Strategic Director, Tribal Workforce Development

American Indian Higher Education Consortium; Alexandria (VA); Hybrid; USD 125,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) with 6% matching

Premium medical insurance

Dental, vision, life, and disability

Holidays and Paid Time Off

Job summary

American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) invites applications for Director of Workforce Development in a role based remotely or in a hybrid setup from Alexandria, VA. The position leads a Tribal Workforce Development Initiative, shaping policy, data, and funding strategies and coordinating with partners to advance Native workforce priorities.

The role requires a Bachelor's degree and at least five years in policy or workforce development, with strong grant experience and relationship

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• Five years in federal/state policy or Native workforce work.
• Experience working with Tribal Nations or Indian Country preferred.
• Strong grant management and staff development skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, cross‑department collaboration.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership for AIHEC’s Tribal Workforce Development Initiative.
• Design strategies across policy, data, and funding focus areas.
• Oversee coordination with AIHEC staff and external partners.
• Supervise consultants and future staff for the initiative.

Skills

Policy expertise

Grant management

Stakeholder engagement

Communication skills

Team leadership

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

Collaboration tools

Job description

If you are unable to complete this application due to a disability, contact this employer to ask for an accommodation or an alternative application process.

Director of Workforce Development

Full Time Professional US

30+ days ago Requisition ID: 1019

Salary Range: $125,000.00 To $140,000.00 Annually

The American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) is the collective spirit and unifying voice of our nation's Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs). AIHEC supports American Indian and Alaska Native higher education through dedicated research and programmatic initiatives designed to strengthen Native languages, cultures, and Tribal communities. By leveraging its unique position, AIHEC serves as a collaborative partner, providing essential services to member institutions and emerging TCUs. Additionally, AIHEC produces the Tribal College Journal (TCJ), a premier national publication sharing insights on American Indian education.

Position Summary

The Director of Workforce Development provides strategic leadership of AIHEC’s newly established Tribal Workforce Development Initiative, which works to strengthen the ability of TCUs to serve as workforce and economic development partners with Tribal Nations by improving access to workforce education and training funding, strengthening workforce development policy, expanding workforce data and forecasting capacity, supporting institutional participation in emerging workforce development initiatives, and better aligning the workforce education and training programs of TCUs with Tribal Nation priorities, community needs, and labor market opportunities.

This position will report to the Vice President for Programs and Member Services.

Key Responsibilities

Initiative Design and Administration

• Provide strategic and operational leadership for AIHEC’s Tribal Workforce Development Initiative.
• Design concrete strategies to advance AIHEC’s work in the initiative’s policy, data, and funding focus areas.
• Design and implement the initiative’s primary activities to enact those strategies.
• Coordinate with other key AIHEC staff to carry out those activities.
• Regularly assess and refine activities based on lessons learned from implementation.
• Supervise initiative consultants and any future initiative-based staff.

TCU Engagement and Technical Assistance

• Develop and sustain structured working relationships with TCU leaders and workforce development professionals.
• Advance the federal and state policy and data-focused activities of the initiative.
• Facilitate relationship building between TCUs and federal, state, and local policymakers and agencies.
• Develop technical assistance resources and provide/facilitate training on federal workforce development policy and program implementation.

Partnership and Advocacy

• Coordinate with AIHEC’s Vice President of Congressional and Federal Relations.
• Oversee AIHEC’s tracking federal workforce development policy and program developments.
• Monitor impact on TCUs, federal agency partnerships, and the building of a national Native workforce development policy coalition with key Native organizations.
• Establish formal partnerships with leading non-Native workforce development organizations to elevate advocacy and funding priorities of TCUs in federal policy making for workforce development.

Research and Development

• Leadthe design and facilitation of the initiative’s Tribal Workforce Development Data Project.
• Collect and analyze data from Tribal Nations about their workforce development priorities.
• Collect and analyze data from TCUs about their resource needs to meet those priorities.
• Determine the real and potential impacts of new and proposed changes to federal policies and funding on TCUs.

Philanthropic and Employer Engagement

• Foster increased philanthropic investments in TCUs in support of their workforce development-focused certificate credential and degree programs.
• Build relationships with private and corporate foundations.
• Facilitate partnerships between TCUs and their area Tribal and non-Tribal employers to maximize the hiring, career advancement, and long-term success of TCU students.

Evaluation& Compliance

• Monitor,evaluate, and reportinitiative outputs and impacts while ensuring full compliance with requirements of grants secured by AIHEC to support this initiative.

Qualifications

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree is required.
• Five years working in federal or state policy; in a state-based, regional, or national Native organization; as a workforce development practitioner training Native people; or in a relevant field.

Indian Country Experience

• Mustpossessdeep familiarity with Indian Country, including experience working directly with Tribal Nations, and/or within reservation-based communities
• Strong understanding ofTribalNations and TCUs
• Strong understanding of federal Indian law and policy.

Knowledge Base

• Comprehensive understanding ofIndian Country workforce, economic, and community development needs, challenges, and priorities.
• Comprehensive understanding of relevant federal laws, policies, and programs.

Program Management

• Strong program andgeneral management skills.
• Proven record of successful grant management and staff development.

Communication and Coordination

• Highly skilled in professional oral and written communication.
• Proven ability to effectively coordinate the advancement of shared work with colleagues, and impactfully contribute as a member of cross-departmental organizational teams.

Technical Skills

• Proficientin collaborativeonline work environmentsand tools.

Professionalism

• Commitment to ethical standards.
• Detail-oriented project management.
• Collaborative, team-oriented approach.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to communicate information and ideas, detect, determine, perceive, and observe details, particularlyon a screen or on paper.
• Ability to spend more than half of the time viewing computer monitors.
• This position may require remaining ina stationary position 50% or more.
• Ability to communicate effectively in person, over the phone, and in writing.
• Ability to travel independently and attend off-site meetings and events as required by business needs.
• Ability to complete all essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodation.

Work Location and Travel Requirements

• Job Location: Remote or Hybrid position based in Alexandria, VA.
• Travel up to 25%or one week per month on average for meetings, conferences, and to engage federal and state partners on AIHEC workforce development priorities.

Compensation and Benefits

• $125,000-$140,000 per annum
• 401(k) with 6% matching
• Premium medical insurance for employees and dependents paid for by the organization.
• Dental, vision, life, accident, hospital indemnity, and disability insurance offered at low cost.
• Holidays and Paid Time Off.

AIHEC’s personnel policies, procedures, and practices prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, religious creed, disability, ancestry, national origin, age, or sex. As an Equal Opportunity Employer, we are committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace and provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and applicable state and local laws. If you require accommodation during the application process or in performing essential functions of the role, please contact Human Resources.