Deputy Executive Director

breakthrough-central-texas; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 130,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental, and vision insurance

Matching 401K retirement plan

Thirty days of PTO annually

Professional development fund

Job summary

Breakthrough Central Texas is seeking a Deputy Executive Director to lead the organization's program strategy and execution. This pivotal role involves overseeing a program team of over 80 staff and AmeriCorps members dedicated to student success from middle school through postsecondary completion.

The ideal candidate will ensure alignment across programs, support senior leaders, and foster effective partnerships for optimal student outcomes. With a competitive salary and extensive benefits, this role is vital for expanding educational access and equity across Central Texas.

Qualifications

• Proven track record in leading educational programs and teams.
• Ability to manage complex projects and provide strategic oversight.
• Excellence in oral and written communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Oversee execution of program strategy and outcomes.
• Build capacity of senior program leaders.
• Ensure alignment across program models and pathways.
• Manage relationships with stakeholders and partners.

Skills

Strategic Thinking

Relationship Building

Inclusive Communication

Continuous Learning and Improvement

Data Tracking and Evaluation

Education

Experience in Educational Leadership

Bachelor's Degree or equivalent experience

Job description

Deputy Executive Director

Breakthrough Central Texas seeks a strategic, systems-oriented leader to serve as Deputy Executive Director (DED), responsible for organization-wide leadership of Breakthrough's program strategy, execution, and outcomes. Reporting directly to the Executive Director, the DED manages four Chief Program Officers: the Chief Middle School Programs Officer, Chief High School Programs Officer, Chief College Access Officer, and Chief College and Career Success Officer. Collectively, this team oversees Breakthrough's Program Team of more than 80 staff and AmeriCorps members serving approximately 3,700 students from middle school through postsecondary completion.

This is a pivotal moment for Breakthrough as we continue to scale our impact, strengthen outcomes across the full student experience, and deepen partnerships across Central Texas. As a critical leader in shaping Breakthrough's next chapter, the Deputy Executive Director will ensure that Breakthrough's full continuum of services operates as a cohesive, high-performing system that delivers strong, measurable outcomes for students. This role will translate organizational strategy into aligned programmatic execution, build the leadership capacity of senior program leaders, and ensure that systems, structures, and partnerships are in place to support scale, quality, and sustainability. The DED will operate at the intersection of strategy, people leadership, and performance managementdriving clarity, alignment, and results across multiple teams, functions, and external partnerships. Specific responsibilities include:

• Partner with the Executive Director to define and execute Breakthrough's programmatic strategy across the full student continuumfrom middle school through college and career success
• Ensure alignment across program models, teams, and student pathways so that services are cohesive, complementary, and responsive to student needs
• Translate strategic priorities into clear operating plans, performance metrics, and cross-team systems that enable effective execution
• Supervise and coach four Chief Program Officers, supporting them to lead high-performing teams and deliver strong student outcomes
• Lead through layers by establishing clarity in roles, expectations, and accountability across the Program Team
• Build leadership capacity at the senior level, ensuring Chiefs effectively develop their own teams and sustain strong team culture
• Develop and oversee program-wide systems for tracking student outcomes, program performance, and organizational impact
• Ensure that data, evaluation, and learning cycles inform decision-making, program refinement, and resource allocation
• Set clear goals for short-term and long-term measures tied to postsecondary attainment, and support and hold program leadership accountable for results
• Partner closely with other leaders across departments to align resources, systems, and priorities in support of organizational success
• Serve as a key advisor and thought partner to the Executive Director, supporting priority-setting, resource allocation, and organizational decision-making
• Help steward Breakthrough's culture, ensuring alignment with organizational values, talent philosophy, and commitment to equity
• Cultivate and steward strategic partnerships with school systems, higher education institutions, nonprofit organizations, and community stakeholders
• Oversee the development and implementation of partnership models that support student success and reduce systemic barriers
• Represent Breakthrough in external settings, including with funders, partners, and community leaders, and contribute to organizational storytelling, fundraising, and policy advocacy efforts

You are a strong candidate for the Deputy Executive Director role if, above all, you are deeply committed to expanding social and economic mobility through educational attainment. You believe in the power of long-term investment in young people and are driven by the opportunity to deliver measurable outcomes at scale. In your day-to-day work, you value bringing clarity to ambiguous situations, aligning priorities across teams, and making thoughtful, high-impact decisions that balance near-term execution with long-term sustainability. You bring an ability to translate vision into action, ensuring that strategy, systems, and resources are aligned to achieve strong outcomes for students. In addition, you are an experienced people leader who invests in developing senior leaders, sets high expectations, and creates the conditions for teams to operate with accountability, collaboration, and a strong sense of purpose. Across teams and with external partners, you build trust and foster relationships that enable meaningful impact. You will bring experience or demonstrated capacity in the following competencies:

• Student-Centered Impact Orientation. Demonstrates dedication to supporting all students' growth and postsecondary success by setting and achieving ambitious, measurable goals and ensuring that organizational strategy, systems, and outcomes remain centered on student impact.
• Inclusive Communication. Operates with cultural humility and demonstrates written, verbal, and digital communication skills across a range of settings, fostering an inclusive environment that effectively engages stakeholders across diverse identities and experiences.
• Relationship Building. Builds trusting, effective relationships that enable collaboration, productive dialogue, and authentic partnership with colleagues, students, families, community partners, institutional stakeholders, and other key constituents.
• Continuous Learning and Improvement. Embraces and applies feedback, demonstrates curiosity and a growth mindset, and leads a culture of continuous learning and improvement that strengthens individual performance and organizational outcomes.
• Prioritization and Resourcefulness. Effectively allocates time, attention, and resources to the highest-impact priorities, leveraging networks, tools, and innovative approaches to achieve outcomes in complex environments.
• Managing Complexity. Exhibits sound judgment and inclusive decision-making in highly complex and ambiguous situations, responding with flexibility, adaptability, and a bias toward thoughtful action.
• Strategic Thinking. Aligns program and organizational strategy with Breakthrough's mission and long-term vision, translating strategic priorities into clear direction, systems, and measurable outcomes across teams and functions.
• Cross-Functional Leadership. Leads collaboratively across departments and functions to ensure strategic alignment, operational coherence, and meaningful impact, while stewarding organizational culture and effectiveness.
• Talent Development. Coaches and develops senior leaders, ensuring they set priorities, build skills, meet goals, and grow toward professional aims while strengthening leadership capacity across the organization.
• Managing Through Layers. Supports and develops senior leaders to effectively lead their teams, engaging in skip-level leadership when appropriate to ensure clarity, alignment, strong supervision, and consistent staff support across all levels of the organization.
• Data Tracking and Evaluation. Ensures that systems for data collection, tracking, and analysis are accurate, comprehensive, and used with fidelity to drive decision-making, inform program design, and strengthen student outcomes at scale.
• Campus, Institutional, and System Navigation and Partner Cultivation. Works effectively across school systems, higher education institutions, and community organizations, cultivating and stewarding partnerships that support students in navigating systems, accessing resources, and achieving their goals.
• Student Pathway Strategy and Program Expertise. Demonstrates deep understanding of the student pathway from middle school through postsecondary success. Uses this expertise to guide strategy, evaluate programs, and coach leaders to deliver aligned, high-impact services.

Reporting and Supervising Relationships

The Deputy Executive Director will report to the Executive Director. Direct reports are the Chief Middle School Officer, Chief High School Officer, Chief College Access Officer and Chief College and Career Success Officer. As a member of the Breakthrough Leadership Team, the role will also work closely with the Chief Development and Communications Officer and the Chief Operations Officer.

Compensation and Benefits

• Competitive salary between $130,000 and $160,000 depending on experience.
• Health, dental and vision insurance (Breakthrough pays 100% of employee premiums)
• Life insurance
• Matching 401K retirement plan
• Thirty days of PTO annually, with immediate accrual, recognizing that staff have lives outside of work
• Additional leave benefits, including company holidays and FMLA eligibility (varies by year)
• Annual professional development fund

Breakthrough Central Texas provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability.