Job Description

The YWCA of the City of New York (YW-NYC) is on a mission to eliminate racism, empower women and promote peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all. We are a social justice organization dedicated to addressing issues that emerge at the intersection of race, class and gender. Founded in 1858, the YW- NYC is the first YW in the United States and part of an international movement of YWs worldwide. We currently serve 1,500 New York City school children by providing leadership and advocacy training for young women through our high school Girls Initiatives and Out-of-School Time (OST) programs for elementary and middle school students in diverse communities in Manhattan and Brooklyn.

The Program Director oversees the implementation of all aspects of a YW-NYC school-based OST program to support positive youth development and outcomes; meet the needs of families and the school community; and further YW-NYC’s mission to eliminate racism and empower women and girls. This position will report directly to the Senior Director of Out-of-School Time.

A successful Program Director will: bring a positive youth development lens to the role; build collaborative relationships with the school principal and staff; use evidence-based practices and data to continuously improve the OST program; ensure compliance with all licensing and funder requirements; hold themselves and others accountable for program results; and demonstrate a commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and anti-racism.

Furthermore, in the 2025-26 school year, we anticipate programs will start off as a blended learning model, with some in-person and some virtual activities. There is a high possibility of programs transitioning to a complete virtual model during the winter season. Therefore, Program Directors must be able and willing to operate a virtual program. This will include interviewing and onboarding staff via videoconference; actively participating in virtual team meetings; documenting all aspects of the program in shared systems; conducting virtual program observations and providing effective feedback to staff; and implementing staff and student engagement strategies remotely.

Responsibilities Supervision

• Recruit, hire, onboard, train and supervise all program staff
• Ensure staff meet the annual requirement of 15 training hours
• Conduct structured observations of program activities and provide program staff with feedback
• Provide program staff with two evaluations during the school year and one in the summer
• Provide direct performance-based coaching to program staff
• Ensure that staff to student ratios are always met and maintained

Partnership & Relationship Development

• Establish and maintain relationships with school leadership and external partners
• Establish and maintain relationships with key stakeholders to enhance program quality
• Engage parents in events catered to meet the needs of the school community
• Maintain relationships with funders and other reporting agencies
• Collaborate with school leadership on school wide events
• Maintain a healthy CBO-School relationship through frequent communications and partnership planning meetings
• Represent the YW at trainings, events, caucuses and/or focus groups
• Conduct parent orientations as needed to acclimate and introduce new families to the YW program

Program Development

• Develop and implement school-year and summer OST program(s) located in a public school, utilizing both virtual and in-person facilitation
• With OST Senior Director create and deliver high quality theme-based programming and activities in the areas of Literacy, STEM, SEL and Arts Enrichment
• Oversee the planning and delivery of 3 culminating events in the fiscal year calendar
• Ensure the delivery of activities and lessons are in alignment with the theme
• Ensure that activities meet the DYCD PMT Rubric
• Ensure staff and activities operate in accordance with YW-NYC’s program standards and expectations
• Deliver at least 13 OST Holiday Camp service days each program year
• Conduct consistent recruitment to ensure that enrollment requirements are always maintained

Administration & Compliance

• Comply with all applicable funder requirements and school-age childcare (SACC) regulations, ensuring SACC license is continuously maintained
• Oversee site budget and use of resources, managing spending within approved budget plan; proactively raise budget concerns during program year and tracking orders and monthly spending
• Track program data and provide reports to Associate Director, Senior Director and/or Executive Director as requested
• Participate in regular professional development opportunities, bringing evidence-based and culturally responsive practices to site staff and operations
• Support the planning and delivery of yearly professional development for Assistant Director and line staff
• Maintain DOHMH Compliance as outlined in the New York State Child Care Regulations part 414
• Meet enrollment deadlines as outlined by DYCD
• Maintain ADA and ROP benchmarks as outlined by DYCD
• Perform other relevant duties as assigned
• Complete CPR/First Aid/AED Training annually

Requirements

Requirements:

• Use engaging technologies (third party or media) in appropriate and varied ways
• Computer skills: knowledge of telecommuting platforms, SharePoint and Microsoft Office suite products (Outlook, TEAMS, Word, Excel, PowerPoint)

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in related field or School-Age Care Credential
• 4+ years working in OST programs or other education/youth programs
• Deep knowledge of anti-racism and gender equity principles and practices
• Familiarity with NYC public schools and/or NYC DYCD programs
• Excellent interpersonal, verbal and written communication skills
• Strong organizational skills and analytical ability
• Bilingual (Spanish/English) a bonus
• Strong work ethic and professional values
• Commitment to promoting YW-NYC’s social justice mission and educational and youth development philosophy

This position is a Part-Time, non-exempt role.

The hours for this position will fluctuate depending on the needs of the school, general hours of operation can range anywhere from 1:00 pm – 6:30pm. The Program Director role requires occasional travel across New York City. The Program Director must be able to sit and stand for long stretches of time and use a computer and phone to communicate with staff and partners. Reasonable accommodations will be made if needed for candidates who can fulfil the essential functions of the job.

Benefits:

Eligibility requirement rules apply

• YWCA Retirement Plan
• 403(b) Plan
• Paid time off
• UNUM Voluntary insurance (Additional Life, Life AD&D, Dep. Life)

The YWCA of the City of New York is an equal opportunity employer and contractor. We provide equal employment and contracting opportunities to all applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. The YWCA of New York City utilizes only job- related criteria in making decisions concerning applicants and employees. Moreover, we encourage applicants from historically underrepresented communities to apply.