Senior 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

Leading Educators' impact depends on strong, sustained partnerships with school districts and state education agencies across the nation. As the Senior Director of Partnerships and Growth, you'll drive renewal, expansion, and select new business development across LE's national portfolio—playing a critical role in ensuring that more than 70% of our work renews year over year and that new opportunities are cultivated and closed with excellence.

This is a senior, externally facing leadership role that sits at the intersection of strategic partnership development and hands-on business execution. You'll serve as both a strategic thought partner to the Senior Vice President of Partnerships and a frontline seller, leading renewal pitches, developing compelling proposals, and building trusted relationships with district superintendents and state education agency leaders. You'll own a portfolio of business development opportunities while maintaining deep visibility into the full partnership lifecycle—from prospecting through renewal strategy, proposal development, pricing, and pipeline management.

Your success will depend on your ability to operate across multiple worlds: cultivating executive relationships with senior district and state leaders, translating LE's offerings into compelling value propositions, leveraging market intelligence to shape growth strategy, and serving as an internal bridge between frontline business development and partnership operations. You'll be visible in the field—at conferences, on LinkedIn, and in partner sites—representing Leading Educators as a trusted, credible partner in systems improvement. And you'll bring strong judgment in applying AI tools to enhance proposal quality, renewal strategy, stakeholder research, and market analysis.

Do you have expertise in…

• Business development and partnership strategy, with proven success owning a pipeline, securing new work, and building long-term relationships with senior leaders in complex organizations?
• Selling to and working with school districts, state education agencies, or comparable public-sector systems, with deep understanding of how these organizations make decisions, allocate resources, and manage procurement?
• Proposal writing and pitch development, with demonstrated ability to craft compelling scopes of work, pricing strategies, and presentations that win work and set partnerships up for success?
• Market sensing and portfolio strategy, with ability to monitor policy trends, funding landscapes, and competitive activity to identify high-potential renewal, expansion, and new business opportunities?

Do you enjoy…

• Building and sustaining executive relationships, where trust, visibility, and consistent follow-through create the foundation for long-term partnership success and renewal?
• Translating complex offerings into clear value propositions, helping partners understand how LE's work addresses their specific priorities and constraints?
• Operating across silos, connecting frontline business development efforts with internal operations, program teams, and finance to ensure proposals are compelling, feasible, and sustainable?
• Leveraging technology and data, using CRM systems, AI tools, and market intelligence to enhance decision-making, strengthen proposal quality, and improve pipeline management?

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 10+ 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
• Experience working with or selling to school districts, state education agencies, or comparable public-sector systems (strongly preferred)
• Exceptional writing and presentation skills, with proven ability to develop pitches, decks, and proposals that win work and set partnerships up for success
• Demonstrated professional visibility and external presence, including active engagement on platforms such as LinkedIn and participation in relevant conferences or networks
• Proficiency with CRM systems (Salesforce preferred) and sales forecasting practices
• Strong relationship-building capabilities, with demonstrated ability to build trust with senior district and state leaders and maintain visibility through site visits, conferences, and convenings
• Ability to engage in frequent national travel (1–5 trips per month, depending on the time of year) (REQUIRED)
• 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
• Knowledge of curriculum, instruction, or professional learning in K–12 education (preferred)
• 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 $127,487 to $172,483 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 $149,985, 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 $159,627. 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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