GEAR UP Director

Are you a proven team leader with experience in the education sector? Do you seek to address complex, systemic challenges? Are you dedicated to supporting young people to achieve their dreams, potential, and grow Vermont’s future? Consider joining our VSAC team as the Director of our GEAR UP Program! You’ll join a team of highly committed, collaborative, and supportive colleagues who are dedicated to student success.

The Vermont Student Assistance Corporation (VSAC) helps Vermonters of all ages prepare and plan for college and career training. The VSAC GEAR UP program is funded by the Federal Department of Education and is designed to increase postsecondary enrollment for Vermont students who are experiencing structural and systemic inequity and exclusion. GEAR UP is a national program and communities across the country implement GEAR UP programs.

Over 2,500 students from over 35 Vermont middle and high schools participate in VSAC’s GEAR UP program. Most students who participate in GEAR UP are from a modest income background or first in their family to pursue education after high school. Our work is often focused on the people in our society who benefit from and merit additional support and information to attain their goals, including members of the BIPOC community and others.

The VSAC GEAR UP Director leads a team of 20 VSAC staff members who work across the state of Vermont serving students from middle school through their first year of education or training after high school. These staff hold a variety of roles, including staff who are embedded in middle and high schools, helping students to explore passions, identify education pathways to promising careers, and ensuring they have financial aid to support their goals.

The successful GEAR UP Director candidate will:

• Be a highly motivated and skilled leader who is focused on successful education and training outcomes for Vermont students and families.
• Maintain networks of communities, organizations, and stakeholders that are implementing both innovative and proven practices to effectively serve students and families in college and career readiness.
• Be an experienced supervisor and coach, with a focus on retaining and developing talent.
• Understand and excel at managing large, complex Federal budgets and fundraising through grant writing.
• Understand and enjoy grant management, developing, implementing and improving systems and processes that support staff and student success and leading thoughtful and impactful reporting to the federal government.
• Have a broad, analytical approach to the GEAR UP Director role, building understanding of and incorporating all VSAC programming into leadership of the VSAC GEAR UP grant.

The salary range for this position is $85,000-$100,000.

To Apply:

To view a full job description and to apply online please visit https://www.vsac.org/careers