Senior Director of Network Success

The Opportunity

XQ Institute is seeking a Senior Director of Network Success, based in Oakland, CA,  will play a critical role in supporting XQ’s school and system partnerships, ensuring that each partner is positioned to achieve measurable impact and become a proof point for high school transformation. This role focuses on strengthening relationships, aligning technical assistance and resources, leading XQ’s Communities of Practice, and ensuring that XQ’s investments lead to sustainable and scalable change.

Reporting to the Chief of Schools and Systems, this person will oversee relationships with schools, districts, and system partners—providing guidance, accountability, and support that enables them to thrive. They will serve as the central point of connection between partners and XQ teams, ensuring schools and systems have the right tools, resources, and capacity to advance their redesign work.

The ideal candidate has experience leading and supporting innovative school models, driving continuous improvement, cultivating learning networks, and ensuring that partnerships deliver meaningful results at both the school and system levels. 

Key Responsibilities

Driving School and System Success

• Serve as a trusted partner to school and system leaders, providing coaching, strategic guidance, and connections to resources that deepen implementation of XQ’s design principles.
• Track and analyze partner progress toward outcomes, identifying challenges and opportunities to accelerate impact.
• Align technical assistance with XQ tools, frameworks, and supports to strengthen school and system transformation.
• Support Beacons and other schools beyond the XQ network in advancing redesign efforts that contribute to the broader high school transformation movement.

Leading Communities of Practice (CoPs)

• Design and lead XQ’s Communities of Practice, ensuring they serve as powerful spaces for peer learning, problem-solving, and shared innovation.
• Develop content and programming for CoPs in close coordination with Product, Policy, and other XQ teams.
• Facilitate convenings—both virtual and in-person—that build trust, spark collaboration, and drive adoption of innovative practices.
• Ensure CoPs are responsive to partner needs and aligned with XQ’s broader transformation strategy.

Grantmaking and Accountability

• Manage strategic grantmaking processes to ensure investments align with XQ’s mission and priorities.
• Monitor grantee progress against agreed-upon outcomes, providing feedback and support to maximize results.
• Use progress data to inform continuous improvement in XQ’s grantmaking and technical assistance strategies.

Strengthening Relationships and Community

• Build and sustain deep, trust-based relationships with leaders across schools, districts, and systems.
• Facilitate collaboration and connections across partners, ensuring they can learn from and support one another.
• Ensure that partner voices and experiences inform XQ’s strategy, while coordinating with the Field Learning team on any formal knowledge capture and storytelling.

Internal Alignment and Support

• Act as a bridge between schools/systems and XQ’s internal teams (Policy, Product, Community, Research), ensuring partner needs are surfaced and addressed.
• Coordinate with colleagues to provide schools and systems with cohesive, streamlined support.
• Identify opportunities where partners can help test or refine XQ tools and frameworks, feeding structured progress updates to the product team. 

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in K–12 education, with at least 5 years in school improvement, district, school, or system leadership.
• Proven experience supporting innovative or redesigned high school models, with a strong grasp of continuous improvement and systems-change strategies.
• Deep understanding of high school transformation, equity-driven education reform, and the conditions that enable sustainable school and system change.
• Demonstrated success leading professional learning networks or Communities of Practice that build collective capacity and drive measurable results.

• Exceptional relationship-builder with the ability to earn trust and influence across diverse stakeholders, from school leaders to system executives.
• Strong strategic and analytical skills to assess partner progress, interpret data, and translate insights into actionable recommendations.
• Excellent facilitation, presentation, and storytelling skills—able to design and lead engaging convenings and communicate complex ideas clearly.
• Highly collaborative and adaptive—skilled at working across internal teams (e.g., Policy, Product, Research, and Community) to align support and drive outcomes.
• Strong project management and organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple partnerships and priorities simultaneously.

• Deep commitment to educational equity and to centering student and community voice in system transformation.
• Curious, reflective, and growth-oriented—eager to learn from schools and systems while contributing to collective learning.
• Entrepreneurial and resourceful, with a bias toward action, continuous improvement, and measurable impact.

• Bachelor’s degree required; advanced degree in education, public policy, or a related field strongly preferred.

Compensation

XQ offers a competitive salary commensurate with experience, along with a comprehensive benefits package that supports employee health, well-being, and financial security. This includes a 6% employer 401(k) match and robust health benefits.

Salary range: $200,000 - $235,000

Location

XQ is headquartered in Oakland, CA with offices in Washington DC and New York City. This role will be based in Oakland, working out of our Oakland office.