Senior Director, Pre-Kindergarten-Post-Secondary Systems; Engagement

Puget Sound ESD seeks a Senior Director of Pre-Kindergarten to Post-Secondary Systems (Engagement) to provide regional leadership and program implementation across King and Pierce Counties to advance the Agency’s End:
Success for Each Child and Eliminating the Opportunity Gap by Leading with Racial Equity. In collaboration with school leaders, staff, and community partners, this role ensures that programs are designed to meet the diverse needs of students and families. The position plays a critical role in supporting efforts that align with PSESD goals while fostering inclusive, equitable, and supportive learning environments that promote student engagement and success

This position reports to the Executive Director – Learning, Teaching & Family Support Leadership Development.

Open until filled; for best consideration, submit a complete application by January 5th, 2026
. Tentative in-person interviews are scheduled for:
First Interviews Thursday, January 8, 2026 and Friday, January 9, 2026.

PSESD is one of nine regional educational agencies serving school districts and state approved charter and private schools in Washington. Serving over 39% of Washington’s K-12 public school students, our agency provides critical services designed to ensure that our students are ready to enter school, achieve at high levels in the K-12 system, and succeed in postsecondary endeavors. We are committed to becoming an Antiracist Multicultural Organization driven by equity in education.

To learn more about PSESD, visit (Use the "Apply for this Job" box below)..

• Build capacity and provide leadership in the area disconnected youth reengagement, Career & Technical Education (CTE) and workforce development for the purpose of supporting programs and projects in alignment with Agency work.
• Lead the design, alignment, and continuous improvement of youth-serving systems that span education, workforce, human services, juvenile justice, and community-based organizations.
• Ensure regulatory and funding compliance for grants, including reporting, budgeting, and documentation.
• Collaborate with partner districts to facilitate the implementation, integration, and evaluation curriculum that meets state CTE standards and industry expectations.
• Provide strategic oversight for dropout re-engagement initiatives, including Open Doors/1418 programs, alternative learning environments, competency-based education models, and flexible scheduling pathways.
• Lead integration of CTE, career-connected learning, and workforce development systems across K–12, community and technical colleges, and regional employers.
• Strengthen alignment between industry demand, regional labor market data, and education programming.
• Partner with Workforce Development Councils, chambers, labor, and industry intermediaries to expand paid work-based learning, apprenticeships, and credential pathways.
• Build and maintain partnerships with employers, workforce boards, higher education institutions, and community organizations to support work-based learning and job placement for youth.
• Lead strategies to recruit students into CTE pathways, reengage disconnected or off-track youth, and ensure equitable access to programs.
• Monitor program quality and student outcome indicators such as completion rates, credential attainment, work-based learning participation, and postsecondary transitions to drive continuous improvement.
• Lead with moral clarity, professional integrity, and ethical responsibility in all decision-making, particularly in complex cross-system environments impacting young people, families, and communities.
• Demonstrate ecosystem leadership by stewarding relationships across education, workforce, community, Tribal, public sector, and industry partners with humility, trust-building, and shared accountability.
• Navigate ambiguity, competing interests, and power dynamics with discernment, courage, and transparency, prioritizing the long-term well-being of youth and communities over short-term institutional gain.
• Model values-aligned leadership behaviors including empathy, reflective practice, cultural humility, and respect for lived experience.

• Assist other…