Director, College & Career Access

Director, College & Career Access

The Director of College & Career Access is responsible for executing the KIPP Texas postsecondary access vision across a designated portfolio of high schools. This leader drives college matriculation results by coaching and developing school-based Directors of College & Career Counseling, advisors, and transition teams.

Additionally, this role leads statewide and regional initiatives, including curriculum alignment, instructional coaching, and facilitating high-impact professional development for seminar teachers and advisors. The ultimate goal of this role is to increase overall college enrollment—with a sharp focus on 4-year university enrollment—while building strategic partnerships with school leaders, higher education institutions, and community organizations to secure vital resources for KIPP Texas students.

Success for this role will be defined by:

• Achieve a 80% four-year college enrollment rate and 95% all-pathways enrollment rate by 2030.
• Ensure 100% of portfolio schools consistently implement the college and career curriculum and complete all corresponding student assessments with absolute fidelity.
• Conduct joint observations with DCCCs and provide formal feedback at least twice per week for 100% of seminar instructors within the assigned portfolio.
• Guarantee that 100% of high schools in the portfolio hold regular, monthly "Match Meetings" to review student lists and alignment.
• Ensure 100% of high schools in the portfolio consistently update the Matriculation Tracker, Overgrad, and other required systems ahead of the weekly data entry deadline.
• 75% of the KIPP Forward team will participate in Two Step Survey with at least a 75% satisfaction rating for SY26-27.

Responsibilities:

• Lead a culture that recognizes data use as a tool for continuous improvement and decision-making across middle schools.
• Drive the alignment of data systems, processes, and tools across all KIPP Forward programs statewide.
• Establish consistent, timely data-sharing structures to empower teams with actionable insights.
• Standardize compliance metrics and data entry protocols to maintain data integrity.
• Make bold recommendations based on data and provide insights to KIPP Texas leaders on a recurring basis (e.g., weekly).
• Provide guidance and co-create strategies for the portfolio of schools, grounded in accountability and designed to increase student achievement and readiness for high school success.
• Coach and develop college access and transition teams to effectively leverage, utilize, and maintain data systems, directly driving overall and 4-year college enrollment.
• Provide professional development opportunities including weekly office hours to ensure all KIPP Forward teams can effectively utilize data management systems.
• Support leaders in effectively presenting data reports to teachers, families, and staff to build shared ownership and accountability for outcomes.
• Engage statewide, regional, and school leaders in rigorous, data-driven dialogue to identify best practices, address gaps, and accelerate student outcomes.
• Collaborate with schools to translate high-level goals into specific actions that drive execution and improve student results.
• Ensure collaborative reviews lead to clear operational adjustments and measurable growth across all regions.
• Build and sustain strategic relationships with high school leaders, national organizations, higher education institutions, and community partners to secure critical resources for students.
• Work closely with the Strategy and DDL teams to ensure consistent and aligned statewide data sharing.
• Works closely with the KIPP Foundation on data collection and analysis, as well as troubleshooting challenges across the state.

Qualifications

Bachelor's degree from an accredited four-year institution required. Master's degree preferred. Professional development course on college and career readiness and success preferred. 2+ years managing a team towards College Access outcomes. Experience working with high school students (especially first-generation) and their families in the college counseling field, strongly preferred. Experience in high school college access programming and systems.

Competency and Skills:

• Experience in leading high-performance and diverse teams.
• Experience and knowledge of high school access programming and systems.
• Resilience, strong work ethic and outcomes oriented—demonstrated ability to balance competing priorities under stress and follow through, despite sometimes tight or back to back deadlines.
• Previous experience in using data to drive decision making strongly.
• Comfort with working in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
• Strong interpersonal skills; Ability to work with a wide-range of people including teachers, parents, students, alumni, corporate partners, vendors and admissions personnel.
• Ability to project plan, organize, and prioritize, with a collaborative spirit.
• Fast learner with the ability to inquire and be open to feedback.
• Proven written and verbal communication skills.
• Bilingual (English/Spanish) preferred, but not required.

Additional Information

What We Bring to the Table:

• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans with coverage options for employees and their families.
• Competitive vacation and flexible paid time off (PTO) policies.
• Paid family leave.
• Flexible spending account or high-yield HSA.
• Employee assistance programs.
• KIPP also offers the following employee-paid benefits: legal plans, LifeLock identity protection, life insurance and disability insurance.

Physical Requirements:

• The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
• The person in this position needs to be able to move about inside and outside the school throughout the workday.
• The candidate is expected to attend conferences, meetings and training sessions both virtually and in person within the Region.

Additional Requirements:

• Reliable transportation is needed for travel between campuses.
• Ability to maintain emotional control under stress.
• Work with frequent interruptions.

Work Environment:

Reports to school or central office site 3 days a week + 2 days remote

Travel Requirements:

Moderate travel: Regular travel to school sites, regional offices or external locations for professional learning, meetings and other work related activities. Travel frequency may increase based on time of year.

KIPP Texas is an Equal Opportunity Employer. KIPP Texas ensures equal employment opportunities regardless of race, creed, gender, color, national origin, religion, age, sexual orientation, or disability. Any individual needing assistance in making an application for any opening should contact the Talent Team.

Federal law requires employers to provide reasonable accommodation to qualified individuals with disabilities. Please tell us if you require a reasonable accommodation to apply for a job or to perform your job duties. Examples of reasonable accommodation include making a change to the application process or work procedures, providing documents in an alternate format, using a sign language interpreter, or using specialized equipment.