CDC Director: Lead Excellence in Early Childhood

The J; Olathe (KS); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision, life and long

Paid Time Off and holidays

403b Retirement plan with employer con

Free Family Membership to our centers

Staff discounts on programs

Job summary

The J is seeking a Director for the Child Development Center (CDC) to provide overall leadership for high-quality, safe, and inclusive programming. You will lead a collaborative leadership team, drive enrollment and staffing strategies, and oversee budgeting and regulatory compliance.

In this role, you will supervise senior and assistant directors, partner on inclusion and family engagement, and ensure alignment with The J’s mission.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required; master’s preferred.
• 5–7 years in early childhood education or related program with significant leadership.
• Experience supervising and developing managers or experienced staff.
• Strong knowledge of early childhood education, licensing, program quality, and safe care practices.
• Experience with budgeting, enrollment management, staffing, and program operations.
• Ability to lead collaboratively while maintaining accountability and decision-making authority.

Responsibilities

• Provide overall leadership and accountability for high-quality, safe, inclusive programming.
• Establish clear priorities for the CDC Leadership team and support a collaborative leadership model.
• Supervise, coach, evaluate, and develop the employees assigned to them.
• Ensure leadership team members supervise, observe, coach, and manage performance of their employees.
• Own enrollment, retention, family experience, staffing strategy, and financial performance.
• Develop and manage the CDC budget in collaboration with Senior Director, Youth Programs & Protection and Finance; monitor enrollment, labor, staffing ratios, revenue, expenses, and variances.
• Maintain accountability for licensing, regulatory compliance, safety, program quality, and operational readiness.
• Supervise the Assistant Directors to ensure curriculum implementation and quality improvement.
• Supervise the Assistant Director-Operations to ensure staffing systems, scheduling, payroll, records, facilities, and day-to-day operations.
• Partner with Inclusion Specialist to ensure inclusive practices and family partnerships.
• Collaborate with Senior Director to support Inclusion Specialist’s work and development.
• Build and maintain positive relationships with families and handle complex concerns.
• Lead recruitment and retention strategy and participate in hiring for leadership and staff roles.
• Collaborate with HR, Finance, Facilities, Marketing to support CDC operations.
• Use program data, family feedback, staffing trends, and financial information to identify opportunities for improvement.

Skills

Leadership

Budgeting

Communication

Staff development

Collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in related field

Master’s degree preferred

Job description

The J is seeking a Director for the Child Development Center (CDC) to provide overall leadership for high-quality, safe, and inclusive programming. You will lead a collaborative leadership team, drive enrollment and staffing strategies, and oversee budgeting and regulatory compliance.

In this role, you will supervise senior and assistant directors, partner on inclusion and family engagement, and ensure alignment with The J’s mission.