Impact Manager, Early Childhood Literacy

Job Title:

Impact Manager, Early Childhood Literacy (Union)

Status:
Full-Time

Department:
Community Impact Grade: 28

Date Prepared: 6-12-2026 FLSA Status:
Exempt

This position directs all work within a Key Initiative with a focus on early childhood literacy. This position is responsible for creating and sustaining community impact using partnership development and outcomes funding as key methods.

The impact manager understands local communities and develops and maintains effective relationships with community stakeholders and partners to address United Way priorities. The impact manager identifies and researches early childhood literacy trends to drive United Way funding priorities, informs Community Impact investment strategies and directions, develops, directs, and oversees a Key Initiative focused on early childhood literacy, attracts additional financial resources by leveraging United Way investments and demonstrating measurable community impact.

Include the following, but are not limited to:

Develop & direct Key Initiative

Lead the development and implementation of United Way's Key Initiative strategies and aligned programmatic funding focused on addressing early childhood literacy. This position reports to the Director of Key Initiatives.

• Lead the development of the key initiative using the Key Initiative Development Process.
• Identify needs, assets, partners, resources, and innovative approaches to achieve intended key initiative goals, in partnership with leadership, volunteers, and community partners.
• Establish and engage an Advisory Council of subject matter experts in partnership with United Way serving as the backbone organization for the key initiative, guiding the vision and strategy.
• Utilize a collective impact model to establish a common agenda, shared measurements, mutually reinforcing activities, and provide continuous communication.
• Establish strong collaborative partnerships with funded organizations and community partners, provide support, guidance, and build an inclusive effort.
• Develop funding priorities for Key Initiative to maximize potential for community impact.
• Identify policy and system-level changes that will afford long-term, equitable solutions, in partnership with the Advisory Council, aligned donor network, and Director of Public Policy.
• Refine outcomes and indicators and identify sources and data collection methods for both quantitative and qualitative measures, with Director of Data and Measurement.
• Lead the implementation of all strategies of the key initiative while keeping pace with our community-wide goals.
• Develop reports of program outcomes for use with board, community education, and public relations.
• Represent United Way on various committees and community work groups aligned with Key Initiative.
• Serve as lead spokesperson for Key Initiative in support of systems level change, advocacy, and fundraising.
• Represent United Way at press conferences and media interviews, as necessary.
• Present to and engage workplaces, donor affinity groups, and any other institutions or entities as relevant about the critical importance of the key initiative.
• Develop and support Volunteer Engagement activities related to Key Initiative, in partnership with the Volunteer Engagement team.
• Support fundraising efforts and donor network engagement aligned with the key initiative, in partnership with Resource Development.
• Direct and facilitate competitive grant process including management of an application review committee.
• Conduct annual site visits and grantee convenings, including an annual initiative summit with best practice training.
• Evaluate grantee year end reports, providing feedback and guidance to grantees when needed.

Work with grant team to ensure that Community Impact language and data is included in applications. Provide writing and editing support to grant-lead and identify potential opportunities for additional funding for Key Initiatives and related strategies.

This job has minimal supervisory responsibilities (i.e., periodic oversight of interns).

• Master of education, early childhood education, social work, public health, or other related graduate degree required.
• Four to six years of experience in human services, with early childhood literacy or education preferred.
• Background in using outcomes in program development, operation, or evaluation.
• Program and project management experience that includes planning, administration, and implementation.
• Understanding of community needs and strategies to promote community impact.
• Good understanding of group dynamics and group facilitation skills. Ability to communicate and work effectively with volunteers and others in the community representing a broad range of interests and backgrounds.
• Experience in working with diverse populations.
• Evidence of ability to develop and engage with collaborative efforts.
• Demonstrated success in problem anticipation and resolution.
• Ability…