Hiring Eastside Youth Opportunity Center Program Director in Baltimore

The Baltimore City Mayor’s Office of Employment Development (MOED) is the lead public agency tasked with advancing equitable workforce access for Baltimore residents, with a specific focus on removing barriers to employment for youth, justice-involved individuals, and residents of historically disinvested neighborhoods. Operating under the Office of the Mayor, MOED administers more than $25M in annual federal, state, and local funding to deliver workforce training, job placement, and supportive services to over 10,000 Baltimore residents each year. Our work is guided by the city’s 10-year economic development plan, Baltimore Together, which prioritizes reducing youth unemployment and expanding pathways to family-sustaining careers for all residents.

We are currently seeking an experienced and mission-driven Program Director to lead operations of the Eastside Youth Opportunity (YO) Center, a city-funded initiative serving out-of-school, unemployed youth aged 18–24 in Baltimore’s eastern neighborhoods. The YO Center model is designed to address the unique barriers faced by young people who have disconnected from traditional education and employment pathways, including lack of access to transportation, unstable housing, limited professional networks, and gaps in foundational skills. The Program Director will report directly to MOED’s Deputy Director of Youth Programming and will be responsible for overseeing all aspects of center operations, from participant recruitment to long-term employment outcome tracking.

Key responsibilities for this role include:
1. Oversee end-to-end operations of the Eastside YO Center, serving 200+ eligible youth annually, with a target of 90% of enrolled participants completing at least one workforce development training, certification, or job placement activity per program year.
2. Develop and implement personalized service plans for each enrolled participant, coordinating with a team of case managers and job coaches to track progress toward vocational certification, educational attainment, or stable unsubsidized employment, with a goal of 65% of participants securing employment or enrolling in post-secondary education within 6 months of program exit.
3. Manage an annual operating budget of $1.2M, overseeing procurement, vendor contracts, and financial reporting to ensure full compliance with city, state, and federal funding requirements, including Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) guidelines, with zero material audit findings per fiscal year.
4. Build and maintain formal partnerships with 30+ local employers, community colleges, vocational training providers, and social service organizations to expand job placement pipelines, apprenticeship opportunities, and wrap-around support services for participants, increasing employer partnership retention by 20% year over year.
5. Supervise a team of 12 full-time and part-time staff, including case managers, job coaches, and outreach specialists, providing weekly performance feedback, professional development opportunities, and ensuring staff meet participant service delivery targets.
6. Lead targeted outreach and recruitment efforts in the Madison-Eastend, Berea, and McElderry Park neighborhoods, partnering with local schools, community centers, and juvenile justice stakeholders to identify eligible youth, increasing annual enrollment by 15% while maintaining a participant waitlist of no more than 20 individuals.
7. Collect, analyze, and report program performance data using the Salesforce case management system and MOED’s central reporting dashboards, submitting monthly and quarterly reports to agency leadership and funding partners, with a 100% on-time submission rate for all required reports.
8. Align center programming with city-wide youth employment initiatives, including the Baltimore City Youth Employment Challenge, and participate in quarterly cross-center learning collaboratives to share best practices and improve service delivery across all 6 city YO Center locations.

The Program Director will be based at the Eastside YO Center’s physical location at 2400 Fountain Street, Baltimore, MD 21218, with 10% of time allocated to remote administrative work. The MOED team is deeply committed to racial equity and centering the needs of Baltimore’s most marginalized residents in all program design. You will collaborate closely with a cross-functional team of workforce development professionals, city agency partners, and community leaders who share a commitment to reducing systemic barriers to employment for young people. The role offers a dynamic, fast-paced work environment with the opportunity to see direct, tangible impacts on the lives of Baltimore youth on a daily basis.

Ideal candidates will bring 5+ years of professional experience in youth services, workforce development, or community program management, with a proven track record of leading programs that serve low-income or justice-involved youth populations. A bachelor’s degree in Social Work, Public Administration, Education, or a related field is required; a master’s degree in a relevant field is preferred. Candidates must have demonstrated experience managing budgets of $1M or more, supervising frontline staff, and reporting performance data to federal or state funding agencies. Familiarity with WIOA requirements, Salesforce case management systems, and Baltimore’s neighborhood landscape is strongly preferred. Bilingual English/Spanish candidates are encouraged to apply.

Technical skills required for this role include proficiency in Salesforce for participant case management and outcome tracking, QuickBooks or similar accounting software for budget management, Microsoft Office Suite and Google Workspace for reporting and collaboration, and familiarity with WIOA reporting frameworks and city grant compliance requirements. Experience using data visualization tools such as Tableau or Power BI to communicate program performance to stakeholders is a plus.

MOED offers a competitive compensation package for this role, with an annual salary range of $78,000–$94,000, adjusted for relevant experience and qualifications. Full-time employees receive a comprehensive benefits package including 80% employer-paid health, dental, and vision coverage, a 401(k) plan with 4% employer match, 15 days of paid annual leave plus 10 paid city holidays, and access to professional development stipends for industry conferences and continuing education. Employees are also eligible for public service loan forgiveness after 10 years of qualifying payments.

This role offers significant opportunities for professional growth and career advancement within MOED and the broader Baltimore city government. High-performing Program Directors are eligible for promotion to Deputy Director of Youth Programming or regional workforce development leadership roles after 2+ years of successful service. MOED also provides access to leadership development training, mentorship from senior city officials, and opportunities to participate in national workforce development policy initiatives through partnerships with the National League of Cities and the U.S. Department of Labor.

To apply for this role, submit your resume and a tailored cover letter detailing your experience managing youth workforce development programs to [email protected] by November 30, 2024. All applications will be reviewed by a panel of MOED leadership and youth programming staff. Selected candidates will be invited to a 30-minute initial virtual screening during the week of December 9, 2024. Finalists will participate in a 60-minute in-person panel interview with MOED leadership and community stakeholders during the week of December 16, 2024. Reference checks will be conducted for all finalists, and a formal job offer will be extended to the selected candidate by December 27, 2024. The preferred start date for this role is February 3, 2025. We encourage all eligible candidates to apply, and MOED is an equal opportunity employer that values diversity in its workforce.