Job Description
Job DescriptionSalary: Starting $80,000 with additional consideration given for related experience
DEPARTMENT: Artistic and Community
REPORTS TO: Senior Director of Producing Operations
with dotted line reporting to the Artistic Director
SUPERVISES: Resident Teaching Artists, Education interns and Education volunteers
EMPLOYMENT STATUS: Full-time, Exempt
SUMMARY
The Director of Learning is responsible for identifying, shaping, and stewarding all learning-based relationships that result in long and short-term collaborative initiatives and programming for the company. They lead the development of a vision for learning that aligns with BLOs artistic and civic mission. They provide leadership and engage in best practices to prioritize authentic, deep, sustainable engagement with community groups and organizations that may include other arts and cultural organizations, social or health services, K-12 and higher education, youth organizations, work-based learning, faith-based, or neighborhood-based, while serving the companys mission. Core to these relationships is to foster informal and formal learning opportunities in opera, including collaborative opportunities to increase equity and access through both formal and informal education and training pipelines in the performing arts sector.
The Director of Learning is responsible for planning and executing long-term and short-term education and community learnings for the company, including formal K-12 school partnerships, creative youth development, classroom teacher professional development, and informal adult, family, and lifelong learning. This responsibility is inclusive of all planning, tracking, administration, budgeting, execution, reporting, and evaluation.
PRIMARY AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY
- Strategic Planning, Leadership, and Community Relationships
- Develops the strategic design in partnership with Artistic Director of BLOs education initiatives with short and long-term goals in Boston and beyond.
- Identifies new relationships as well as stewarding and growing current ones with other arts and cultural organizations, social or health services, K-12 and higher education, youth organizations, work-based learning, faith-based, or neighborhood-based organizations in the greater Boston area to expand and deepen BLOs cultural &
educational
footprint in an authentic and sustainable manner.
- Stays informed about trends in community arts education; curriculum theory and implementation, including distance and lifelong learning; state and federal educational requirements; and developments in the field of opera, creative youth development, and arts education, Boston Public Schools, opera-education, arts-integration, professional development, creative youth development, creative aging, creative placemaking, civic practice, arts advocacy and arts education policy, and other education engagement initiatives in the non-profit arts sector in Boston and at-large.
- Participates in the planning
and execution of the departments objectives and strategy.
2. Budgeting, Planning and Administration
- In partnership with the Sr. Director of Producing Operations, oversees Education Programs budget including development, tracking, and budget forecasting for future fiscal years.
- Manages contracting and payment for all teaching artists, dramaturgs, guest lecturers, and other educational experts.
- Develops metrics and methodologies for qualitative and quantitative assessment of education programs; analyzes data and outcomes to measure program effectiveness and efficiency; implements strategic changes and prepares reports on outcomes both internally and externally.
- Collaborates closely with other departments as appropriate, including, but not limited to, the creation of printed materials, publicity, website updates, media, education patron data integration with Tessitura, grant proposals, development stewarding, and other programming (i.e.
programs, events, productions, etc.).
- Supervises BLO Resident Teaching Artist(s) and Education Department administrative staff, and they recruit and manage an additional team of Teaching Artist(s), as well as intern(s) and volunteer(s) as appropriate, including managing staffing schedule for educational programming.
- Provides regular updates on current programs and initiatives to the Senior Leadership Team,
Board, and Executive Leadership as needed.
3. Programs for Schools, Youth, and Educators
- Directs and refines the strategic curriculum and program design of BLOs youth and school partnerships for students and educators by implementing short- and long-term strategies meeting initiatives.
- Maintains and develops relationships with teachers, schools, educational institutions and partners in the greater Boston area to increase accessibility to equitable, quality arts experiences for youth and educators; identifies and recruits new partners.
- Manages the School Partnerships program, centered in the Create Your Own Opera Partnership residency program and related professional development training for K-12 educators.
- Develops, manages, and implements annual summer professional development training for educators, as well as ongoing events through the school year.
- Maintains relationships with teachers, school administrators as well as district-level staff to support partnership efforts.
- Coordinates residency visits, and other educational events for participating schools.
- Tailors partnerships to the individual needs of each school or organization.
- Supports and manages BLO Resident Teaching Artist(s), troubleshoots problems, advises on curricula and lesson plans, observes teaching practices to provide feedback, and provides education resources throughout the academic year.
- Identifies and develops new school and out-of-school education partnerships.
- Directs the development of partnerships with other creative youth development organizations, including: youth arts and/or service organizations, VOICES Boston youth chorus, etc.
- Manages the development, scheduling, and implementation of Opera Stories Tour- an educational-based introduction to opera interactive performance toured to partner schools,
Boston Public Libraries branches and other partner organizations and/or venues.
- Manages the development of the Opera Stories Tour programming, in partnership with the Artistic Director to create new programming for the organization.
- Manages the Final Dress Rehearsal Program,
and works closely with
Artistic Director and Programs & Events Manager
on the creation of study guides for BLOs season
- Ensures the continued development of intern placement and supervision within the company evolving into the development of an internship framework.
4. Programs for Adults, Families, and the Community
- Develops and oversees the logistics and execution of educational community programs and partnerships, including but not limited to: pre-performance lectures; and other adult and family educational initiatives.
- Directs the research, design, and presentation of neweducational program initiatives and partnerships.
- Assists with other projects and initiatives as assigned.
QUALIFICATIONS
- Ideal candidates will have 7+ years of experience in nonprofit arts management, preferably in opera education or performing arts education
- Demonstrated commitment to youth development and arts education
- Proven leadership of teams and complex projects
- Strong budgeting and organizational skills
- Strong leadership and interpersonal skills; Excellent communication, negotiation, and problem-solving abilities
- Ability to work flexible hours, including evenings and weekends
- Ability to work collaboratively with diverse groups, including children, staff, and volunteers
Job Conditions
The position is a full-time, exempt position. Regular business hours are Monday to Friday, from 9am-5pm with evening and weekend work during seasonal high-volume periods. Administrative work is currently hybrid (office/remote) with some regular onsite work required for BLO performances, and events in Boston and across the greater Boston area (during the week/on weekends).
Salary min point is $80k with additional consideration given for related experience.
BLO values diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. All qualified candidates will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age or veterans status or any other protected category. BLO is an equal opportunity employer.