Massachusetts Jobs

The Education Secretariat is committed to equity and valuing the unique and diverse characteristics and experiences of every member of its workforce. We encourage an authentic workplace where colleagues show up as their full selves, where collaboration, innovation, and connections are key to realizing our mission that all children, youth, and families thrive socially, academically, and economically. We seek teammates who are committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive work environment, where everyone is valued and engaged. We encourage you to apply and identify your strengths in these areas. EEC provides services for more than 275,000 children each day through a mixed-delivery system that includes public, private, nonprofit and for-profit preschools, child care centers, preschools operating within public and private schools, Head Start programs, out of school/after school programs, and independent and system-affiliated family child care homes. EEC is responsible for licensing early education and care and out-of-school time programs throughout the Commonwealth and for administering child care financial assistance to low-income families with children ages birth to 13 years. EEC is focused on strengthening and promoting the diverse early education and care sector in Massachusetts. EEC licenses, monitors, and provides technical assistance to the nearly 9,000 early education and care programs and agencies that serve children and youth, including family child care programs and center-based programs for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers, out-of-school time programs, residential group care facilities, temporary shelters, and placement agencies for foster care or adoption services. In addition, EEC provides support for information and referral services, inclusive programming for children with special needs, parenting and family support, and professional development opportunities for thousands of educators in the early education and out-of-school time fields. In its broadest role, EEC also serves as a source of information to more than one million families in Massachusetts. The Policy, Research, and Data Analytics division was established in 2022 to build and dedicate centralized capacity to supporting policy development and implementation agencywide. The Director of Policy works collaboratively with division leaders and staff from across the agency in developing, revising, and planning and monitoring implementation of policies and procedures that are aligned with federal and state regulations and rules that support the agency’s mission, strategic objectives, and priorities. The Director of Policy participates in regulatory reform efforts across EEC divisions and helps ensure that regulations are translated into clear and accessible EEC policies. The agency’s current strategic objectives focus on family access and affordability, program stability, workforce supports, program quality, and system infrastructure. Reporting directly to the Senior Associate Commissioner for Policy, Research, and Data Analytics, the Director of Policy leads a small team that helps to standardize, coordinate, and organize policies and related procedures in close partnership with division leaders and staff across the agency. Close collaboration with agency leadership and program, legal, operational, and fiscal experts across EEC divisions, along with external stakeholders, is an important aspect of the Director of Policy’s role. The Director’s scope includes proactively identifying policy needs as well as responding to and coordinating requests for new policies and revisions to current policies using consistent processes and protocols, ensuring that policy development, rollout, and implementation is aligned, responsive, and thoughtful, and monitoring the fidelity of implementation with attention to change management and feasibility considerations. Across policies, the Director of Policy helps to ensure that there is a clear policy development and deployment process in place across the agency and that policies are evidence-based. The Director of Policy also makes sure that policy language and guidance is accessible and inclusive; supports planning for policy deployment and implementation; contributes to the assessment of fidelity of policy implementation; and seeks continuous input from key internal and external stakeholders. It is important that the Director of Policy stays abreast of federal and state policy developments, as well as issues arising in the field, to help identify the need for new policies and changes to current policies. The Policy Director must demonstrate strategic thinking, readiness to contribute to policies focused on families with young children and the early education and care and afterschool and out-of-school time sector; strong orientation toward policies that center and are responsive to the lived experiences of children, families, educators, and programs; excellent writing and collaboration skills; experience developing and managing complex processes and work flows; and the ability to navigate complex organizational landscapes and multiple work streams simultaneously. This role currently involves supervising and supporting a team of Policy Specialists. Key Responsibilities: /Policy Development/ • Develop, revise, maintain, and monitor policies, standards, and expectations to support the agency’s core services, supports, and priorities. • Participate in EEC regulatory reform work and develop policies that are aligned with regulations. • Coordinate policy development, deployment, and planning for implementation using a structured and consistent process in close collaboration with colleagues from across EEC. • Further build out and adapt internal processes and systems to support policy development and implementation needs. • Ensure that policies are aligned with regulations and consistent across EEC divisions. • Catalogue policies so that they are easily accessible to internal staff and external users and stakeholders. /External Collaboration / • Consult with external stakeholders, including those with lived experience, to seek input on policy content and needs of field to ensure that that new and existing agency policies are clear, relevant, responsive, effective, and implemented with fidelity. /Policy Implementation / • Create and support policy implementation plans in partnership with EEC colleagues, including developing policy resources and guidance, coordinating with operational staff including IT to draft business requirements that align with and support policy implementation, and participating in development of training content and delivery for staff and external stakeholders to support the implementation of new and revised policies and procedures. /Research / • Research areas for new policy development, including best practices from other states, conduct analysis of key issues and considerations, and prepare memos and other summary materials that include discussion of implications and concrete recommendations for next steps Staff supervision and mentoring and other duties as assigned Preferred Qualifications: • Understanding of issues facing early education and care and after-school and out-of-school time and/or related education, human service, or workforce development fields • Extensive experience with policy development and/or implementation, preferably in a public sector context • Skilled at multi-tasking, process and workflow conceptualization and management, consensus building, conflict resolution, team oversight and management, and team building • Strong research, analytical, and problem-solving skills • Ability to work both independently and collaboratively • Outstanding communication skills demonstrated at different organizational levels, including excellent writing skills and the ability to operationalize and effectively convey complex ideas to a range of audiences • Ability to be flexible and adaptive, meet tight deadlines, manage change, and take initiative to ensure that work is on track and meeting expectations Travel will be required for this position. Questions regarding this position or the application process should be directed to Dawn.E.DeRoche@mass.gov MINIMUM ENTRANCE REQUIREMENTS: Applicants must have at least (A) five (5) years of full-time or, equivalent part-time, professional, administrative, supervisory, or managerial experience in business administration, business management, public administration, public management, clinical administration or clinical management of which (B) at least one (1) year must have been in a project management, supervisory or managerial capacity or (C) any equivalent combination of the required experience and substitutions below. Substitutions: I. A certificate in a relevant or related field may be substituted for one (1) year of the required (A) experience. II. A Bachelor's degree in a related field may be substituted for two (2) years of the required (A) experience. III. A Graduate degree in a related field may be substituted for three (3) years of the required (A) experience. IV. A Doctorate degree in a related field may be substituted for four (4) years of the required (A) experience. *Comprehensive Benefits* When you embark on a career with the Commonwealth, you are offered an outstanding suite of employee benefits that add to the overall value of your compensation package. We take pride in providing a work experience that supports you, your loved ones, and your future. Want the specifics? Explore our Employee Benefits and Rewards! An Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action Employer. Females, minorities, veterans, and persons with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply. The Commonwealth is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, disability, national origin, veteran status, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. Research suggests that qualified women, Black, Indigenous, and Persons of Color (BIPOC) may self-select out of opportunities if they don't meet 100% of the job requirements. We encourage individuals who believe they have the skills necessary to thrive to apply for this role. Job: Education* *Organization: Department of Early Education and Care *Title: *Director of Policy Location: Massachusetts-Boston - 50 Milk St Requisition ID: 2400054C