improve our social media presence and school branding
• You are committed to continuous learning and professional development.
• You have experience working in public school systems, especially public charter schools. 
• You enjoy and have experience building systems, structures, and procedures.

MORE ABOUT US

Ingenuity Prep offers among the strongest compensation and benefits packages of any public charter school in Washington, D.C. Our compensation and benefits package includes:

• Highly competitive compensation for instructional and non-instructional positions.
• 100% of medical and dental premiums for employees paid for by Ingenuity Prep, along with 100% of dependent premiums and 50% of spouse’s or domestic partner’s premiums.
• 100% of employee’s short­ and long-term disability and life insurance plans paid for by Ingenuity Prep.
• A minimum of two weeks maternity/paternity leave, up to 6 weeks, at 100% of pay (60% from IP and remaining pay from DC Paid Family Leave ) for all staff — regardless of gender.
• A 100% match -- up to 3% -- on your 401K retirement plan.
• A 100% Ingenuity Prep-paid cell phone plan. You can even bring your current number into our plan.
• MacBook Air computer for professional and personal use

Salary Range: $76,347 - $95,347 (commensurate with 1-10 years of experience)

Ingenuity Prep does not make hiring decisions based on race, color, creed, ethnicity, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, socio-economic background, age, disability, veteran status, religion, political affiliation, or any other characteristic protected by state, federal, or local law. Covid-19 vaccination is required prior to the first day of employment.