Director of Partnerships and Growth

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 and External Candidate Application Deadline: 3/13/2026

Position

Every partnership Leading Educators builds starts with a conversation—one where you listen carefully to understand the real instructional or systems challenge a district or state is trying to solve. As the Director of Partnerships and Growth, you'll lead the full cycle of consultative business development, identifying new opportunities, engaging senior educational leaders in strategic dialogue, and crafting tailored partnership solutions that drive both organizational growth and educational impact.

This is a frontline business development role where you own a personal portfolio of district and state prospects and carry clear revenue accountability. You'll work through ambiguity to identify the most impactful ways to partner, translating partner needs into customized engagements that align their impact goals with LE's organizational capacity. You'll manage the entire partnership development lifecycle—from lead generation and cultivation through proposal development, RFP response, negotiation, and signed agreements—using disciplined pipeline management practices and CRM systems to track progress and forecast revenue.

Your success depends on your credibility as an educational leader. Whether you spent time in the classroom, school leadership, district leadership, or state education roles, you'll leverage that experience to engage superintendents, state agency leaders, and instructional directors as a thought partner who genuinely understands their world—the realities of instructional improvement, system-level decision-making, funding constraints, and competing priorities. You'll represent Leading Educators at conferences and in the field, building sustained relationships and maintaining an active external presence that positions you as a trusted advisor in K–12 education.

Do you have expertise in…

• Business development and consultative selling, with proven success owning a pipeline, securing new partnership work, and closing deals in complex, multi-stakeholder environments?
• K–12 education, whether through classroom experience, school leadership, district leadership, or state education roles, giving you credibility and deep understanding of how educational leaders think and make decisions?
• Proposal writing and RFP response, with exceptional writing and presentation skills and demonstrated ability to develop pitches, scopes of work, and proposals that win work?
• Diagnosing needs and designing solutions, with ability to ask incisive questions, listen for underlying challenges, and structure discovery conversations that surface root causes and clarify desired outcomes?

Do you enjoy…

• Building trusted relationships with senior educational leaders, where genuine understanding of their context, constraints, and priorities creates the foundation for meaningful partnerships?
• Working through ambiguity, engaging leaders in strategic dialogue where the path to partnership may not initially be visible, and co-designing solutions that reflect local context and long-term sustainability?
• Managing complex sales cycles, from prospecting and lead generation through RFP response, proposal refinement, negotiation, and deal closure, using disciplined pipeline management to track progress and forecast revenue?
• Leveraging AI strategically, using AI tools to enhance proposal quality, stakeholder research, competitive analysis, and pipeline insights while exercising strong judgment about accuracy and ethical application?

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 8+ years of experience in business development, partnerships, or related roles, ideally within K–12 education, nonprofits, or professional services
• Demonstrated success owning a pipeline and securing new partnership work, with clear evidence of revenue ownership and deal closure
• 5+ years of experience working with or selling to school districts, state education agencies, or comparable public-sector systems (REQUIRED)
• Deep knowledge of curriculum, instruction, or professional learning in K–12 education (REQUIRED)
• Exceptional writing and presentation skills, with proven ability to develop pitches, decks, and proposals that win work and set partnerships up for success (REQUIRED)
• Demonstrated professional visibility and external presence, including active engagement on platforms such as LinkedIn and participation in relevant conferences or networks (REQUIRED)
• Ability to engage in frequent national travel (1–5 trips per month, depending on the time of year) (REQUIRED)
• Proficiency with CRM systems (Salesforce preferred) and sales forecasting practices
• Strong consultative relationship-building capabilities, with demonstrated ability to ask incisive questions, listen for underlying needs, and structure discovery conversations that surface root causes
• AI Fluency at the Practitioner level—actively using AI tools to improve work quality, identifying appropriate use cases, and exercising sound judgment about responsible AI application
• Must be authorized to work for any employer in the United States

Travel Requirements

• This is a remote position requires high  travel (1–5 trips per month, depending on the time of year)
• National travel for org retreats, programming, job related travel, or professional development 
• Outside of the above mentioned travel, this person will work from a home office that must be located anywhere within the U.S. 

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.

• 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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