Program Director, Completion Corps

Position Summary

The Program Director of the College Completion Corps is a new position to Michigan College Access Network (MCAN) as we expand our commitment to AmeriCorps and our college success programming. Under the supervision of the Director of Service Strategy, the Program Director will help design, implement and evaluate a new program, the College Completion Corps. Model development has already begun.

The College Completion Corps is an AmeriCorps-funded program that places college completion coaches on community college campuses across the state to support students in successfully retaining, persisting and completing a post-secondary certificate or degree. MCAN received a planning grant from the Michigan Community Service Commission in 2019 to support the development of a full proposal to launch the program in mid-late 2020.

The ideal candidate is self-motivated, technically-capable, detail-oriented and has the ability to prioritize multiple tasks in a fast-paced, innovative environment. Having a tolerance for ambiguity and an adventuresome outlook will help ensure success within MCAN’s work and culture. A strong commitment and understanding of the role of college access in addressing racism and equity is essential. An understanding of the federal AmeriCorps program will be helpful as well.

This position is currently grant funded.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities

The Program Director performs a wide range of duties including, but not limited to, the following:

• Supervise all future and current program staff.
• Plan and deliver high quality and effective pre- and in-service training to all completion coaches. Assess training to ensure continuous improvement and just-in-time training when necessary. Seek and contract with external training partners where appropriate.
• Plan and deliver all training for campus-based site supervisors required for Completion Corps host sites.
• Help maintain strong relationships with funding partners including foundations, employers and other investors.
• Ensure a robust recruitment process for high-quality completion coaches who represent the communities and campuses they will be serving and meet the requirements to serve as an AmeriCorps member.
• Work closely with host campuses regarding recruitment, training, data collection, evaluation and any other topics necessary for program success.
• Help create, manage and report on program budgets including grant funding and other investments.
• Collect and manage appropriate data to measure program impact. Make programmatic changes to increase impact as the program evolves. Regularly report outcomes internally at MCAN and externally to coaches, partners, host sites, funders and the public.
• Help create, launch and grow an alumni engagement program to ensure Completion Coaches stay connected to MCAN after their years of service.
• Work closely with the Michigan Community Service Commission (MCSC) and its AmeriCorps Program to ensure compliance, protocols and systems are created and kept up as the federal and state requirements change over time. Serve as an AmeriCorps Program Director and participate in all required activities as such with the MCSC.
• Work within the MCAN Service Strategy department and across the organization with other departments to coordinate, collaborate and amplify all work.
• Work with the Community Mobilization department to manage the grantmaking process for applicant campuses to the Completion Corps program including creating and updating the request for proposals, facilitating the review process, outreaching to potential applicants, and managing memoranda of understanding.
• Serve as a contributing member of the MCAN team and provide leadership in increasing postsecondary access and success on behalf of the organization and in support of the strategic plan. This includes finding ways to build an anti-racist internal and external culture.
• Employ Targeted Universalism to move the needle on MCAN’s college access dashboard metrics.
• Speak widely across the state and country at meetings and conferences to raise the profile of the program and the organization while providing advice and learnings to others seeking to support our or alike missions.
• Work with and support Local College Access Networks, Promise Zones, and other partner organizations to assist their efforts and ensure the Completion Corps is aligned with their activities.
• Perform other duties as needed to advance the mission of the Michigan College Access Network.