Senior Policy Advisor to the Chief of Staff

Senior Policy Advisor to the Chief of Staff

The New York City Department of Correction (DOC) is an integral part of the City's evolving criminal justice system, participating in reform initiatives and strategies aimed at moving the City towards a smaller jail system without compromising public safety. The DOC is responsible for maintaining a safe and secure environment for our employees, visitors, volunteers, and people in our custody. Importantly, safe jails enable DOC to provide people in custody with the tools and opportunities they need to successfully re-enter their communities.

The New York City Department of Correction is seeking to recruit a Senior Policy Advisor to the Chief of Staff. Reporting directly to the Chief of Staff (COS) and exercising wide latitude for independent judgment and initiative, the Senior Policy Advisor will provide centralized expertise and strategic counsel on policy issues, working closely with the Public Information, Legislative Affairs and Labor Relations teams to align agency policy with internal and external messaging.

The Senior Policy Advisor will be a critical member of the team, ensuring that the Commissioner's vision and mission are realized. The Senior Policy Advisor will support the planning, coordination, and execution of high-priority initiatives across these divisions, helping to ensure that operational and programmatic goals, strategic priorities, and executive directives are advanced and communicated in an efficient and timely manner.

Responsibilities include (but are not limited to) tracking project plans, timelines, and deliverables; assembling and analyzing quantitative and qualitative data; preparing executive-level presentations, briefing memoranda, reports, and correspondence; and developing recommendations to improve agency performance, operational effectiveness, and resource management. The position will also monitor the status of critical projects, identify operational risks or barriers to implementation, and recommend corrective actions to executive leadership.

The Senior Policy Advisor will regularly engage with senior staff across DOC, partner agencies, oversight entities, and external stakeholders to gather information, resolve issues, and support strategic initiatives. The incumbent may represent the COS in internal and external meetings, serve as a proxy on designated matters, and coordinate special assignments of significant importance to the Department. The ideal candidate is a highly organized, analytically strong, highly flexible individual with a "can do" professional approach.

Competitive candidates will have exceptional writing, presentation, and project management skills, capable of operating effectively in a fast-paced executive environment while managing multiple priorities simultaneously.

Qualification Requirements 1. A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college, and four years of full-time experience in corrections, social work, psychology, law, public administration, law enforcement, or a related field providing direct services to an inmate or detention population within a correctional or related facility, at least one (1) year of which must have been in a responsible supervisory, administrative or consultative capacity;

or 2. A high school diploma or evidence of having passed a high school equivalency examination and six (6) years of full-time experience as described above; or 3. Education and/or experience equivalent to "1" or "2" above. Service as an inmate in correctional or related facility may be substituted for a portion of the required experience up to a maximum of two years on a year for year basis.

A graduate degree from an accredited college or university with a major in social work, psychology, law, criminal justice or public administration which includes a field placement performing duties as described above, may be substituted for up to one year of full-time experience as described in "1" above. However, all candidates must have at least two years of full-time experience as described in "1" above, at least one year of which must have been in a supervisory, administrative…