Director of Policy

About Voices for Virginia’s Children Voices for Virginia’s Children champions public policies and legislation that achieve positive and equitable outcomes for young people. We envision a Virginia in which our systems center young people, ensuring their ability to realize their brightest potential is no longer predictable by race, socioeconomic status, or geography. Voices’ current strategic plan can be found at  

. For more information about Voices work, visit (Use the "Apply for this Job" box below)..org

About the Position: Voices is hiring a Director of Policy. The Director of Policy provides leadership, strategic coordination, and high-level policy expertise across Voices for Virginia’s Children’s full issue portfolio. The Director works collaboratively with policy, engagement, communications, and grants teams to advance an intersectional, multi-dimensional child and youth policy agenda. The Director of Policy supervises all Policy Analysts and Senior Policy Analysts and ensures excellence in policy research, advocacy strategy, coalition engagement, and legislative impact.

• Policy Leadership:
  You will lead our policy work in a domain related to child and youth wellbeing, while also working collaboratively with policy, research and engagement staff to create a multi-disciplinary policy agenda. You will provide policy analysis support to staff and partners.
• Relationship Building:
  You will lead and participate in various coalitions within your focus area and will serve as the main Voices liaison for partner organizations. You will provide support and technical assistance to partner coalitions and state work groups to contribute to mobilizing change and creating collective community impact. You will work in partnership with the Director of Engagement and Virginia’s Youth in Action (VAYA) members to ensure that youth voice and lived expertise is centered in Voices’ policy recommendations.
• Supervision:
  You will supervise all Policy Analyst and Sr. Policy Analysts. You will provide mentorship to ensure staff have the knowledge, experience and resources needed to thrive. You will ensure excellence in research, advocacy strategy, coalition engagement and legislative impact across the policy team, building processes that allow for collaboration.
• Strategic Communications:
  You will work with the Communications Manager on developing and executing communications that further advocacy objectives. These may include policy briefs, one-pagers, blogs, etc. You will also conduct and participate in training and presentations on education and advocacy related to your issue area of focus.
• Racial Equity:
  You will promote racial equity across all dimensions of your work, ensuring that policies put forward are assessed for their impact on all races.

• Strong verbal and written communication:
  Ability to effectively communicate complex ideas. Confident and persuasive in public speaking.
• Experienced lobbyist:
  Knowledge and understanding of the Virginia state legislative process and evidence-based policy making with a minimum of 5 years’ experience working in state-level policy advocacy.
• Collaborator:
  Ability to build relationships with legislators, community members, partners organizations and other stakeholders. Able to work collaboratively with others with different backgrounds, beliefs, and values. Engages in conflict productively.
• Multifaceted leader:
  Demonstrated experience leading teams and/or major policy or advocacy initiatives. Ability to manage complex, multifaceted projects, provide mentorship and supervision to staff and ensure strong coordination and impact across multiple priorities.
• Ability to effectively analyze data and research to identify trends and inform policy making.
• Strong commitment to social, economic, and racial justice. Actively centers equity and inclusion and promotes equitable practice and solutions.
• Must live within a 30 mile radius of Richmond, VA

• Highly organized, motivated, and detail-oriented.
• Knowledge and experience in the family economic security, health equity, youth mental health, and/or child welfare policy…