Associate Director

Associate Director

The Aspen Institute College Excellence Program aims to strengthen higher education leadership and practice to improve student outcomes—with the ultimate goal of advancing economic mobility and developing talent for the good of each individual and society as a whole. We support this mission through multiple programs, including the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, the American Talent Initiative, the Aspen Presidents and Rising Presidents Fellowships, Unlocking Opportunity, and a range of transfer initiatives designed to improve bachelor's attainment for students who start in community college. Each year, Aspen works closely with hundreds of presidents, board members, senior leaders, and cross-functional teams at community colleges and universities that educate millions of students nationwide.

A large and increasing number of good jobs in the United States favor workers with a bachelor's degree. Yet, only 16 percent of the lowest-income young adults attain a bachelor's degree, a rate three times lower than their higher-income peers. Meanwhile, the United States faces a projected shortage of 4.5 million bachelor's-educated workers by 2032, with the most acute gaps in sustaining-wage jobs in health care, education, management, business, and engineering. Higher education must be ready to keep pace with these demands and connect talent to opportunity, while adapting to the rapid advancements in artificial intelligence that are reshaping entry-level job markets.

For 16 years, the Aspen College Excellence Program (Aspen) has worked to ensure that colleges improve student outcomes, including by strengthening what happens after graduation: securing a job with family-sustaining wages, either directly after community college or after transferring and earning a bachelor's degree. We seek an Associate Director with extensive expertise in higher education reform – including knowledge of community college transfer systems and two- to four-year pathway alignment – to serve as a primary operational lead and a strategic partner in advancing Aspen's national and state-based transfer portfolio. The Associate Director will also lead strands of work that support four-year institutions in advancing economic mobility, developing talent to meet workforce shortages, and ensuring post-graduation value for every bachelor's degree recipient.

One of the Associate Director's first priorities will be designing and delivering a multi-year project engaging dozens of college teams nationally to improve transfer pathways aligned to good jobs. Components of the project will include intensive technical assistance and coaching for college partnerships and teams on transfer and employer engagement; the development of multi-institutional networks at the national and state level; and executive convenings for higher education leaders to diagnose structural barriers, align curricula, and implement proven practices captured in Aspen's research. Position responsibilities center on core project, financial, and people management functions—ensuring high-quality content, leading team members, overseeing grant budgets, and stewarding key relationships. By maintaining a strong focus on student outcomes, the Associate Director will ensure that institutional reforms accelerate degree completion and open clear avenues to economic opportunity for all students. Beyond the project, the Associate Director will engage with Aspen's senior team to consider lessons from the initiative, devise new projects, and support fundraising—all with an eye to strategically advancing Aspen's impact on students.

There is a strong preference for this position to be based in Aspen's Washington, DC office with a minimum two days per week on-site and approximately 8–12 weeks of travel per year. The Associate Director reports to CEP's Director of Research and Innovation. The salary range for this role is $135,000 to $160,000.

The Associate Director role integrates strategic leadership, research translation, and operational oversight to drive scaled institutional reform across Aspen's transfer portfolio.

Program Leadership and Institutional Engagement

• Lead the strategic execution and continuous improvement of Aspen's national and state-based transfer and four-year portfolios to drive multi-institutional networks toward target outcomes in student access, bachelor's degree completion, and career success.
• Devise and implement systems to effectively deliver technical assistance and coaching to two- and four-year college presidents and senior leadership teams to diagnose structural barriers, align curricula, and address regional workforce shortages.
• Design and facilitate executive convenings, regional workshops, and site visits that build cross-sector trust, foster peer learning, and accelerate reform.
• Create high-quality practical tools and implementation guides rooted in field insights and student outcome data—including transfer rates, bachelor's completion, and post-graduation earnings—in collaboration with staff from across Aspen teams (Research and Innovation, Leadership and Field Engagement, Postsecondary Value, and Communications).
• Build and steward strategic relationships across higher education systems, state coordinating boards, research organizations, and philanthropic partners.
• Set agendas for meetings with internal and external stakeholders that balance strategy discussion and project execution.

Project and People Management

• Direct day-to-day project operations, milestone tracking, and narrative reporting to ensure full project accountability and alignment with funder commitments.
• Manage high-stakes partnerships with external organizations to ensure strategic alignment and high-quality project execution.
• Collaborate with members of the senior team to understand and continuously improve project strategy and implementation.
• Oversee project budgets, grant expenditures, and subgrant allocation processes in close coordination with central finance and operations leads.
• Provide direct people management, workload supervision, and mentorship for program staff, setting clear deliverables and supporting professional development.

This role requires at least seven years of relevant experience in education—either at an educational institution, association, nonprofit, or education provider—including direct engagement with community college leaders and senior teams

Mission Alignment: A deep commitment to postsecondary student success and a firm conviction that institutional outcomes can improve at scale when leaders enact proven practices.

Domain Expertise: Extensive experience with institutional reform in higher education, including in at least some of the following domains: community colleges, four-year institutions, 2+2 transfer, and regional workforce development or employer partnerships.

Communications and External Credibility: Strong executive presence with the strong written and oral communication skills required to represent the depth, rigor, and credibility of Aspen's work to college presidents, system leaders, and philanthropic funders.

Project Leadership: A track record of managing complex, high-stakes initiatives, tracking grant milestones, and delivering high-quality work on demanding timelines with diverse stakeholders.

Collaborative Management: Demonstrated capacity to mentor program staff and hold them accountable, work productively across Aspen divisions and project teams, and coordinate effectively with external consultants and partners.

Operational Execution: Sharp attention to detail, sound judgment in managing project logistics, and a problem-solving approach grounded in patience, resourcefulness, and quality execution.

Analytical Capacity: Demonstrated ability to synthesize quantitative data and qualitative field evidence into actionable institutional strategies and field-facing tools.

Adaptability and Resilience: Comfort incorporating feedback across organizational layers, navigating ambiguity, and adjusting priorities to meet shifting demands.

Educational Background: A bachelor's degree is required; an advanced degree in higher education, public policy, organizational leadership, or a related field is preferred.