"Executive Director, McGraw Center for Educational Leadership"

The University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education (Penn GSE) seeks a seasoned, collaborative leader to serve as Executive Director of the McGraw Center for Educational Leadership. The Executive Director will combine strategic vision with hands-on leadership, driving initiatives that advance leadership development across preK-12 education, higher education, corporate and lifelong learning, and nonprofit sectors. This position calls for an action-oriented leader who thrives on collaboration and is committed to ensuring impact through both strategic planning and execution. The Executive Director will elevate the McGraw Center to become the premier hub for educational leadership resources nationwide and enhance Penn GSE's global reputation in this area.

About Penn GSE

For 110 years, University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education (Penn GSE) has defined success by our positive impact on society. Today, Penn GSE is known worldwide for rigorous scholarship, high-quality instruction, and impactful, innovative practice. Our academic programs span the educational landscape, producing some of the most highly sought-after educators, leaders, researchers, counselors, and entrepreneurs. Our faculty are widely regarded as leading experts in their fields, our students bring a deep commitment to impact, and our dedicated staff are committed to realizing our mission every day. Penn GSE alumni, numbering nearly 20,000, lead transformative educational change in over 90 countries. Our work is rooted in the belief that education is a public good-essential to a just and thriving society.

Strategic Vision

In November 2024, under the leadership of Dean Katharine Strunk, Penn GSE launched Together for Good, a bold and collaborative strategic vision to guide the School over the next decade. The vision responds to a defining moment in education, marked by both urgent challenges and unprecedented opportunities, positioning Penn GSE to lead transformative change across the educational landscape. It centers on four interconnected priorities: preparing and sustaining a highly skilled education workforce; collaborating with communities near and far on programs and scholarship for the public good; innovating by bridging theory and practice to conduct educational research with consequence; and elevating education's role within a democratic society.

The McGraw Center for Educational Leadership is a vital engine for bringing this vision to life. With its cross-sector reach and commitment to cultivating capacious, impact-oriented leaders, the Center embodies Together for Good in action. By building leadership capacity across preK-12, higher education, corporate and lifelong learning, and nonprofit sectors, the Center helps Penn GSE strengthen the educator pipeline, foster meaningful collaboration, and drive systemic change.

The McGraw Center for Educational Leadership

Established in 2022 by a $10 million gift from the Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Family Foundation, the McGraw Center for Educational Leadership is a hub for innovation and collaboration, dedicated to advancing educational leadership across K-12, higher education, corporate and lifelong learning, and nonprofit sectors. Through a blend of research, professional learning, and practice, the Center cultivates leaders who can drive systemic change and address the evolving challenges of education and learning today and tomorrow. By partnering with educators, policymakers, and thought leaders globally, the McGraw Center supports a wide community of leaders committed to educational excellence.

The Center's signature programs, including the prestigious Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize in Education, position it at the forefront of shaping the future of educational leadership. The Center also now houses two longstanding Penn GSE programs: the Center for School Study Councils (f. 1941), which supports regional superintendents and district leaders, and the Coalition for Educational Excellence (f. 2004), which partners with schools and districts to close opportunity and achievement gaps. These programs anchor the Center in decades of practitioner-informed leadership development and extend its reach through professional learning communities across the region and beyond. The McGraw Center forms an integral part of Catalyst Penn GSE. Led by Michael Golden, Ed.D., Vice Dean of Innovative Programs and Partnerships, Catalyst is a hub for global education innovation and impact, with the mission of connecting people and ideas to develop novel and meaningful ways to advance innovation in world-wide education. Catalyst's programs cut across sectors to serve educators, entrepreneurs, researchers, policymakers, investors, business leaders, and others with a stake in education's power to create opportunity for all learners. Catalyst partners with diverse stakeholders to create, test, adapt, and disseminate impactful practices and tools to help educators and leaders eliminate opportunity, achievement, and attainment disparities and support equitable outcomes for all learners.

Our Next Executive Director

The Executive Director will lead a center dedicated to shaping the future of educational leadership across sectors. The ideal candidate for this role will bring extensive experience in educational leadership, with a deep understanding of the leadership continuum spanning Pre-K through postsecondary education and extending into corporate and lifelong learning, and nonprofit environments. This position demands not only a strategic visionary but a 'doer' with an action orientation, ready to build the center's capacity in its early years of operation.

The Executive Director will work closely with colleagues across Penn GSE, as well as with partners throughout the educational landscape, to drive impactful initiatives. Penn GSE's outstanding faculty, reputational excellence, and collaborative spirit will provide critical support for the Executive Director in developing programs and convening gatherings that benefit multiple constituents-students, alumni, local, national, and global thought leaders, scholars, and practitioners. In addition to advancing new initiatives, the Executive Director will guide the continued integration and growth of the Center for School Study Councils and the Coalition for Educational Excellence.

The Executive Director will report directly to the Vice Dean of Innovative Programs and Partnerships with a dotted-line reportage to the Penn GSE Dean. They will also collaborate closely with the directors and faculty of our leadership programs to ensure the success of the Center's mission. Qualified and interested candidates may also be considered for a Senior Fellow designation, additionally compensated, which entitles them to teach within relevant academic programs.

Key Responsibilities

• Leadership and Strategy Development: Provide strategic direction for the McGraw Center for Educational Leadership, aligning initiatives with Penn GSE's Strategic Vision and broader educational leadership objectives.
• Design and Implementation of Programs: Design, implement, and assess cutting-edge programs that enhance cross-sector, integrative leadership development. Promote inter-programmatic experiences for students and alumni.
• Program Oversight and Integration: Oversee and strengthen existing programs like the Center for School Study Councils and the Coalition for Educational Excellence.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Cultivate engagement from internal and external stakeholders.
• Resource Development and Stewardship: Secure funding through grants, gifts, and partnerships.
• Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize in Education: Lead the prestigious prize and associated programming.
• Thought Leadership: Serve as a thought leader in educational leadership.
• Research and Advocacy: Collaborate with faculty on research initiatives and advocate for evidence-based policies.

Qualifications

• Master's degree required; Ph.D., Ed.D., or equivalent strongly preferred.
• 5-7 years of leadership experience in educational, nonprofit, or corporate settings.
• History of success in securing funding and managing budgets.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with diverse stakeholders.
• Strong communication skills.