Director of Programs and Policy, YMI - #306081

Position Type:

Administrative and Central Office

Office Title/Functional Title:

Director of Programs and Policy, YMI - 26608

Civil Service Title:

Liaison Officer to the Mayor

Level:

N/A

Division/Office:

Office of the Chancellor

Borough:
Manhattan

Posting End Date:
07/02/2026

Description:

Position Summary:
The Agency You’ll Join
Launched in October 2023, the NYC Mayor's Office of Equity and Racial Justice (MOERJ) is the City's centralized equity office that takes an intersectional approach to advancing change across our city. This new body expands on the city's extensive equity efforts and fulfills the promise made in November 2022, when New York City residents voted in favor of an office dedicated to racial equity. MOERJ continues the innovative work of the NYC Mayor's Office of Equity while playing an integral role in the city's new racial equity planning process. This newly enshrined office includes NYC Her Future (NHF), the NYC Commission on Gender Equity (CGE), the NYC Unity Project (UP), and the NYC Young Men's Initiative (YMI), as well as multi-agency bodies like the NYC Pay Equity Cabinet (PEC) and the NYC Taskforce on Racial Inclusion & Equity (TRIE). This body of offices and commissions engages New York City's diverse communities and constituencies to advance equity and create transformative change to promote racial justice within New York City
The Organization + Team You’ll Work With
Launched in August 2011, the New York City Young Men’s Initiative (YMI) is a $30M organization and the nation’s most comprehensive municipal effort to tackle the broad disparities slowing the advancement of Black and Latino young men between the ages of 14 and 24 in education, employment, health, and justice. YMI accomplishes its mission through broad policy recommendations, changes, and agency reforms and by connecting the city’s young men of color to individuals, opportunities, and organizations that improve the quality of their lives and lead them to a more successful future. Today, YMI addresses the disparities all young people of color and their families may encounter
The Problems You’ll Solve
Reporting to the Executive Director, the Director of Program and Policy will be critical in driving the NYC Young Men’s Initiative’s programmatic excellence, policy influence, and organizational effectiveness. This position would serve as a crucial link between the organization’s frontline service delivery and its strategic priorities, Performs related work
Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership and direction to the organization's portfolio of programs and initiatives.
• Oversee the work of program managers, ensuring effective implementation and continuous improvement of all programs.
• Establish program goals, metrics, and evaluation frameworks to measure the impact and outcomes of the organization's efforts.
• Monitor relevant local, state, and federal policies that impact the young men served.
• Conduct in-depth policy analysis to identify opportunities to influence and shape the policy landscape.
• Develop policy briefs, position papers, and advocacy strategies to champion the office’s priorities with policymakers and government officials.
• Represent the office in relevant policy forums, coalitions, and stakeholder meetings to amplify the voices of the young men and their communities.
• Oversee the collection, analysis, and reporting of program data and outcomes to the Executive Director.
• Ensure compliance with all contractual, regulatory, and funding requirements.
• Align program budgets, funding sources, and resource allocation.
• Identify and address capacity building needs within the program teams, implementing training and support initiatives.
• Promote a culture of innovation, continuous learning, and evidence-based decision making across the program portfolio.
• Serve as a senior leadership + executive team member, contributing to strategic decision making and overall organizational management.
• Collaborate with directors’ team members to ensure cross functional alignment and integration of YMIs mission, vision and impact.
• Represent the organization externally, engaging with partners, funders, and the broader community to strengthen the organization’s reputation and impact.

Preferred

• Four to seven (4-7) years of full time professional experience in program management and supervision. Public Policy experience preferred. Experience doing so within New York City or New York State government preferred.
• Relevant degree such as public administration, business administration and/or related certification(s) preferred.
• Experience managing multiple staff members.
• Expertise in strategic planning, implementation and execution.
• Strong leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills.
• Excellent problem solving and decision-making abilities.
• Knowledge of program management frameworks (e.g., PMIs PMP, PgMP, MSP).
• Demonstrate commitment to diversity, inclusion, equity, and accessibility.
• Prior lived and/or work experience in communities facing historical oppression will contribute to your ability to help the office meet its racial justice mission.
• Demonstrate commitment, competency and familiarity with issues affecting Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian, Middle Eastern, and/or Pacific Islander communities in New York City, or other marginalized groups.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, a strong ability to work well with others in diverse team environments, and an enthusiastic work ethic.

Salary
The City of New York Office of the Mayor’s compensation package includes a market-competitive salary and exceptional benefits. Our cash compensation range for this role is $90,000-$99,293. Final offers may vary from the amount listed based on candidate experience and expertise, and other factors


AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

DOE Non- Discrimination Policy
The Department of Education of the City of New York is an inclusive equal opportunity employer committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce and providing a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment upon any legally protected status or protected characteristic, including but not limited to an individual's actual or perceived sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, or pregnancy. For more information, please refer to the DOE Non-Discrimination Policy.

REQUESTING AN ACCOMMODATION - APPLICANTS

Any prospective employee (applicant) who is a qualified individual with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation to assist in the application process. If an applicant for employment believes that they have a qualifying disability and are in need of a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in the application process on an equal basis as applicants who do not have a disability, they should request an accommodation with their interview team or contact ODA by emailing [email protected]. The determination of the accommodation request will be communicated to the applicant in writing.

https://infohub.nyced.org/docs/default-source/doe-employees-only/personnel-memorandum-6-2024-2025-accommodations.pdf

Public Service Loan Forgiveness
As a prospective employee of the City of New York, you may be eligible for federal loan forgiveness programs and state repayment assistance programs.