Director, Michelle and David Baldacci Initiative Civil Discourse

Director, Michelle and David Baldacci Initiative on Civil Discourse

The Library of Virginia invites applications for the inaugural Director of the Michelle and David Baldacci Initiative on Civil Discourse, a leadership role dedicated to advancing constructive, evidence-based dialogue across the Commonwealth. This position offers a unique opportunity to build and guide a comprehensive statewide program in partnership with Virginia Commonwealth University and a wide network of civic, educational, and community collaborators.

The ideal candidate will bring a strategic vision for fostering respectful engagement, a commitment to nonpartisan practice, and the ability to design high-quality programs grounded in Virginia's rich historical and archival resources. Individuals who are motivated to strengthen civic learning, support inclusive public discourse, and help Virginians connect across differences are encouraged to apply and contribute to this important work at the Library of Virginia.

The inaugural Director, Michelle and David Baldacci Initiative on Civil Discourse leads the Library of Virginia's (LVA) strategy, programs, and partnerships that foster constructive and respectful dialogue across the Commonwealth. The role's primary focus is to develop the library's responsibilities for the LVA/VCU Baldacci Civil Discourse & Collaboration Initiative—a nonpartisan, statewide effort supported by a joint $13M philanthropic commitment to expand experiential learning, curriculum-connected engagement, and public events that strengthen civil, civic dialogue.

Working closely with Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) and future external partners, the Director designs, delivers, and evaluates high-profile programs at LVA and community sites, cultivates collaborations with public libraries, academic institutions, and civic organizations, and ensures all activities are grounded in evidence-based facilitation practices and LVA's collections and archival resources.

Core Responsibilities:

• Strategy & Leadership
• Develop and maintain LVA's program on civil discourse initiatives, aligning with the pillars (experiential learning, curriculum integration, and public programming).
• Serve as LVA's principal on the collaboration with VCU's College of Humanities & Sciences and related units, coordinating governance, shared workplans, and joint communications.
• Establish nonpartisan principles, risk management practices, and guidelines for issue selection and moderation.
• Program Design & Delivery
• Create experiential learning offerings (e.g., civic simulations, facilitated deliberations, scenario labs); integrate primary sources from LVA collections and archives to ground discussions in Virginia history.
• Produce flagship public programs at LVA (e.g., lecture series, moderated forums, symposia) and statewide roadshows hosted by partner libraries and community venues.
• Co-develop curriculum-aligned activities with VCU faculty and instructional designers; support educator toolkits that connect civil collaboration skills to secondary and postsecondary learning outcomes.
• Partnerships & Outreach
• Build and sustain partnerships with public libraries, academic libraries, K–12 school librarians, museums, civic nonprofits, and community mediators to expand reach across urban, suburban, and rural localities.
• Advise local libraries, civic nonprofits, and community mediators on hosting civic engagement forums (space setup, topic framing, facilitator selection, and contingency planning).
• Evaluation, Data & Learning
• Implement a measurement framework (attendance, demographic diversity, pre/post sentiment, skills acquisition, longitudinal impact).
• Conduct program evaluations, share findings with LVA leadership, advisory boards, and funders;
  Use data to iterate formats, topics, and facilitation techniques; steward a repository of case studies that draw on LVA collections.
• Communications & Public Presence
• Serve as a public spokesperson for LVA's civil discourse initiatives work; prepare remarks, talking points, and media responses.
• Oversee editorial standards for event pages, guides, and social content to maintain nonpartisanship and clarity.
• Coordinate with LVA/VCU communications on press releases and media features related to the Baldacci collaboration.
• Budget, Compliance & Operations
• Manage budgets, contracts, and grants tied to civil discourse programming, ensuring fiscal stewardship and alignment with funder intent.
• Ensure compliance with applicable laws and policies (e.g., Virginia FOIA considerations for public events, records retention).
• Oversee logistics (venues, hybrid tech, event staffing, accessibility services, and contingency planning).

Minimum Qualifications:

• Extensive experience designing and leading public programs in libraries, higher education, civic institutions, or related domains.
• Demonstrated expertise in facilitation and experience with de-escalation and conflict management.
• Excellent communication skills (written, spoken), with comfort presenting to diverse…