Description
About Communities in Schools of Pennsylvania
Communities In Schools of Pennsylvania (CISPA) is part of the nation's leading dropout prevention organization, dedicated to surrounding students with a community of support, empowering them to stay in school and achieve in life. CISPA works to connect schools, families, and community resources to help young people succeed.
Position Summary
The Workforce Development & Alumni Program Manager leads the phased development, implementation, and continuous improvement of CISPA’s workforce development and alumni engagement initiatives. This role will strengthen career exploration, work readiness, postsecondary planning, and employer/community connections for students, while also building CISPA’s alumni program from the ground up.
Working collaboratively with Site Coordinators, Program Directors, school partners, alumni, employers, postsecondary institutions and community stakeholders, the Program Manager will develop practical, sustainable systems, partnerships, and engagement opportunities that align with CISPA’s ISS model. The role requires a relationship-centered approach: learning CISPA’s programs and site contexts, earning staff trust, and building initiatives alongside the people responsible for carrying the work forward.
Location
This is a Camp Hill, Pennsylvania-based position. The successful candidate must be able to be based out of CISPA’s Camp Hill office and travel frequently – estimated at up to 60% of work time - to CISPA school sites, partner organizations, and community events across Central Pennsylvania. Evening and weekend availability may be required.
First-Year Focus + Priorities
- Learn CISPA’s Integrated Student Supports model, pilot-site contexts and existing relationships with schools and community partners.
- Build strong working relationships with Program Directors and Site Coordinators and work with them to integrate Roadmap to Readiness into existing case management and site-based supports.
- Lead the phased launch of R2R, beginning with a focused pilot that emphasizes individual career planning, career/college readiness activities, wraparound supports, and initial employer and postsecondary engagement.
- Lead the design and implementation of CISPA’s alumni program, including alumni identification and outreach, foundational recordkeeping and communication practices, and initial engagement opportunities.
- Develop a recommendation for the next phase of both initiatives based on pilot results, staff feedback, partner capacity, alumni interest and available resources.
Key Responsibilities
Program Development & Management
- Lead the phased development, implementation, and continuous improvement of workforce development programming aligned with CISPA’s strategic goals, the needs of students, and the capacity of CISPA’s site-based teams.
- Collaborate with Program Directors and Site Coordinators to integrate career-development activities and individual career plans into existing student support work, rather than creating a separate service-delivery structure.
- Manage program timelines, budgets, deliverables, and outcomes to ensure fidelity and impact.
- Oversee career exploration, job readiness, internship, and credentialing initiatives across assigned sites or regions.
Alumni Program Leadership - Lead the phased design, launch, and ongoing development of CISPA’s alumni program from the ground up, beginning with foundational outreach, records and communication systems, and pilot engagement opportunities.
- Develop a framework for alumni engagement that includes mentorship opportunities, career networking, volunteer and advocacy roles, and ongoing connection to CISPA's mission.
- Create and manage an alumni database and communication strategy to maintain relationships with former students across CISPA's service territory.
- Collaborate with site coordinators and affiliate staff to identify alumni and integrate alumni engagement into local program activities.
- Leverage alumni as a resource for current students through speaking engagements, job shadowing, internships, and peer mentorship.
- Develop and track metrics to evaluate alumni program reach, engagement, and impact.
Partnership Development
- Build and sustain relationships with employers, industry partners, workforce boards, technical schools, community colleges, and other stakeholders.
- Identify and cultivate internship, apprenticeship, and employment opportunities for program participants and alumni.
- Collaborate with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry, local workforce development boards (WDBs), and other government entities as appropriate.
Data, Reporting & Compliance
- Track and analyze program data to measure outcomes and ensure grant compliance.
- Prepare reports for funders, leadership, and external partners.
- Maintain accurate and timely records in CISPA's data management systems, including alumni engagement data.
Training & Capacity Building
- Train and support Site Coordinators and Program Directors on workforce-readiness tools, alumni-engagement opportunities, and practical implementation strategies.
- Provide coaching and technical assistance that strengthens staff capacity while respecting the expertise and relationships of site-based teams.
Requirements
Qualifications
Required
- Bachelor's degree in education, social work, nonprofit management, business, public administration, or related field.
- Minimum 3–5 years of progressively responsible experience in workforce development, career readiness, youth development, community partnership development, or related field.
- Demonstrated experience developing, launching, or substantially improving a program, initiative, or cross-sector partnership.
- Strong knowledge of workforce development systems, including WIOA (Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act)
- Demonstrated ability to build and sustain relationships with school-based staff, community partners/employers, postsecondary institutions, and/or students and families.
- Strong project management skills, including the ability to manage multiple priorities, organize work across stakeholders, and move phased initiatives forward.
- Excellent written, verbal, facilitation, and presentation skills.
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite and comfort learning and using data management systems
- Valid driver’s license and access to a personal vehicle; ability to travel regularly to CISPA school sites, partner organizations and events across CISPA’s service territory.
Preferred
- Experience building or supporting alumni, volunteer, mentorship or other constituent-engagement initiatives.
- Familiarity with Pennsylvania's workforce development landscape and regional labor markets.
- Familiarity with workforce-development systems, career pathways, work-based learning, and/or Pennsylvania-specific workforce resources; knowledge of WIOA is a plus.
- Experience working with K-12 students, out-of-school youth, and/or school-community partnerships
Bilingual (English/Spanish) a plus
