Director of Higher Education Strategy & Implementation

Immigrants Rising; California (MO); On-site; USD 100,000 - 104,000; Full time

Job summary

Immigrants Rising is seeking a Director of Higher Education to provide strategic and operational leadership for our higher education portfolio. The role advances a cohesive approach that links direct services, affordability initiatives, institutional partnerships, and statewide strategies to improve undocumented students’ access and success in postsecondary education.

Responsibilities include guiding program strategy, growing partnerships, managing a diverse team, and ensuring grant performance

Qualifications

• 7–10 years of relevant experience in higher education.
• 3–5 years of people management experience.
• 5–7 years of experience in CA higher education systems.

Responsibilities

• Set and lead a cohesive higher education strategy across programs, partnerships, and campus engagement.
• Act as an institutional advocate, aligning policy priorities with program delivery and external coalitions.
• Integrate higher education initiatives with direct services, research, and organizational strategy.
• Build and supervise a high‑performing team, establish goals, and ensure accountability.
• Oversee grant-funded initiatives, reporting, and department budget with a focus on sustainability.

Skills

Leadership

Partnerships

Policy & Advocacy

Communication

Job description

ABOUT THE POSITION

The Director of Higher Education provides strategic and operational leadership for Immigrants Rising’s higher education portfolio as a core pathway to educational access, persistence, and completion for undocumented students.

This role is responsible for advancing a cohesive higher education approach that bridges direct services, affordability implementation, institutional partnerships, technical assistance, campus engagement, and statewide higher education strategy. The Director leads program strategy and execution, manages a growing team and portfolio of partners, and plays a central role in strengthening Immigrants Rising’s impact across colleges and universities.

As a departmental leader, the Director works closely with the Director of Programs and cross-functional teams to align higher education programming with Immigrants Rising’s broader mission, policy priorities, and organizational strategy. The role requires a balance of program leadership, people management, external partnership development, and a deep understanding of the structural barriers undocumented students face within postsecondary systems.

This position carries responsibility for departmental outcomes, grant performance, institutional partnerships, and the continuous improvement of higher education programs and serves as a key strategist, coalition partner, and issue expert connecting on-the-ground implementation realities to the organization’s policy agenda.

KEY ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES

Strategy, Vision, and Program Leadership (Approximately 30% of the role)

• Set and advance a clear, cohesive higher education strategy aligned to Immigrants Rising’s strategic plan goals—including affordability implementation, institutional partnerships, technical assistance, campus engagement, and statewide higher education strategy that advances equitable postsecondary access and success for undocumented students.
• Identify opportunities to strengthen and adapt higher education models in response to student needs, institutional dynamics, and field-level trends.
• Translate higher education policy, research, and program insights into programmatic direction and improvements.
• Lead and manage Immigrants Rising’s institutional higher education partnerships, including relationship management, campus engagement, and statewide convenings.
• Manage strategic partnerships with aligned organizations to expand the organization’s higher education reach, technical assistance capacity, and institutional influence.

Systems Change Leadership (Approximately 20% of the role)

• Serve as a senior programmatic leader and issue expert advancing Immigrants Rising’s higher education agenda across external advocacy campaigns, coalitions, and strategy spaces, ensuring postsecondary access and success remain central pathways within the organization’s broader economic mobility framework.
• Partner closely with policy, research, and communications colleagues and external stakeholders to align higher education strategy with policy priorities, narrative change efforts, and systems-level interventions that expand access to in-state tuition, financial aid, and equitable postsecondary opportunities for undocumented students.
• Serve as a structural policy feedback loop for the organization: actively inform the policy team about higher education policy opportunities, implementation barriers, policies that are not functioning effectively, and policies that may create harm for undocumented students and communities.
• Elevate insights from higher education programming to stakeholders to inform solutions related to college affordability, financial aid access, institutional support structures, and graduate and professional education pathways.
• Represent Immigrants Rising in coalitions, policy tables, and convenings focused on higher education equity and postsecondary systems change, strengthening cross-sector partnerships and institutional influence.
• Contribute to thought leadership—through presentations, written products, and field-building efforts—that elevate Immigrants Rising’s role in advancing equitable higher education systems for undocumented students.

Program Integration, Research & Narrative Alignment (Approximately 20% of the role)

• Partner closely with Program Directors and senior leadership to ensure higher education initiatives are integrated with direct services, institutional capacity building, and Immigrants Rising’s broader economic mobility framework.
• Collaborate with Research and Communications teams to align higher education priorities with data, evaluation, and narrative change efforts that elevate the experiences and outcomes of undocumented students.
• Translate insights from higher education programming—including outcomes, challenges, and lessons learned—into strategic guidance that informs program improvement, advocacy efforts, and organizational decision‑making.
• Ensure higher education work strengthens Immigrants Rising’s role as a credible thought partner in the field, advancing a compelling narrative of postsecondary access and success as drivers of economic mobility.

Team Leadership and Department Management (Approximately 15% of the role)

• Build, lead, and manage a high‑performing higher education team, including direct supervision of staff, fellows, and consultants.
• Oversee the design, implementation, and continuous improvement of higher education programs, ensuring alignment across college access, persistence, and completion.
• Establish department‑level goals, priorities, and success metrics, and hold the team accountable for outcomes and impact.
• Provide strategic direction, coaching, and professional development to team members, ensuring clarity of roles, strong delegation, and accountability.
• Foster an inclusive, equity‑centered, and results‑driven team culture aligned with Immigrants Rising’s values.
• Support cross‑functional collaboration and ensure alignment across Immigrants Rising’s programs, as well as research, communications, and development teams.

Financial & Operational Oversight (Approximately 15% of the role)

• Support fundraising efforts related to higher education programming by contributing program concepts, data, and narrative to grant proposals.
• Oversee grant‑funded higher education initiatives, ensuring deliverables, reporting, and compliance requirements are met.
• Manage and oversee the department budget, ensuring fiscal responsibility, transparency, and alignment with organizational goals.
• Partner with development, finance, and executive leadership to identify sustainable funding strategies for the department.
• Lead operational planning and infrastructure for the department, strengthening internal systems, workflows, and cross‑functional coordination to ensure effective execution, accountability, and long‑term sustainability.

QUALIFICATIONS

Role Specific Qualifications

• 7–10 years of relevant professional experience within higher education systems, supporting undocumented student access and success, immigrant justice, or related fields, with progressively responsible leadership roles.
• At least 3–5 years of people management experience, including direct supervision and responsibility for team performance and development within higher education systems.
• 5-7 years of demonstrated expertise in CA higher education systems, including college access, persistence, and completion, with a strong understanding of how immigration status shapes opportunity.
• Proven ability to lead complex higher education program portfolios bridging direct services, institutional capacity building, and systems‑adjacent work.
• 3-5 years of experience working within CA colleges, universities, and higher education partners to advance inclusive practices for undocumented students.
• 3-5 years of experience overseeing grant‑funded programs, including accountability for deliverables, reporting, and compliance.
• Strong facilitation, communication, and partnership‑building skills.

Preferred Skills & Experience

• Experience operating at a CA statewide or multi‑institutional level across colleges and universities.
• Experience leading and contributing to CA institutional or systems‑adjacent change in higher education.
• Experience working in cross‑sector partnerships involving community‑based organizations, philanthropy, or public agencies in CA.
• Familiarity with research, data, and evaluation approaches used to inform higher education practice and policy.
• Experience contributing to CA public‑facing higher education work, such as panels, reports, or convenings.
• Training or experience in equity‑centered, student‑centered, or trauma‑informed practices.

Organization‑Wide Requirements

• Thoroughly committed to Immigrants Rising’s mission and vision.
• Deep passion and commitment to immigrant rights with a personal connection to the undocumented experience.
• Expected to attend organizational fundraising events and relay key information from interactions with potential donors and funders to fundraising staff, represent the organization professionally and in accordance to organizational values.
• Eager to learn and develop new skills.
• Adaptive to changing circumstances.
• Demonstrates strong active listening skills, with the goal of understanding the perspectives, needs, and concerns of others before responding.
• Open to giving and receiving constructive feedback on communication efforts and able to implement suggestions to improve future interactions.
• Demonstrates awareness and respect for cultural differences in communication, ensuring inclusivity and avoiding miscommunication.
• Participates in organization‑wide efforts to bolster organizational health, address implicit bias, inequitable practices, and structural inequities in the workplace, and infuses equity & inclusion skills and principles into programs and external work. Pursues personal and professional learning and development opportunities.

TIME COMMITMENT, COMPENSATION & LOCATION

This is a full‑time, exempt position at an annual salary of $100,000 – $103,700. Work must be performed in CA.