National Director of Community Engagement, Nonprofit Child Welfare

Join a team that makes a difference in the lives of children and teens in the US foster care system!

NAA is seeking a National Director of Community Engagement to join its team!

Overview

The National Director of Community Engagement (Director) ensures that The National Center for Enhanced Post Adoption Support and National Center for Adoption Competent Mental Health Services apply an inclusive community centered lens. The Director will provide findings from site-specific focus groups, feedback sessions, and Lived Expertise Teams to elevate the voices of lived experience and improve outcomes for system involved families. The Director will support recruitment and engagement efforts for groups to ensure the community is representative. The Director will support sites in revising their post-permanency programs, facilitating feedback groups, and ensuring programs are accessible to all adoptive and guardianship families in the site. Provide tailored technical assistance and develop resources to help sites offer equitable, culturally relevant post-permanency services. The Director will partner with all staff to ensure deliverables are completed on time and within budget.

About the National Adoption Association (NAA)

The National Adoption Association (NAA) is the national leader advancing best practices in adoption from foster care.

Our Philosophy

We believe that adoption is addition, not subtraction. We unite birth, kin, and adoptive families for the benefit of children and youth. Our approach honors cultural identity, familial connection, and youth voice—supporting healing, belonging, and stability for children in foster care.

Education and Experience Requirements

• Master’s degree in social work, nonprofit management, public administration, or closely related field.
• A minimum of 10 years of public child welfare experience is required.
• Licensed Social Worker or similar credentials is required.
• National experience is highly desired.
• Bilingual (English and Spanish) preferred.
• Ability to travel to team meetings three to five times per year.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Project Management. Possesses exceptional project management skills. Ability to lead a project from the start to completion while managing the team, time, and budget. Determines the necessary sequence needed to achieve goals, handles multiple demands and competing priorities, meets high performance expectations and objectives. Flexibility with the ability to adapt as needed.
• Public Relations. Clear written/verbal communication on behalf of the program that demonstrates knowledge and conveys a passion for race equity.
• Child Welfare Knowledge. Possesses significant knowledge, skills, and abilities gained from public or private child welfare agency experience.
• Collaborative Leadership. Creates opportunities for collaboration; encourages the exchange of information and sharing; focuses on the common purpose; has an action orientation.
• Data Analysis & Management. Values data, critically analyses qualitative data, and uses data to inform decision making.
• Effective Communication. Diplomatic communication style (verbal and written) with the ability to communicate the needs and concerns of the partners accurately and effectively to the federal program officer. Practices active listening; keeps others well informed; openness to others who express contrary views; adheres to the communication model as outlined in our collaboration agreement.
• Grant Management. Familiarity with the grants process and/or past experience operating a grant.
• Financial Management. Ability to prepare, justify, and administer the program budgets; oversees and monitors expenditures regularly and develops resource spending plans when necessary. Works directly with the NAA CEO and CFO regarding finances.
• Integrity/Honesty. Possesses high ethical standards; consistently demonstrates ethical standards in words and actions.
• Relationship Management. Treats others with courtesy, sensitivity, and respect; possesses a good sense of humor. Facilitates decision making among people with disparate and diverging priorities, perspectives, and points of view in all situations.
• Vision. Understands and communicates the shared vision of the project; influences others to translate vision into action.
• Team Building. Motivates team members to accomplish group goals and goals of our funder.
• Accountability. Holds self and others accountable for measurable high-quality, timely, and cost-effective results. Delivers constructive feedback directly and supportively.
• Strategic Thinking. Proactive in anticipating workload fluctuations and increases. Formulates objectives and priorities and implements plans consistent with long-term objectives while managing risks. Ability to make reliable independent decisions that are consistent with the program’s goals and objectives.
• Mediation. Ability to arbitrate and resolve conflict specifically as it pertains to facilitating the shared vision of the project, meeting the goals and expectation of the Walmart Foundation and ensuring that the partners are equally contributing and participating in the project equitably.
• Political Savvy. Identifies the internal and external politics that impact the work of the organization; perceives and interprets the political reality and acts accordingly. Stays thoughtfully and critically engaged in the work during high-pressure situations and interactions.

Role and Responsibilities

1. Program Leadership

• Support the evolution and expansion of post-adoption programming, including integration with mental health services.
• Serves as a liaison between Center staff and NAA staff.
• Presents focus group findings to the Center leadership.
• Plans and leads Lived Expertise Teams, organizing the agenda, sharing information and feedback.

2. Lived Experience & Community Engagement.

• Lead, facilitate, and nurture Lived Expertise Teams, ensuring authentic engagement and inclusion in service design and delivery.
• Deliver technical assistance to internal teams and external partners on community engagement strategies, especially related to post-adoption support.

3. Collaboration

• Initiates, builds, and maintains strong working relationships with other national organizations
• Maintain strong working relationships with key partners to ensure coordination, alignment, and shared impact across initiatives.

4. Management

• Directly manages and supervises the Project Specialist by providing guidance, coaching, and performance oversight.
• Provide oversight and support for the Community Engagement Implementation Manager under the Mental Health Center, ensuring continuity and alignment of services.
• Write NAA’s grantee reports for each project.
• Assures accounting of all project funds, meeting regularly with the CFO and internal finance committee to maintain sound financial practices.

Additional Notes

Work is expected to be performed remotely with the requirement of travel 2-3 times per year within the US. Occasional overtime (evenings and weekends) may be required. NAA conducts background checks on all employees. This position is grant-funded. Please note, NAA is currently unable to do business in the State of California.

Benefits and Compensation:

The National Director of Community Engagement salary range is $95,000 - $100,000, commensurate with experience. As a member of our team, you will not only receive a competitive salary and a generous benefits package including a gold health plan, dental & vision insurance (100% employer paid for employees!); employer retirement plan contribution; and professional development opportunities, among others. You will also enjoy your work - knowing you are a part of a dedicated group of professionals making an impact.

NAA is an Equal Opportunity employer committed to a diverse workforce.  We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability. 

How to Apply:

No phone calls please. Apply online at National Director of Community Engagement with a cover letter and resume by June 23, 2025.

Please note - applications without cover letters will not be considered.

NAA Racial Equity Statement:

As leaders in child welfare, we recognize systemic racism creates disparities that negatively impact our staff as well as the children and families we serve. NAA is committed to listening, learning, and taking actions to advance racial equity by:

• Continually and intentionally recruiting, hiring, and supporting diverse staff, including consultants and vendors;
• Using a racial equity lens in all of our programmatic work;
• Evaluating our organizational policies and procedures to ensure that they are antiracist[1];
• Allowing staff to be their authentic selves.

[1] Anti-Racism is defined as the work of actively opposing racism by advocating for changes in political, economic, and social life. Anti-racism tends to be an individualized approach and set up in opposition to individual racist behaviors and impacts.  Source: ProInspire sourcedRace Reporting Guide by Race Forward_V1.1.pdf