Director, Policy and Community Engagement

Director Of Policy And Community Engagement

National Louis is a 135+ year old university that has been grounded in the values of innovation, access, excellence, and equity from its inception. As an institution, we believe in providing access to educational opportunity and that education is our greatest lever for social and economic mobility. We are a student-focused community that is committed to continuous improvement and superior student service.

We believe that through education we are able to empower change and build healthy communities. Our hard-working community is based on collaboration and respect for all team members and students.

The Director of Policy and Community Engagement drives the McCormick Institute for Early Childhood's (MIEC's) efforts to build strategic partnerships with community members, advocates, and policymakers, ensuring MIEC's applied research agenda advances its mission to support, elevate, and transform the Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) profession. This leadership role shapes and executes engagement strategies that amplify community voices, influence policy, and translate research into real-world impact—ultimately improving outcomes for children, families, communities and the ECEC professionals (including, and specifically, leaders in ECEC programs) that serve them.

Community Engagement

• Build, maintain, and deepen authentic relationships with diverse community stakeholders and partners.
• Facilitate community input and collaboration to shape research and programming agendas.
• Organize and lead community meetings, listening sessions, and other engagement events, including the Public Policy Forum at the Institute's annual Leadership Connections conference.
• Develop strategies to elevate community voices within MIEC's research and programming.
• Increase awareness and visibility of MIEC's work among national, state, and local organizations, families, and ECEC professionals.

Policy and Advocacy Engagement

• Cultivate and strengthen relationships with local/state/national policymakers and ECEC advocates.
• Translate research findings into actionable policy briefs, testimony, and strategic communications.
• Monitor policy developments in the ECEC space and identify strategic opportunities for MIEC to engage.
• Collaborate with advocacy groups to amplify evidence-based messages and reform efforts.
• Represent MIEC at ECEC policy and advocacy meetings, forums, legislative hearings, and convenings – maintain active membership in policy committees or policy tables.

Applied Research Collaboration

• Work closely with MIEC's Research Director to ensure that research priorities are grounded in the needs of community members and the current ECEC policy landscape.
• Support research projects with stakeholders, ensuring relevance, participation, and impact.
• Facilitate feedback loops so that findings are shared with and utilized by the communities and policymakers involved.
• Contribute to strategic planning and refinement of the MIEC research agenda.
• Support research grant seeking efforts and partnership development with potential funders.

Communication and Dissemination

• Oversee and contribute to the development of communication materials tailored to diverse audiences (e.g., briefs, infographics, fact sheets, presentations, etc.).
• Collaborate with internal and external partners to disseminate research findings and community-informed insights.
• Maintain a strong public presence for MIEC through meetings, conferences, and digital engagement.

Strategic Planning and Institutional Alignment

• Engage in ongoing collaboration with MIEC leadership to co-develop, review, and refine community and policy engagement strategies, ensuring alignment with and continuous improvement of MIEC's strategic goals.
• Contribute to long-term visioning and sustainability planning for MIEC initiatives.
• Support and/or supervise junior staff, interns, or consultants as needed.

• Master's Degree Public Policy, Early Childhood Education, Community Development, Social Work, Child and/or Family Development, Educational Leadership, Family/Community Systems Development, or a related field. Doctorate preferred.
• Seven…