Harlem Children’s Zone (HCZ) — a world-renowned education and poverty-fighting organization based in New York — seeks an enthusiastic, dedicated, and mission-aligned Assistant Director to support and assist with leading our After School Programs.
The Assistant Program Director will bring a passion for the mission of Harlem Children’s Zone: break the cycle of intergenerational poverty with comprehensive, on-the-ground programming that builds up opportunities for children and families to thrive in school, work, and life.
We are seeking an Assistant Director to help lead the day-to-day operations of a dynamic after-school program, ensuring alignment with HCZ’s mission, values, and long-term goals. The ideal candidate is a proven leader with experience in program and administrative systems development, staff coaching, and professional learning design, who is passionate about improving outcomes for children and families in historically underserved communities.
The Assistant Director will serve as a key leader within the After-School Program, partnering closely with the Director to oversee daily operations, staff management, and program excellence. Together, they will ensure the delivery of high-quality programming that provides hundreds of students with a safe, supportive, and enriching environment where they can build confidence, develop critical life skills, and thrive both personally and socially.
Through a diverse range of engaging, project-based learning experiences, students explore high-caliber enrichment opportunities across the arts, including dance, culinary arts, media arts, and production, as well as health, wellness, and physical fitness programming. Scholars also participate in leadership development, college and career readiness initiatives, and character-building activities focused on community service, conflict resolution, and social-emotional growth. In addition, students can engage in a variety of athletic and recreational opportunities, including basketball, soccer, table tennis, track and field, and karate, promoting teamwork, discipline, and overall well-being.
We strive to create strong bonds and partnerships among students, families, and staff to meet the needs of each individual child and the community overall.
For more information, check out Want to Work at Harlem Children’s Zone? Here’s 7 Things You Need to Know.
Requirements
- Bachelor's Degree; Master’s degree preferred
- 3+ years of experience managing in an education, social services, or community-related program.
Who you are
- A commitment to HCZ's mission and the communities we serve
- Demonstrated record of meeting and exceeding goals and positively impacting children, their families, and the community as a whole
- Demonstrated excellence at youth development program design, implementation, management, and continuous improvement
- Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills, both oral and written, including the ability to navigate and manage multiple stakeholders
- Strong knowledge of child safety protocols in New Yok State and the demonstrated ability to navigate complex stakeholder engagement while ensuring child safety
- Strong people manager with demonstrated success coaching and developing staff to improve scholar outcomes
- Skilled at building, implementing, and refining systems and structures that support high-quality programming and efficient operations
- Highly organized with excellent time management skills and a strong sense of urgency, without sacrificing accuracy or ethical standards
- Strong qualitative and quantitative data analysis and problem-solving skills
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), Outlook), and Google Suite
- Willing and able to work flexible hours based on program needs
What you’ll do
- Support daily operations of our program serving scholars and families directly
- Partner with the Director to ensure students receive high-quality academic and enrichment programming
- Supervise and develop a multidisciplinary team supporting students’ academic, artistic, and socio-emotional growth
- Provide coaching and feedback to middle managers and youth-facing staff to strengthen instructional practice, engagement strategies, and overall impact on scholars
- Develop, implement, and continuously improve programmatic and administrative systems that support student services, staffing, scheduling, attendance tracking, compliance, and budgeting
- Assist in the design, implementation, and continuous improvement of professional development for youth-facing staff, aligned to program goals, scholar needs, and HCZ priorities
- Continuously monitor program performance and operational systems to ensure consistent progress toward program goals and scholar outcomes
- Partner and collaborate with other sites and program leaders across to align after-school curriculum, policies, procedures, and expectations
- Help to build a culture of continuous learning, accountability, and reflective practice among staff
- Ensure the program stays on track to meet program goals and objectives consistently
- Use data, observations, and stakeholder feedback to continuously improve the student experience and program quality
- Clarify work policies for staff and ensure they are consistent with HCZ policies and procedures
- Ensure all students are safe, engaged, and appropriately supervised at all times
- Foster strong relationships and effective communication with students, parents, staff, and HCZ leadership
Schedule
- This role requires an 8-hour shift Monday through Friday, scheduled between 9:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. Final hours will be based on program assignment and operational needs of the after-school site/program.
- Summer Schedule: To support summer camp operations, employees work an 8-hour shift within a schedule that may range from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Summer hours are determined by the site and program assignment you support during the school year.
Benefits
As a member of the Harlem Children's Zone team, you will join a supportive and inclusive community dedicated to helping children, families — and our staff — thrive. We offer highly competitive salaries, a comprehensive benefits package, and opportunities for growth.
Our exceptional full- time benefits include:
- Highly competitive base salaries
- Paid time off
- Employee referral bonus
- Career advancement
- No-cost health insurance
- Life Insurance
- Short-and long-term disability
- Additional voluntary benefits
- Wellness discounts
- Commuter benefits
- Financial wellness perks
- Additional Benefits (Discounts on flights, hotels, theme parks, concert tickets, and more.)
The salary range for this position is $70,000 - $75,000 per year. To be considered, interested applicants should apply directly through the posting. No telephone inquiries or recruiters, please. Replies will only be sent to qualified applicants.Harlem Children's Zone and Promise Academy Charter Schools does not provide work visas for candidates who require employer sponsorship to ensure work authorization in the United States. Harlem Children’s Zone is an EOE.