Vice President of Youth Development

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required (Early Childhood Education or K-12 Education Degree Strongly Preferred); advanced degree preferred
• Five (5) or more years of leadership experience overseeing multiple youth or childcare programs including, but not limited to, full-day care, after-school care, summer camp and school day out.
• Demonstrated success in developing and executing strategic initiatives across multiple locations or departments
• Experience with licensed childcare and regulatory compliance preferred
• Passionate commitment to the YMCA mission and values
• Knowledge of DHS requirements for childcare programs preferred.
• Current CPR/First Aid Instructor certification (or willingness to obtain).
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to lead and coach staff.
• Commitment to YMCA values of caring, honesty, respect, and responsibility.

Essential Functions

• Serve as project manager for the development and construction of the Greater Kingsport YMCAs Early Learning Center, scheduled to open Fall, 2027.
• Liaison between the YMCA and Sullivan County Schools for the launch of The Sullivan County Schools Early Learning Centers.
• Ensure licensed programs maintain regulatory compliance and uphold the highest standards of care and safety.
• Identify areas of underperformance and implement strategies to improve effectiveness and outcomes.
• Utilize data and performance metrics to guide decision-making and continuous improvement.
• Define and implement association-wide standards for youth programming, curriculum alignment, child safety practices, and program quality.
• Lead the development and execution of the association-wide youth development strategy, including childcare, youth programs, and family engagement initiatives.
• Establish performance indicators and accountability systems to measure youth impact, participation, quality, growth, and outcomes.
• Align resources, initiatives, and investments with strategic priorities.
• Develop and expand partnerships with schools, community organizations, municipalities, and public agencies.
• Supervise and support association youth development leaders by providing coaching, accountability, and leadership development.
• Foster collaboration across locations to create a unified youth and family experience
• Oversee the development and implementation of all childcare curriculum.
• Supervise and support association youth development leaders by providing coaching, accountability, and leadership development.
• Oversee the completion of all DHS training requirements and certifications (TNPAL, TrainTN, CPR, internal compliance, SDC, etc.). Ensure that employee and participant files maintain the required documentation for DHS inspection.
• Oversee daily staffing needs including floaters, callouts, time-off requests, and site coverage.
• Lead through influence and collaboration to ensure alignment, consistency, and execution of youth priorities throughout the association.
• Visit all childcare sites to train, coach, and support site directors.
• Coverage as a Site Director as needed.
• Recruits, hires, trains, develops, supervises and evaluates childcare leadership team personnel.
• Ensures all early learning centers, afterschool and camp locations meet program, curriculum and licensure requirements.
• Develops and monitors the budget
• Manage and maintain the DHS portal for staff compliance tracking.
• Assist in training delivery at ASCC Back-to-School and SDC training sessions.
• Support ongoing recruitment strategies to build a strong childcare team.
• Perform additional responsibilities as assigned to advance childcare quality and compliance.
• Service as Lead staff on Saturday shift, once per quarter.
• Adhere to policies related to boundaries with youth.
• Attend required abuse risk management training.
• Adhere to procedures related to managing high-risk activities and supervising youth.
• Report suspicious or inappropriate behaviors and policy violations.
• Follow mandated abuse reporting requirements.
• Follow employee and volunteer screening requirements and use screening instruments to screen for abuse risk.
• Provide employees and volunteers with on-going supervision and training related to abuse risk management.
• Ensure there is a positive culture for responding and reporting for employees and volunteers.
• Provide employees and volunteers with regular feedback regarding their boundaries with youth.
• Require employees and volunteers to adhere to policies and procedures related to abuse risk and prevention.
• Respond quickly to policy and procedure violations using the YMCA’s progressive discipline policy.
• Respond seriously and confidentially to reports of suspicious and inappropriate behavior.
• Follow mandated reporting requirements.
• Communicate to all employees and volunteers the YMCA’s commitment to zero tolerance of abuse to youth.
• Report essential abuse risk management information to the Board of Directors.