The Senior Director of Education & Community Engagement is a member of the Senior Leadership Team and provides strategic and operational leadership for the organization’s education, youth development, cultural celebrations, community engagement, volunteer, summer camp, and children’s theatre programs. This high-profile role serves as a key organizational leader and subject matter expert in early childhood education and Fairyland’s Youth Development Arc for children ages 1–18.

Reporting to the CEO, the Senior Director develops and implements a comprehensive strategy that expands Fairyland’s impact in the community, strengthens relationships with schools and community-based organizations, and creates meaningful opportunities for children, families, educators, volunteers, and community partners to engage with Fairyland.

The ideal candidate is a creative and strategic leader with deep experience in educational programming and youth development, a strong understanding of early childhood education, and a demonstrated ability to build trusted relationships across diverse communities. They bring an entrepreneurial mindset to program development, a commitment to equity and accessibility, and the ability to translate vision into effective, measurable programs and experiences.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

Education & Community Engagement (60%)

• Oversee the development, implementation, and continuous improvement of curricula, programs, and learning experiences for children, families, schools, educators, and community members
• Provide strategic and operational leadership for Fairyland’s education and community engagement portfolio, including summer camp, theatre education and performances, educational programs, cultural celebrations and events, volunteer engagement, and community partnerships
• Ensure all educational programming reflects Fairyland’s program vision, Youth Development Arc, educational philosophy, and organizational values
• Lead the development, planning, and execution of cultural celebrations and community events that authentically reflect the diverse cultures, traditions, and experiences of Fairyland’s community, while ensuring programming is engaging, inclusive, age-appropriate, and aligned with Fairyland’s mission and values.
• Collaborate with the Family Events Planning team to identify, recruit, and contract performers and artists for Fairyland events and programming, ensuring performance offerings are high-quality, age-appropriate, culturally responsive, and aligned with Fairyland’s commitment to diverse representation and a broad range of artistic experiences
• Establish appropriate measurement and evaluation practices to assess program quality, participation, impact, and outcomes, and use findings to inform strategic decisions
• Ensure programs are accessible, inclusive, culturally responsive, and responsive to the needs of underserved and historically underrepresented communities
• Develop and maintain meaningful, mutually beneficial relationships with schools, community-based organizations, cultural organizations, youth-serving agencies, and other community partners
• Create intentional engagement strategies that expand Fairyland’s reach among underserved communities and increase participation from populations historically underrepresented in the park’s programs
• Develop and implement strategies to increase awareness of Fairyland’s educational programs and services among schools and community organizations.
• Oversee the financial management of department budgets including community engagement, camp, and children’s theatre
• Collaborate with the Philanthropy Team to develop high impact proposals for current, expanded, and innovative new programs, as well as partner on the creation and tracking of critical financial and performance metrics
• Partner closely with the Marketing & Communications team to develop accurate, timely, and compelling content related to educational, cultural, community engagement, camp, and theatre programming
• Oversee the recruitment, onboarding, training, deployment, recognition, and retention of volunteers connected to programs, projects, and events
• Partner with departments across Fairyland to identify short- and long-term volunteer opportunities that support organizational priorities
• Maintain effective volunteer management systems and ensure accurate tracking of volunteer participation and engagement; generate and analyze volunteer participation reports and use data to inform recruitment, engagement, and retention strategies

Strategic Leadership (20%)

• Serve as a member of Fairyland’s Senior Leadership Team and contribute to organization-wide strategy, planning, decision-making, and problem-solving.
• Develop and foster deeper relationships with community organizations, schools, cultural institutions, funders, and other strategic partners.
• Represent Fairyland on community boards, advisory groups, panels, conferences, and public events that support the organization’s educational, community engagement, and partnership goals.
• Collaborate with leaders across the organization to ensure education and community engagement strategies are integrated into broader organizational priorities and initiatives.

Team Leadership (20%)

• Provide strategic leadership and accountability for the education and community engagement teams, ensuring departmental priorities align with Fairyland’s strategic plan and organizational goals
• Hire, develop, supervise, coach, and evaluate team members while fostering a supportive, inclusive, collaborative, and high-performing work culture
• Establish clear performance expectations and goals and regularly assess progress against organizational and departmental priorities
• Provide timely, constructive, and developmental feedback that supports employee growth, accountability, and success
• Develop team members’ technical, leadership, and professional capabilities through coaching, mentoring, training, and professional development opportunities
• Build a culture grounded in leadership, accountability, continuous learning, collaboration, innovation, measurement, and achievement of meaningful outcomes
• Ensure departmental structures, processes, procedures, and responsibilities are designed and maintained to support strategic priorities efficiently and effectively
• Promote strong cross-functional collaboration and communication across all areas of Fairyland

Knowledge Skills and Abilities

• Seven (7) or more years of progressively responsible experience in educational programming, youth development, community engagement, and/or curriculum development
• At least two (2) years of professional experience in early childhood education (ECE), early childhood programming, or a closely related field
• At least three (3) years of supervisory or management experience, including responsibility for multiple professional-level direct reports
• Undergraduate degree from an accredited college or university - or other relevant training and applicable experience
• Demonstrated success designing, launching, managing, and evaluating innovative educational or youth development programs
• Demonstrated experience leading a high-quality summer day camp or comparable youth-serving program (10+ week program with at least 200 campers)
• Strong understanding of child development, experiential learning, and age-appropriate educational practices for children and youth
• Strong strategic thinking, organizational, and leadership skills, with the ability to translate organizational goals into actionable plans and measurable outcomes
• Demonstrated ability to develop and sustain meaningful partnerships with schools, community organizations, and diverse stakeholders
• Excellent written, verbal, interpersonal, and public speaking skills
• Strong presentation and facilitation skills and comfort representing an organization in public and community settings
• Ability to use technology effectively to support program management and organizational goals, including CRM, project management, data management, communication, and social media platforms
• Creative, energetic, adaptable, and highly organized, with strong interpersonal skills and the ability to motivate and engage others
• Passion for teaching and supporting the whole child, particularly in literacy, storytelling, creativity, play, and social-emotional development
• Demonstrated commitment to equity, accessibility, inclusion, and social justice
• Ability to successfully complete required background screening and meet all requirements for working with children.
• Valid California Driver’s License and an insurable driving record

Preferred Qualifications

• Professional experience in theatre education, performing arts education, or youth theatre.
• Bilingual or multilingual, particularly Spanish/English.
• Teaching credential, master’s degree, or other advanced degree in education, child development, nonprofit management, arts education, or a related field.
• Previous senior leadership experience in a nonprofit, cultural institution, children's organization, educational organization, or other mission-driven, client-facing organization.

Personal Attributes/Values

• Community-Oriented: Builds authentic, respectful relationships with people from diverse backgrounds and experiences and is comfortable engaging with families, children, educators, community leaders, funders, volunteers, and organizational partners.
• Maintains composure and professionalism during challenging or high-pressure situations and approaches conflict with diplomacy and sound judgment
• Energetic, diplomatic, adaptable and with a good sense of humor.
• Passionate about the mission, vision, and goals of Fairyland and possess an understanding of how this position contributes to the organization’s success.
• Strong work ethic with an orientation toward process improvement.
• Impeccable integrity and honesty

Physical Requirements

This position is primarily located in a hybrid indoor and outdoor environment. Able to perform the following duties with or without accommodation:

• Sit at a desk, conference room or workstation for more than three (3) hours at a time;
• Traverse safely over uneven terrain throughout the entirety of the 10-acre amusement park in performance of duties
• Access to reliable transportation and ability to travel to schools, community organizations, meetings, events and other locations as required
• Communicate in clear speaking voice in person, before large audiences and over audio or video-based communications applications (e.g. phone, Zoom)
• Safely lift and transport items weighing up to 50 pounds
• See and respond quickly to situations
• Operate two-way radio for communications with park personnel
• Ability to work on weekends, evenings, and holidays as needed
• Maintain reliable and punctual attendance consistent with the requirements of the position

Benefits & Compensation

This is a regular, full-time, exempt position scheduled Mondays through Fridays, with occasional weekends and evenings for events. The salary range for this role is $101,979.00 - $104,832.00 annually. Full-time employees are eligible to participate in benefits the first of the month following 60 days of service. Benefits include:

• Medical, dental and vision coverage at 100% for employees and 50% for children dependents
• Accrue up to 10 days of PTO in your first year AND separate paid sick leave bank of up to 10 days per year AND three floating holidays per year (available to use after 90 day introductory period)
• 401k plan available
• Family membership to Fairyland or 6 guest passes annually
• Discounts on Fairyland merchandise and Café