Educations and Innovation Program Manager

Job Description

Job Description

Mission: The mission of the Latino Center of the Midlands is to cultivate generations of engaged, thriving Latinos through educational foundations, workforce development and leadership opportunities.

Position Summary

The Education and Innovation Program Manager provides strategic, operational, and instructional leadership for LCM's Education and Innovation program. The Manager is responsible for program quality and growth, participant outcomes, staff supervision, curriculum and instructional standards, workforce and educational pathways, partnerships, budget management, data quality, grant compliance, and continuous improvement.

The Manager establishes annual program priorities and performance targets in collaboration with the COO and leads the implementation of strategies to achieve those goals. The position strengthens access to high-quality adult education while connecting participants to employment, workforce training, entrepreneurship, postsecondary education, and other opportunities that support long-term economic and educational advancement.

The Ideal Candidate Should Possess the Following Characteristics

• Passion for helping adults achieve educational, employment, and personal goals.

• Strong leadership skills with the ability to establish program direction and translate goals into measurable outcomes.

• Experience in adult education, curriculum development, or related programming.

• Strategic and resourceful approach to identifying and addressing barriers affecting adult learners.

• Strong judgment, organization, decision-making, and problem-solving skills.

• Collaborative and entrepreneurial approach to program development and growth.

• Ability to build productive relationships with employers, educational institutions, workforce organizations, and community partners.

• Interest in innovative approaches, including technology and artificial intelligence, that expand educational and workforce opportunities.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities Program Leadership, Strategy and Accountability

• Develop and implement annual Education goals, work plans, and performance targets in collaboration with the COO.

• Monitor key performance indicators, including enrollment, attendance, retention, course completion, educational gains, participant progression, and transitions to workforce training, employment, entrepreneurship, postsecondary education, or other educational opportunities.

• Regularly review program performance with the COO, identify challenges or performance gaps, and develop and implement corrective strategies when established goals are not being met.

• Lead program growth and continuous improvement by analyzing participant needs, enrollment trends, program performance, community needs, workforce opportunities, and available resources.

• Establish operational priorities and make day-to-day program decisions related to scheduling, staffing assignments, curriculum implementation, participant services, program activities, and allocation of approved program resources within established organizational policies and budgets.

Participant Recruitment, Engagement and Success

• Oversee student recruitment, enrollment, orientation, placement, attendance, retention, and completion strategies to achieve established annual participation and performance goals.

• Establish student-centered practices that identify barriers to participation and connect students with appropriate LCM programs, community resources, workforce services, and educational opportunities.

• Monitor participant engagement and outcomes and implement strategies to improve attendance, persistence, course completion, and successful transitions to additional opportunities.

Instruction and Educational Quality

• Oversee the development and delivery of educational programming, including ELL, GED, Citizenship, workforce education, and other programming offered by LCM.

• Establish and maintain curriculum standards, instructional expectations, assessments, course progression, and learning outcomes.

• Evaluate instructional quality and participant outcomes and provide coaching, resources, and professional development to strengthen instructional practices.

• Guide the appropriate integration of in-person, virtual, and technology-supported learning to improve participant access and engagement.

• Provide temporary instructional coverage when necessary to maintain program continuity while prioritizing appropriate long-term staffing solutions.

Workforce Education and Career Pathways

• Develop and strengthen pathways connecting Education participants to workforce training, industry-recognized credentials, employment, entrepreneurship, postsecondary education, and other LCM workforce initiatives.

• Oversee the development and delivery of job-readiness workshops, NCRC/WorkKeys preparation and testing opportunities, digital literacy, entrepreneurship-related learning, and other workforce education programming.

• Develop partnerships with employers, educational institutions, workforce organizations, and community agencies that expand educational, employment, training, and career opportunities for participants.

• Identify opportunities to provide Education and workforce education programming at employer, educational, and community partner locations.

Artificial Intelligence and Innovation