Director of Implementation, Design, and Coaching - ELA

What We Do

At Leading Educators (LE), we know that excellent teaching is the most important driver of student success. The moment a student steps foot in the classroom, their opportunity to learn depends on how prepared their teacher is to translate complex content knowledge, standards, and their knowledge of that student into lessons that help them learn deeply and apply their thinking to the real world.

That’s a big lift, and it often happens alone. As a national nonprofit, we partner with school systems to overcome persistent instructional challenges, foster intentional collaboration and adult learning by design, and ignite new possibilities through systemic solutions at the intersection of teaching, talent, and technology.

We work shoulder-to-shoulder with educators at every level of the education system to strengthen their instructional and leadership practices, bring a vision for excellent instruction to life with consistency, and ensure every student reaches their full potential.

Through direct support, strategic advising, innovation pilots, and best-in-class research, we help educators work toward a future where every student is ready to thrive. Learn more about our work at leadingeducators.org.

Internal & External Candidate Application Deadline: April 7, 2026

Position

Leading Educators is seeking a Director of Implementation, Design, and Coaching to lead transformational literacy work across New York City public schools. In this hybrid leadership role, you'll own the full lifecycle of K-8 literacy implementation—from launch through measurable impact—while building sustainable systems that shift instructional practice at scale. 

You'll serve as the accountable lead for program implementation within an assigned district portfolio, translating Senior Director priorities into clear, actionable plans and delivery structures. This means you'll work at the intersection of instructional leadership, client relationship management, and coaching excellence. You'll lead strategic conversations with district content leads and school-based leaders, manage complex multi-school partnerships, and ensure unwavering fidelity to high-quality instructional practice and measurable student outcomes.

Beyond implementation oversight, you'll act as the lead designer and lead coach for your portfolio—accountable for the quality, coherence, and rigor of all design and coaching work. You'll manage and develop Design and Coaching Specialists, strengthening their capacity while maintaining overall accountability for project success. This is a role where your expertise directly influences how thousands of students experience literacy instruction.

Do you have expertise in…

• Leading complex, multi-school implementation efforts aligned to standards, with proven ability to translate strategy into actionable project plans with clear milestones and accountability for measurable outcomes?
  Designing and facilitating high-quality professional learning that deepens literacy content knowledge, strengthens instructional leadership capacity, and builds coherent systems for observation, feedback, and data-informed decision-making?
  Providing consistent, high-impact coaching to school and district leaders focused on lesson internalization, student work analysis, and reflective improvement cycles?
  Serving as a primary relationship owner within district or multi-school contexts, leading strategic conversations, managing expectations, and sustaining productive partnerships while maintaining instructional rigor?

Do you enjoy…

• Operating in complex, multi-school NYCDOE partnerships and translating district priorities into clear implementation plans and delivery structures?
• Building sustainability by developing distributed leadership and teacher leader pathways, and transitioning ownership of instructional improvement to school-based leaders over time?
• Analyzing school and district data to inform goal-setting, coaching plans, and implementation strategy refinement?
• Applying artificial intelligence strategically to improve work quality, efficiency, and execution while exercising sound judgment about responsible use?

If you've answered affirmatively to these questions and meet the following prerequisites, we urge you to seize this opportunity. This role calls for the following:

• Minimum of eight years of professional experience in education, instructional leadership, curriculum implementation, or district-level instructional support
• K-8 literacy content expertise required (comfort with elementary and middle school standards and research-based best practices), including familiarity with core and intervention curricula such as HMH Into Reading, HMH Into Literature, Wit & Wisdom, EL Education, Fishtank, SPIRE, SPIRE Sound Sensible, Phonics for Reading, and REWARDS
• Demonstrated experience leading system readiness and pre-implementation planning, including administering school conditions surveys, analyzing achievement and practice data, and producing actionable reports
• Proven success co-designing and executing multi-year development plans that address learning gaps while maintaining grade-level standards and rigor
• Experience leading learning walks using structured, content-specific tools to monitor shifts in practice over time
• Demonstrated ability to strengthen instructional leadership and system enabling conditions, including vision-setting, role clarity, professional learning structures, and progress monitoring systems
• Experience managing and developing staff or team members with responsibility for quality of execution
• Practitioner-level AI fluency: ability to identify appropriate use cases, apply AI to improve efficiency and quality, exercise judgment about responsible use, and integrate AI into established workflows
• Ability to travel; based in New York City
• Authorization to work for any employer in the United States

Travel Requirements

• This position is based in New York City. The role includes local travel to schools and district meetings, as well as occasional national travel for organizational retreats, program related work, job related responsibilities, and professional development.
• Outside of these travel requirements, the employee will work from a home office located within the city limits of New York City, New York.

Questions? We’re here to help.

If you have questions about this role or about our hiring process at any point, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at talent@leadingeducators.org. This inbox is monitored regularly, and we aim to respond within two business days. To ensure your question receives a thoughtful and timely response, we kindly ask that you refrain from emailing individual staff members or members of our HR team directly. The best way to connect with us is always through talent@leadingeducators.org.

Why Work at Leading Educators? 

Imagine being part of an organization where your ideas and perspectives are highly valued. At Leading Educators, we believe in fostering individual strengths, encouraging personal growth, and embracing innovative ideas. If you thrive in a remote working environment, with the added excitement of travel, we're the perfect fit for you. By joining us, you become part of a powerful community of peers nationwide. Regardless of your location, you possess the power to make a significant impact on both students and teachers who rely on us daily. Join Leading Educators and become an integral part of driving progress in education. 

Learn About Our Mission & Values:

Mission: Leading Educators partners with school systems to sustain the teaching, leadership, and conditions for every student to succeed in school and in life.

Values:

• Build on strengths: We affirm and begin with the unique and collective talents, experiences, and wisdom of ourselves and others.
• Continuously learn: We develop ourselves and others. We apply new learning and deepened self-awareness to our relationships and practices.
• Prioritize people: We build trust and reflect on the impact of different perspectives and experiences.
• Champion success for all: We re-imagine structures, habits, and mindsets to ensure every learner has access to evidence-based learning opportunities.

Use of Artificial Intelligence in Hiring

• We use artificial intelligence–enabled tools throughout our hiring process, from the moment a candidate applies through the offer stage, to support administrative tasks and the initial review of candidate materials. These tools help us organize, analyze, and surface relevant information efficiently, but they do not make hiring decisions.

• All candidate materials—including applications, resumes, assessments, and interview feedback—are reviewed and evaluated by people. All hiring decisions, including interview selection, advancement, and offers of employment, are made by humans.

• We use AI solely as a support tool to assist with early-stage reviews and process efficiency. We do not use AI in ways that discriminate based on protected characteristics, nor do we use ZIP codes or similar data to target or exclude protected groups. Our hiring practices are designed to be fair, consistent, and aligned with equal employment opportunity standards.

Benefits

• Compensation: 
  • If hired for this position, the base salary range is $103,649 to $140,231 per year. Most new hires enter the range at a specific point based on their qualifications and the role level. For this position, the standard starting salary is $121,940, which is based on meeting the minimum requirement of 8 years of relevant experience.
  • If you have more than 8 years of directly relevant experience, your starting salary may be adjusted higher within the range, up to a maximum starting salary of $129,779. This approach ensures that candidates with additional experience beyond the minimum are recognized in the initial salary offer.
    
  • The role is location specific: New York City. The range below  reflects a 15.9%  geographic adjustment, resulting in a salary range of approximately $123,129 to $166,588, with an entry point of $144,859 and a maximum entry salary of $154,171.

• Benefits: 
  • 100% paid medical, dental, and vision coverage for individual employees.
  •  Additional premium costs are covered 60% by Leading Educators for partners and dependents on medical, dental, and vision plans.
  • 4% matching 401k plan, Flexible Spending Accounts for medical, childcare and commuter expenses, and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP). Benefits are valued at or above $9,000 for employees.
• Time Off: 
  • First three years of employment, full time staff accrue 22 days a year. 
  • Five additional days are accrued after the third and sixth year of employment.
  • Leading Educators also offer 16 additional paid days off for various holidays, including three floating holidays staff may use at their discretion.

Equal Opportunity Employment 

Leading Educators is an equal opportunity employer.  All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, age, marital status, military status, pregnancy, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local, state, or federal laws, rules, or regulations.

Apply: https://leadingeducators.org/careers/opportunities

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