Director of Partnership Development & Higher Education Strategy

Who We Are

Our mission is simple but critical: to build pathways for adult learners to earn high-quality, workforce-aligned degrees and credentials from North Carolina’s public universities.

At Project Kitty Hawk, our work reflects our company values:

Collaboration – We prioritize our partners’ success and reputation, aligning every initiative with their goals, reflecting their values, and enhancing their impact.

Innovation – We innovate, not replicate. As creative problem solvers, we use data-driven insights to push boundaries, continuously improve our services, develop solutions, and redefine what it means to serve nontraditional learners.

Empathy – We understand the unique challenges of nontraditional learners, and are committed to supporting them with empathy, respect, and solutions that fit their needs.

Integrity – We operate with transparency and accountability in everything we do. We uphold honesty, take ownership of our work, and maintain the highest standards.

Teamwork – We embody the collaboration we seek. We always strive to be dependable, supportive, and solutions‑oriented teammates.

Together, we partner with universities in the University of North Carolina (UNC) System to produce innovative, flexible degree and credential programs in high-demand fields. Each PKH team member plays a vital role in advancing this mission and shaping the future of education for adult learners.

These values will enable us to realize PKH’s vision: to make North Carolina’s public universities the top choice for adult learners and to amplify the UNC System’s role as a national leader in higher education innovation, access, and student success. By joining our team, you have an opportunity to contribute to our achievement of that vision, in the process helping to create opportunities for thousands of learners to earn their success and move up the economic ladder.

At Project Kitty Hawk we hire talented people who are not only dedicated to our mission but share our belief that working together makes us stronger and more effective. In this organization you’ll find individuals with a range of interesting backgrounds and life stories; the true magic happens when those individuals come together to solve problems in service of a common goal.

We encourage you to bring your unique perspective, talents, and ideas to the table as we strive to make a meaningful impact.

The Director of Partnership Development & Higher Education Strategy supports Project Kitty Hawk (PKH) in extending the benefits of public higher education to all North Carolinians. This position is a business development leader who combines genuine fluency in public higher education with the discipline to close deals. The ideal candidate can engage senior university and UNC System Office leadership as a credible thought partner on institutional strategy, while also managing a disciplined pipeline from prospecting through close.

This position works extensively and directly with the UNC System Office, translating system‑wide priorities into individual campus partnerships, and has experience nurturing university and System relationships into formal, revenue‑generating partnerships that drive university and company growth. The role requires background experience in:

• Higher education leadership to facilitate strategic and productive engagements at all levels of PKH’s current and prospective partner institutions, including senior university leadership.
• Continuous improvement in university practice and process, including admissions, enrollment management, and student success.
• Direct, sustained engagement with the UNC System Office, serving as a primary point of contact who translates system‑wide priorities into individual campus partnerships and business opportunities.
• Ability to distill key lessons from work with individual universities to inform University System policy, practice, and procurement.
• Business development discipline—prospecting, pipeline management, and deal‑closing to convert relationships into signed partnerships, not just goodwill.
• Internal project and process management to strengthen relationships through transparent and replicable university…