Program Director - Elementary; Queens

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Elmhurst, NY, US

Salary: $70,000.00 – $75,000.00 Annually (commensurate with experience)

The Program Director is responsible for the overall day-to-day management, success, and quality of the elementary after‑school program. This includes ensuring a safe, supportive, and enriching environment for students, supervising a team of one full‑time Program Coordinator and 15–20 part‑time staff, and serving as the primary liaison between the school, SAYA, and funding agencies. The Program Director will ensure that all programmatic, contractual, and compliance goals are met while maintaining a high standard of care and innovation in youth development.

• Oversee day‑to‑day operations of the after school program
• Ensure a safe, inclusive and structured environment that promotes youth engagement and learning
• Lead the planning and implementation of high‑quality activities that are nurturing, physically and emotionally safe and aligned with the school’s curriculum and SAYA’s primary focus areas and initiatives
• Establish rapport with youth and provide mentoring, guidance and overall direction for their personal development
• Advocate on behalf of students and families and make appropriate referrals to families for outside support services when needed
• Initiate and organize special events such as performances, parent engagement events, field trips, etc.

• Build a team of youth development professionals, including Mentors and Activity Specialists
• Supervise, coach and support a team of one Program Coordinator and 15–20 part‑time staff including Mentors and Activity Specialists
• Lead regularly scheduled team meetings and individual supervisory meetings with staff
• Foster a positive staff culture that values collaboration, accountability and continuous improvement
• Provide ongoing professional development and performance evaluations to staff

• Build and manage partnership with school administration, teachers/key school personnel, program/organizational partners, subcontractors and vendors
• Attend school and community events as needed to represent the program
• Build and maintain strong, positive and welcoming relationships with parents through regular communication, meetings and events
• Prepare and distribute written materials to promote SAYA programming, including flyers, brochures, newsletters, and postings on school bulletin boards
• Collaborate with colleagues to collect and utilize data to evaluate program impact, inform promising practices, celebrate successes and identify areas of improvement

• Meet all compliance and safety requirements set forth by SAYA, the school in which the program operates, NYC Public Schools, NYC Department of Youth & Community Development and NYS Department of Health
• Ensure the NYC Department of Youth & Community Development database is updated weekly including enrollment, attendance, workscope, program schedule, and staffing
• Assist in the development and monitoring of the program’s budget in collaboration with the leadership team and finance department
• Track spending and resource allocation to ensure cost‑effective operations and compliance

• Bachelor’s degree in education, social work, youth/child development, non‑profit management, public administration or a related field; graduate degree preferred.
• Minimum of five to seven years’ experience working in education, social work, and/or youth development.
• Experience working with elementary or middle school aged youth.
• Knowledge and understanding of youth development, after school and public education arenas specifically in New York City.
• Excellent interpersonal and relationship building skills.
• Ability to develop partnerships, work with and in teams.
• Ability to multi‑task, problem‑solve and produce results in a fast‑paced environment.
• Ability to work…