Managing Director of Marketing & Communications

New York City

About Democracy Prep

Democracy Prep educates responsible citizen-scholars for success in the college of their choice and for lives of active citizenship. In close partnership with families, we empower young people with the skills and values to flourish as community leaders who will strengthen our American democracy and change the world.

Our schools are grounded in rigorous academics, high expectations, and joyful, structured environments where scholars are challenged, affirmed, and known. Students benefit from extended learning time, access to strong college-preparatory curricula, and robust college access and persistence support to ensure they thrive in college and beyond.

A defining feature of a Democracy Prep education is our deep commitment to civic engagement. We prepare students to be lifelong active citizens who uplift their communities and sustain our democracy. Across grade levels, scholars take informed stances on important issues, engage respectfully across lines of difference, serve their communities, study current events, organize voter registration drives, and complete “change the world” capstone projects that translate research and advocacy into meaningful action.

To learn more about Democracy Prep, visit: https://democracyprep.org

About the Opportunity

The Managing Director of Marketing & Communications is an executive-level leader responsible for enterprise-wide brand stewardship, regional strategy communications, and rebuilding a high-performing Marketing & Communications function.

Reporting to the Chief Executive Officer, this leader operates at the systems level, partners closely with executive leadership, and directly manages the Marketing & Communications team. The Managing Director serves as both architect and steward of Democracy Prep’s brand and narrative — ensuring clarity, consistency, and strategic alignment across all internal and external communications.

This is a pivotal leadership role at a moment of strategic evolution for Democracy Prep.

Who You Are

• An educator with an unwavering commitment to Democracy Prep’s mission of college success and authentic civic engagement for our scholars.
• A self-reflective and self-aware teammate dedicated to aligning your work with Democracy Prep’s commitment to antiracism and contributing to a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• A strategic systems leader with strong process orientation and experience designing and improving scalable systems in complex organizations.
• An experienced manager and team leader with a track record of leading across diverse functional areas and managing through layers to build strong culture and accountability.
• A thoughtful decision-maker who can define strategic issues clearly despite ambiguity, synthesize diverse inputs, and make sound, timely decisions.
• A relationship builder with excellent interpersonal skills and a proven ability to work collaboratively across teams while developing long-term, productive internal and external partnerships.
• An exceptional writer and skilled communicator who can distill complex information into clear, compelling messaging tailored to diverse stakeholders.
• A professional who is highly responsive to feedback and committed to continuous improvement.

What You’ll Do

Executive & Network Strategy Leadership

• Partner with the CEO, COO, CFO, CSO, and executive team to ensure the viability of regional strategy and marketing & communications infrastructure.
• Serve as a trusted partner to executive leaders in solving complex regional and communications challenges.
• Co-lead New York future footprint planning and the 10-year growth strategy.
• Co-lead the vetting of potential merger and acquisition opportunities in the New York Region and serve as lead project manager for M&A initiatives.
• Serve as lead project manager for new seat growth initiatives.
• Develop board-level communications and presentations for DPPS and local boards; co-present with executive team members.
• Ensure fiscal responsibility for Marketing & Communications budgets.
• Participate in executive meetings and network-wide initiatives as assigned.

Brand Strategy & Enterprise Communications

• Lead the re-start and modernization of the Marketing & Communications function.
• Codify and articulate Democracy Prep’s core pillars, key differentiators, and key brand stories in close partnership with the Chief Operating Officer, Chief Executive Officer, and the broader Chiefs and Executive Teams.
• Design and implement a comprehensive internal and external communications strategy.
• Establish communications governance, including decision rights, brand standards, approvals, toolkits, and training.
• Set the standard for communication quality and message discipline across the organization.
• Develop and maintain an editorial calendar and proactive media campaign strategy.
• Serve as final reviewer and steward of the Democracy Prep brand, including reviewing and approving external communications and marketing materials.

Public Relations & Executive Visibility

• Develop and execute Democracy Prep’s public relations and reputation management strategy.
• Build proactive relationships with media, sector influencers, and strategic partners.
• Serve as the primary steward for all media inquiries.
• Oversee emergency and crisis communications planning, including creation of templates and coordination of key decision-makers.
• Own the enterprise approach to executive visibility and thought leadership for the CEO and other senior leaders, including speaking engagements, conferences, panels, and authored content.
• Oversee preparation of executive communications materials, including speeches, presentations, newsletters, and formal remarks.

Enrollment & Talent Brand Strategy

In partnership with the COO, Chief People Officer, and functional leaders:

• Establish a marketing approach that supports enrollment growth and family engagement.
• Align communications strategy with talent acquisition branding and recruitment marketing.
• Ensure marketing efforts translate into stronger student and talent pipelines.
• Oversee and manage marketing-related vendor relationships supporting enrollment and talent initiatives.

Digital & Creative Oversight

• Oversee the Democracy Prep website and all social media accounts, including audits and consolidation when needed.
• Oversee graphic design and video production.
• Ensure strong collaboration between the Marketing & Communications team and other CMO teams on materials preparation for major initiatives and events.
• Drive execution of priority projects as required by the Executive Team and the organization.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s degree in a related field preferred.

• 5–10 years of relevant leadership experience with a demonstrated track record of success.
• Experience leading teams across diverse functional areas and managing through layers.
• Strong systems orientation, including experience designing and scaling complex processes in dynamic environments.
• Exceptional writing and communication skills, with the ability to distill complex information into clear, compelling messaging for diverse audiences.
• Demonstrated commitment to Democracy Prep’s mission of college success and active citizenship, and to contributing to a culture grounded in diversity, equity, and inclusion.
• Experience operating within a school-based setting or high-functioning social sector organization strongly preferred.

Compensation & Work Environment

Salary range for this role is $170,000 to $190,000 and is commensurate with equivalent experience leading development in the education or another nonprofit space.

Democracy Prep staff members are provided with comprehensive benefits and a working environment that includes the necessary technology and resources to succeed. Democracy Prep employees work on a hybrid schedule with three days based in our New York City office and two days at home each week. Some evenings and weekends will be required, including attendance at board meetings, fundraising events, or other network events.

Application Process

This search is supported by JoHo Talent Network. The application deadline is March 30, 2026, and applications should be submitted through the JoHo portal.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Democracy Prep is an Equal Opportunity Employer and will not discriminate against an applicant or employee on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, national origin, or ancestry, sex, age, physical or mental disability, pregnancy, veteran or military status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, familial status, domestic violence victim status, or any other legally recognized protected basis under federal, state, or local laws, regulations, or ordinances.

Our mission is to educate responsible citizen-scholars who will change the world. We strongly believe that by building a DREAM team that represents numerous perspectives, backgrounds, and areas of expertise, we can achieve this goal together. This is a value we highly support and strongly encourage candidates of all backgrounds to apply.