Senior Manager of Pathways

Job Description

Job Description

Job Description

SENIOR MANAGER OF PATHWAYS

Who We Are

CareerWise is a nationally-recognized nonprofit organization that creates life-changing opportunities for the youngest generation of America’s workforce. We build industry-led, student-centered, modern youth apprenticeships through classroom and on-the-job learning providing flexible, alternative pathways to economic mobility. We have hundreds of CareerWise apprentices in the workplace, charting new paths to academic and career success. In addition, workforce and education leaders from across the country have visited CareerWise to learn about our youth apprenticeship model. As a result, our programs have launched in multiple states, leveraging our institutional knowledge, technology, and infrastructure.

Who We’re Looking For:

The Senior Manager of Pathways supports CareerWise’s growth across two distinct bodies of work: Adult Registered Apprenticeships (TDAP) and multi-industry Youth Apprenticeship (Manufacturing, Healthcare, Education, Business Operations, etc.). You will serve as a program operator for adult pathways and a regional manager for youth district ecosystems.

Job Summary:

This role is split evenly between two connected areas of work. Roughly half your time will go toward administration, account management, and compliance for our Teacher Degree Apprenticeship Program (TDAP) — our pathway for adults earning a teaching degree while working. The other half will go toward partnering directly with K-12 school districts to connect their students with CareerWise's existing youth apprenticeship opportunities.

Both sides of the role benefit from familiarity with education systems — K-12, higher ed, or both — and from someone who can move comfortably between detail-heavy compliance work and relationship-driven partnership work.

What You’ll Be Doing

Adult Apprenticeships & TDAP Operations

You will serve as the operational backbone for the Teacher Degree Apprenticeship Program (TDAP) within the Education Team, navigating complex state compliance, Higher Education (IHE) partnerships, and district/union dynamics.

• District Onboarding & Governance: Lead readiness conversations with both union and non-union school districts to launch new programs. You will navigate the complex, multi-step process of establishing district-specific agreements, aligning diverse stakeholder requirements, and ensuring all partners meet necessary program standards.

• State & Board Compliance: Partner closely with CDE, CDLE, and the SAA to shepherd districts through State Board of Education (SBE) approval processes. Manage end-to-end data systems by inputting wage schedules, mentor trackers, and apprentice registrations directly into the federal RAPIDS database.

• Institutions of Higher Education Ecosystem Maintenance: Collaborate with Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs) to align degree coursework with apprenticeship requirements, manage Sponsor portfolios, and facilitate ongoing professional development and monthly check-ins.

• Ongoing Support & Point of Contact: Serve as the primary point of contact for active district partners and adult apprentices. You will field program inquiries, ensure apprentices stay on track with their milestones, monitor progression, and manage localized compliance tracking across your designated districts.

Youth Apprenticeship Engagement & Management

You will own a regional territory (managing 3-4 major school districts), moving away from direct case management to build systemic capacity and orchestrate a rigorous, seasonal recruitment-to-hire funnel.

• District Capacity Building: Deliver "Train-the-Trainer" modules, toolkits, and office hours to equip high school Counselors, Career Navigators, and Leads to run self-sustaining apprenticeship recruitment ecosystems.

• Pre-Apprenticeship & Preparation Pathways: Design and support work-based learning opportunities, job shadows, and pre-apprenticeship programs that prepare students for future workplace success.

• Recruitment Coordination & Conversion: Drive regional activities mapping to CareerWise’s growth targets. Deploy a structured menu of recruitment solutions, including Apprenticeship 101 sessions, profile creation workshops, screening calls, and mock interviews.

• Pipeline Management & Matching: Actively monitor student progression and tracking systems during the Peak Recruitment Window (January–April), spotting gaps early to execute targeted interventions.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner seamlessly with the Business Development team to align student talent supply with local employer demand, leading smooth student-business integration and facilitating Business Essentials and Orientations.

Key Competencies to be Successful in this Role

• A Self-Directed Problem Solver: You are incredibly resourceful and bring an investigative mindset to ambiguous challenges. You actively untangle systemic roadblocks, research options, and propose creative, practical solutions independently.

• A Master of Complexity: You thrive when navigating bureaucratic systems, multi-tiered compliance rules (CDLE, CDE, SAA), and delicate multi-stakeholder landscapes (unions, district leadership, and university deans).

• Strategic Recruitment: You approach recruitment and matching with strategic intentionality, leveraging CRM systems like Salesforce to manage and track candidate progression. You excel at maintaining system data integrity, analyzing pipeline health, and using database-driven insights to ensure high-quality, sustainable placements across the entire funnel.

• An Institutional Relationship Builder: You are highly relational but system-focused. You enjoy building the toolkits, training structures, and networks that empower others (educators, district leads) to drive student success at scale.

• Equity-Centered: Diversity, equity, and inclusion are core to how you build programs, screen candidates, and design inclusive pathways.

What You Bring

• Experience: 5-10+ years of experience in workforce development, education administration, complex project management, or career and technical education (CTE) pathways.

• Technical Proficiency: Experience navigating highly specialized tracking databases. Direct experience with RAPIDS and Salesforce is highly preferred.

• Systemic Knowledge: Familiarity with the Colorado K-12 landscape, school district structures (including Education Associations/unions), and Higher Education pathways is a major plus.

• Agility & Organization: Exceptional project management skills with the ability to ruthlessly prioritize an intensive, calendar-driven seasonal recruitment cycle alongside daily administrative compliance deadlines.

Location

This role is based in Denver, Colorado . CareerWise staff typically work a hybrid work schedule with varying days in the office and other days remote. Remote work is not guaranteed and the schedule must be approved by the supervisor. There may be occasions (possibly 1-3 times per year) for staff to gather together in person. Exceptions will be made for special circumstances.

Compensation

The starting salary range for this role is: $73,855 - $96,876 annually is not covered by the minimum wage and overtime provisions of the FLSA. CareerWise offers a generous benefits package including group medical, dental, and vision plans, short-term disability, 100% vested 401k plan with a 3% employer contribution, and flexible time off.

Working conditions and 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 job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. Usual office environment with frequent sitting, walking and standing. Frequent use of eye, hand, and finger coordination for use of standard office equipment. Oral and auditory capacity required for interpersonal communication as well as communication through automated devices such as the telephone and online video conference platforms (like Google, Zoom, MS Teams, Webex, etc.)

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer that values diversity at all levels. All individuals are encouraged to apply. If you need assistance or accommodation due to a disability, you may contact us at: View email address on ziprecruiter.com