Manager, Careers and Community Pathways

Job Description

Job Description

  About The WOW Center

At  The WOW Center , we believe that every person deserves the opportunity to grow, connect, and thrive. Our culture is rooted in compassion, inclusion, and genuine joy in what we do. We don’t just teach — we empower adults with developmental disabilities to live more confidently, independently, and meaningfully within their communities. 

 

We are guided by our core values of  E mpathy, Excellence, Passion, Serving, Teamwork, and Continuous Improvement — principles that shape how we support the individuals we serve, collaborate with one another, and grow as an organization every day. 

 

If you’re someone who loves uplifting others, celebrates wins big and small, and thrives in a collaborative environment, you’ll feel right at home here. 

You Might Be a Great Fit If...

You’re a builder, connector, and people-centered leader who gets excited about creating opportunities where they don’t yet exist. You enjoy developing strong teams, bringing creative ideas to life, and connecting people with the resources, experiences, and relationships they need to succeed. You balance compassion with accountability, aren’t afraid to try something new, and want to use your leadership experience to create lasting opportunities for adults with developmental disabilities to learn, work, contribute, and thrive.

  What You'll Do…

The Manager of Career & Community Pathways serves as the strategic leader responsible for the growth, development, and performance of WOW's workforce training, job coaching, and culinary programing. This position provides leadership to staff, builds community and employer partnerships, develops innovative programs and social enterprise opportunities, and ensures participants have meaningful pathways toward employment, community involvement, greater independence, and enhanced quality of life. 

  Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Special Education, Adult Education, Curriculum & Instruction, Rehabilitation Counseling, Educational Leadership, Social Work, or a related field (Master’s degree strongly preferred). 

• 5+ years of professional experience in one or more of the following:

• • Postsecondary or transition programs for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities 

• • Curriculum design or instructional leadership 

• • Workforce readiness or inclusive employment programming 

• Demonstrated experience building or significantly redesigning curriculum or educational programs (from concept to implementation). 

• Strong understanding of person‑centered planning, individualized goal development, and outcome‑based education. 

• Experience collaborating with multidisciplinary teams, including educators, employment staff, families, and community partners. 

Professional Responsibilities and Duties

Program Leadership & Development

• Lead WOW’s workforce development, culinary, entrepreneurship, and career pathway programs.
• Establish program goals, performance measures, learning pathways, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Ensure programs work together to build participants’ skills, independence, employment readiness, and community involvement.

Curriculum & Outcomes

• Develop and strengthen pre-employment curriculum, assessments, and workforce readiness tools.
• Establish participant competencies, benchmarks, and measurable outcomes.
• Track participant progress and employment outcomes and use data to improve programming.

Culinary & Social Enterprise

• Provide oversight and support for the Culinary Program and align training with workforce competencies and employment opportunities.
• Explore culinary, entrepreneurial, fee-for-service, and other social enterprise opportunities.
• Evaluate opportunities based on participant impact, community demand, feasibility, and sustainability.

Employment & Community Partnerships

• Build partnerships with employers, colleges, vocational rehabilitation providers, workforce agencies, and community organizations.
• Expand internship, apprenticeship, volunteer, and competitive integrated employment opportunities.
• Develop employer resources, feedback systems, and retention supports that promote long-term employment success.

Participant & Family Collaboration

• Support participant admissions, assessments, onboarding, and transitions into workforce and Independent Studies programming.
• Partner with families and internal teams to communicate goals, expectations, and pathways for participant growth.

Special Olympics

• Provide leadership and oversight for WOW’s Special Olympics program.
• Ensure safety, compliance, outcome tracking, and continued growth of athletic and leadership opportunities.

Grants & Performance

• Track State Appropriation and workforce-related grant outcomes, deliverables, and reporting requirements.
• Partner with Advancement and Finance to measure and communicate program impact.

People Leadership

• Lead, coach, and develop staff through clear expectations, feedback, training, and professional development.
• Manage staffing needs, schedules, hiring, and onboarding.
• Foster a positive, inclusive, accountable culture aligned with WOW’s core values.