Organizer

Organizer

Hiring Manager: Kara Neidhardt, Director of Strategic Engagement
Location: Flexible within CT (Targeting Fairfield, New Haven, or Hartford County; requires regular statewide travel)
Termed Role: 2 years
Start Date: Mid-January

About Us

Our nation’s education system is leaving millions of students—including an overwhelming number of students of color and low-income students—unprepared for college, career, and life. Research shows that classroom teachers are the single most important in-school factor in improving student achievement, and we believe a truly thriving teaching profession requires educator voice and leadership. We work to build durable teacher power, especially with those who have been historically excluded from decision-making, to shape the systems and policies that define education. 

Founded by public school teachers, Educators for Excellence is a growing movement of nearly 40,000 educators working together to build a high-quality, diverse teaching profession with the resources and conditions necessary to help every student thrive. Together, we research and develop educator-informed solutions, build teacher power, and advocate for policy change at the district, state, and national levels.

What We Do

Our work is grounded in the belief that the teaching profession is one of the most vital forces shaping our shared future - and that educators must be at the center of shaping the policies and systems that define public education. We focus on developing teacher leadership and power to drive issue advocacy campaigns that shape policy, contracts, and the national conversation. 

To achieve our vision for transforming the teaching profession, we advance and support the implementation of a focused set of policy solutions backed by research and educators. Our agenda focuses on achieving a high-quality, diverse workforce through:

• Building strong and sustainable career pathways.
• Creating coherent systems of instructional support.
• Funding public schools fully and equitably.

By building durable teacher power, teachers unite as a collective force to drive lasting change and advance an equitable, sustainable public education system where every student has the opportunity to learn, grow, and succeed.

The Opportunity

Educators for Excellence is seeking an expert Organizer to support our campaign initiatives and coach and train educators to be effective campaign advocates.This is a 2-year (24-month) term-limited position. The Organizer will support all ongoing campaigns across Connecticut, with 50% of their time dedicated specifically to E4E’s strategic compensation campaign initiatives.

In this role, the Organizer will be responsible for creating and driving grassroots campaign opportunities to advance E4E's issue agenda. These opportunities include the coaching and development of a cohort of educators who will similarly drive campaign tactics and develop the skills to be effective spokespeople for the campaign. In addition to recruiting, training, and retaining this cohort, the Organizer will be responsible for driving campaign goals through digital organizing tactics, attending coalition meetings, and more in order to advance the campaign.

Minimum Requirements:

• Experience: At least 2 years of professional experience, including experience in at least one of the following fields.
  • Community organizing, issue-based advocacy, or union organizing
  • Electoral campaign experience 
  • Pre-K-12 education instruction
     
• Technical Skills:
  • Knowledge of Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, and Word and corresponding Google Suite products
  • Understanding of reporting databases (i.e., Salesforce) preferred
  • Very comfortable with phone, text, and email outreach
     
• Working Conditions:
  • While the home office location within Connecticut is flexible, we are specifically seeking candidates based in Fairfield, New Haven, or Hartford County. Candidates must be comfortable with regular weekly travel throughout the state to engage educators, partner organizations, and community members across different districts.
  • This role requires access to reliable transportation (including public transit) to meet with teachers in schools and in the community
  • This role will include frequent evening and weekend work engagements, as you will need to meet with teachers when they are not working

Responsibilities: What actions will you leverage day-to-day?

• Field Organizing
  • Conduct broad and intensive outreach efforts to build deep and meaningful relationships with educators (both E4E members and prospective members)
  • Plan, execute, and lead frequent phone banks, text banks, 1:1 meetings, school visits, and house parties to move campaigns forward
  • Educate, agitate, and motivate members to take activist actions (sign petitions, write op-eds, testify at the legislature, etc.) to advance campaigns
  • Identify, recruit, and develop teacher leaders to organize their colleagues to take part in our campaigns 
  • Facilitate trainings, events, and organizing actions to move campaigns forward
  • Leverage digital organizing tools, including multiple online platforms (such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, WhatsApp) to connect with, engage, and inform teachers
  • Attend frequent community events, school board meetings, and meetings with stakeholders - bringing educators when possible and sharing information to keep educators informed about what’s happening locally
  • Achieve targets for recruitment, engagement, activism, leadership development, and union leadership
  • Must be willing to work evenings and weekends as required during campaigns (i.e., phone banks, events, emails, text messaging)
• Data and Administration
  • Maintain detailed contact information for members and schools, updating contact records frequently to ensure accuracy
  • Track communication with and engagement of members regularly
  • Leverage data reporting to make informed decisions about outreach and engagement opportunities 
  • Complete all required administrative tasks (i.e., time sheets, expense forms, etc.) in a timely manner

Core Values: What beliefs do you embody? How do you approach your work?

• Inclusiveness - We make space at the table for all, so everyone feels like they belong.
• Achieve Ambitious Goals – We strive to have a transformational impact on the staff, teachers, and students we serve.
• Adjust Course – We take a resilient attitude towards roadblocks and adjust strategies to ensure progress towards the goal. 
• Communication – We value clear and thoughtful word choice, tone, and body language.
• Deep Belief in Mission – We believe change is possible, so we equip ourselves to achieve it.

Positional Skills - What can you do well?

• Influencing & Motivating – you make compelling cases and agitate around educators' concerns
• Cultivating Relationships & Collaborating – you prioritize relationship building with educators, stakeholders, and partners
• Organizing, Planning, and Executing  - you drive your own schedule to balance team meetings, outreach tactics, and data analysis
• Making Decisions & Demonstrating Judgment – you think critically through a lens of core values
• Tracking, Measuring & Analyzing – you develop processes for data analysis
• Learning & Developing – you opt into opportunities to build skills and implement best practices

Functional Knowledge - What do you know a lot about?

• Organizing (issue advocacy, campaign) - you know how to drive campaigns that lead people to take action
• Power - you understand power dynamics and how to build collective power to achieve social change
• Planning & facilitating events and training - you will design & execute your organizing tactics from start to finish
• Education landscape - you understand who the key players are in the education sector and how to influence them

Benefits & Applying

Educators for Excellence (E4E) believes in providing employees with benefits to support self-care, wellness, and financial stability. We value the whole person and provide benefits such as paid time off, health insurance plans, competitive salaries that include pre-tax benefits, and cell phone reimbursements. See more information about our benefits here.

E4E is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We do not discriminate based on race, color, ancestry, national origin, religion or religious creed, mental or physical disability, medical condition, genetic information, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, marital status, military or veteran status, citizenship, or other characteristics protected by state or federal law or local ordinance. E4E has zero tolerance for discrimination, racism, xenophobia, or misogyny in any form in our workplace. We strive to create a workplace where everyone feels a strong sense of belonging.

Compensation Policy 

Educators for Excellence (E4E) is committed to valuing team members holistically. We do not engage in salary negotiations; our first offer is always our best offer.

Salary band: $60,000 - $79,000 

Within this range, our competitive, non-negotiable salary offer will be based on a candidate’s relevant experience and credentials, role-related competencies assessed through our robust hiring process, and geographic location. 

COVID-19 Vaccination Policy: All new employees are required to comply with E4E’s mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy, which requires all staff to be fully vaccinated before the start of employment. An employee will be considered fully vaccinated two weeks after receiving the requisite number of doses of a COVID-19 vaccine. Employees may request an exemption as a reasonable accommodation due to a medical reason or a sincerely held religious belief.

E4E abides by each state’s requirements and acknowledges that they may change over time. If you advance to an interview, you will have the opportunity to ask questions about this job requirement.

Accommodations: We are committed to creating an inclusive and accessible interview experience and will ensure that all candidates are provided with reasonable accommodations that allow them to participate in the interview process. To request an accommodation, please email [email protected]

EEOC questionnaire: Weplace a particular focus on recruiting staff members who share the backgrounds of the communities we serve. We encourage all applicants to complete our EEOC questionnaire as part of their application process (these questions will be included in their initial application).Completing the questionnaire will help ensure our People & Equity team is attracting a diverse pool of qualified candidates for each of our open positions. Please note that this information is not included with your application, and our hiring managers do not have access to race and other identifying information at any point in the interviewing or hiring process, including after a hire is made.

E4E uses E-Verify when completing all new hire paperwork. For more information, visit here.