Director of Community Opportunity Initiatives

We are seeking a Director, Economic Impact , which is a key position within the newly created Office of Civic Engagement and Opportunity for Johns Hopkins University. Johns Hopkins is committed to strengthening the City of Baltimore and neighborhoods around our campuses, while at the same time advancing our economic growth agenda and enriching the mission and work of the institution. This role will work closely with the Vice President for Civic Engagement and Opportunity and partner with the Office of the President and the Office of Public Impact Initiatives to advance the Johns Hopkins strategy.

The portfolio will have a significant focus on education and youth opportunity, including the development, coordination, and execution of Johns Hopkins initiatives that expand educational access, pathways, and opportunities for children and young people in Baltimore City. At the same time, the role is intentionally broader than education and will support the VP across the full body of work of the Office, including community and civic engagement, economic opportunity and inclusion, public impact initiatives, institutional partnerships, stakeholder engagement, and other high-priority initiatives.

Working across Johns Hopkins University, Johns Hopkins Medicine, and external partners, the Director serves as a connector, strategist, project leader, and trusted representative of the VP. The Director will help manage a complex portfolio of initiatives; prepare the VP for meetings, decisions, and engagements; coordinate cross-institutional teams; develop and maintain relationships with key stakeholders; and ensure that priorities move from strategy to execution. The position requires strong judgment, discretion, initiative, relationship management, project management, and the ability to operate effectively in a complex, fast-paced environment.

The Director is responsible for moving forward the Johns Hopkins anchor strategy. The Director will play a critical role in driving forward the institution’s commitment to strengthening the City of Baltimore and neighborhoods around our campuses, while at the same time advancing our economic impact portfolio and enriching the mission and work of the institution. The Director will work closely with the Vice President for Economic Impact to advance the Johns Hopkins strategy.

Specific Duties & Responsibilities

Mission, Vision & Strategy

- Partner with the VP on overall strategy creation and execution of the Economic Impact agenda to achieve significant, enterprise-wide impact.

- Deliver high priority projects and milestones that support the strategic initiatives of the Office of Economic Impact.

- Work with the VP to lead a strategy development process for the team that builds and applies robust insight to deliver impact in a fast-changing environment.

Relationship Management

- Build collaborative relationships across Johns Hopkins University, Johns Hopkins Health System, community groups and external agencies that drive greater efficacy in project delivery and create new project opportunities for the team.
- Take on the role of a “connector” across different teams and initiatives, with both internal and external audiences.
- Build influence, impact and leadership accountability for the Office of Economic Impact across the enterprise to better achieve project outcomes.
- Use relationships to identify new opportunities to work with other internal teams and outside groups and agencies.
- Represent the team to key program-related internal and external constituencies, as appropriate, on committees related to area of expertise and responsibilities of the position. Represent the VP in interactions with leadership, staff, faculty and students in a variety of forums, as requested.
- Maintain strong relationships with Baltimore City Public Schools, educators, nonprofit partners, funders, and government officials to support education initiatives.
- Leading the University’s education and youth opportunity portfolio, including work to improve educational access, attainment, and career pathways for Baltimore City children and youth.

Analytics

- Provide analytical and strategic support for other teams that require the support or coordination of the Office for Economic Impact.

- Conduct complex data gathering and analysis from areas across the Johns Hopkins enterprise, along with external demographic, socioeconomic, business development and educational details on a local, state and national level.

- Utilize data to make process and workflow change recommendations to achieve targeted and measurable outcomes.

Project & Change Management

- Develop and apply processes to identify change management priorities, among a quickly evolving set of opportunities in a way that is aligned with program strategy.
- Partner with the VP on developing content for discussion and reviews with senior leadership.
- Develop project ideas into concrete initiatives that support system-wide economic impact objectives.
- Manage multi-stakeholder initiatives requiring coordination with various internal and external partners.
- Play the lead project manager role across a portfolio of projects.
- Effectively balance effort across the portfolio to reflect relative project priorities.

Grant Management

- Consult with grantees and other partners to generate creative and high impact projects and ensure grants are meeting outcome goals.
- May conduct site visits, provide operational guidance, and convene meetings of key stakeholders.

- Build relationships/connections and approaches to engaging the field (e.g. scholars, practitioners, community voice) that will enable efficient landscaping of investment opportunities linked to pillars of strategy.
- Review letters of inquiry and grant proposals; provide clear, concise and insightful written analyses and recommendations for funding, including drafting and editing proposal summaries and progress reports for review by foundation leadership.

Education and Youth Opportunity Leadership

- Leading the University’s education and youth opportunity portfolio, including work to improve educational access, attainment, and career pathways for Baltimore City children and youth.

Relationship-building with Education Stakeholders

- Maintaining strong relationships with Baltimore City Public Schools, educators, nonprofit partners, funders, and government officials to support education initiatives.

Community Engagement Strategy Design

- Helping design and execute community engagement strategies to strengthen Johns Hopkins’ role as a trusted civic and community partner.

Hosting and Coordinating Community Listening Sessions

- Coordinating stakeholder convenings, listening sessions, and partnership activities that deepen community voice and participation.

Communications and Executive Support

- Drafting speeches, briefing documents, public-facing materials, and other communications, often in partnership with the Office of Communications.

Specific Public Impact Initiative Management

- Providing project leadership for named initiatives such as the Baltimore Strategic Impact Initiative, HopkinsLocal, Live Near Your Work, the JHPD PAL Center, and the Henrietta Lacks Building Community Advisory Committee.

Other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

- Bachelor’s degree.
- Eight years of work experience in economic development or a directly related field. Three years of experience in a strategy development role.
- Additional education may substitute for required experience and additional related experience may substitute for required education beyond a high school diploma/graduation equivalent, to the extent permitted by the JHU equivalency formula.

Preferred Qualifications

- Demonstrated experience leading complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives and translating strategy into execution.
- Demonstrated success operating in a complex, fast-paced environment involving time-sensitive and/or high-profile projects and diverse internal and external constituents.
- Strong project management, relationship management, analytical, writing, and communication skills.
- Demonstrated ability to exercise sound judgment, discretion, initiative, and diplomacy in representing a senior executive and institution.
- Ability to manage multiple priorities, establish clear priorities, and consistently deliver high-quality work under tight deadlines.
- Experience with public-private partnerships, philanthropy, community engagement, economic inclusion, or public impact initiatives.
- Experience working with elected officials, government agencies, community leaders, nonprofit organizations, business leaders, funders, and/or media.

Classified Title: Director Economic Impact 
Job Posting Title (Working Title): Director of Community Opportunity Initiatives   
Role/Level/Range: ATP/04/PG  
Starting Salary Range: Min: $102,294.96 - Max: $179,375.04 (Commensurate with experience) 
Employee group: Full Time 
Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:30am - 5:00pm 
FLSA Status: Exempt 
Location: Hybrid: On-site 3-4 days a week 
Department name: 60014552-Civic Engagement and Opportunity 
Personnel area: University Administration