Managing Director, National Tutoring Observatory- Information Science (Hybrid)

Who Are We?

Cornell Bowers CIS is home to more than 200 employees, which includes around 140 faculty. To meet growing student interest in the college's majors and courses, Cornell Bowers CIS is investing in hiring faculty and enhancing its staff infrastructure. This growth will expand the college's impact on higher education, technology, and society.

The National Tutoring Observatory (NTO), housed at the Cornell University Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science, will create open data and computational resources for education researchers and developers. The NTO will work closely with providers of tutoring services, school leaders, districts, and scientists to create the world's largest open-access dataset of tutoring (the Million Tutoring Moves dataset) and open-source libraries to facilitate processing and analysis grounded in principles of Responsible AI.

What You Will Do

This is a 2-year term position with the possibility of renewal based on funding and successful performance.

While position responsibilities vary, all people leaders are expected to foster a culture of belonging and a psychologically healthy work environment by being trustworthy; respecting all individuals; being flexible; supporting work/life integration as well as healthy boundaries; inviting new ideas, alternatives, and perspectives; speaking up and taking action if others are being excluded or treated inappropriately; and recognizing the contributions of others.

The successful candidate will work closely with Cornell faculty members and the project's co-principal investigators from multiple organizations, key staff across the university, and external partners in the public and private sectors to advance the strategic direction and vision and ensure the rigor and sustainability of the work. The Managing Director will be the external-facing lead of the National Tutoring Observatory.

The Managing Director will provide the intellectual leadership to enhance the work of multiple core teams across the NTO: (1) an engineering team charged with building new tutoring data infrastructure and shared data sets and tools; (2) a research team tasked with developing cutting edge research to ensure the quality of the dataset and data pipeline and engaging users through a mini-grants program; (3) and the partnership team, responsible for building a consortium of partners, school districts, and other key stakeholders in the tutoring ecosystem; as well as managing all data and privacy agreements and memoranda of understanding.

The Managing Director will be supported by a project administrator, financial administrator, research director, and partnership manager, in addition to the support of the project Co-PIs. This role will ensure that the work of the three core project teams is well-coordinated, leverages cross-project synergies, and produces high-quality and leading-edge products and deliverables. They will oversee internal and external communication, including the relationship with the sponsor and donor community to ensure sustainability of the NTO; as well as provide oversight for the project advisory boards that will guide the technology development and research program.

Key responsibilities:

• Collaborate with Cornell faculty, staff, and project leadership to set the strategic direction of the project and ensure the sustainability of the National Tutoring Observatory.
• Oversee and allocate project resources in accordance with the project's strategic priorities and needs.
• Ensure adequate staffing of key project roles and support a strong project culture through effective management and leadership.
• Lead internal communication to ensure work across project teams is closely coordinated and leverages cross-team synergies, including through establishing, hosting, and agenda setting for a regular cadence of team and leadership meetings.
• Set the strategic direction and coordinate the organization of an annual in-person convening of key project team members and partners.
• Lead external communication through the recruitment and retention of a consortia of partners (in coordination with the partnership team); and set a communication strategy for the establishment and maintenance of digital content through the NTO website and social media.
• Provide guidance on relationship management with partners and school districts.
• Resolve challenges (alongside the partnership team) related to data use agreements, privacy, and data security, including the project's Institutional Review Board (IRB) application.
• Support the recruitment and retention of two advisory boards to guide the technology and research development; ensure that the expertise of the advisory boards are being leveraged and teams are implementing expert guidance appropriately.
• Identify and support emerging project needs; develop and deploy creative solutions to technical and personnel challenges.

Some travel may be required for this position.

What We Need

• Identify and support emerging project needs; develop and deploy creative solutions to technical and personnel challenges.
• Experience in and/or demonstrated commitment to supporting diversity, equity, access, inclusion, and wellbeing.
• Demonstrated skill in understanding of cultural differences.
• Bachelor's Degree in a relevant field such as engineering, information or learning science, education, policy, or business.
• Minimum of 5-7 years of experience in a leadership role with a focus on project management, research coordination, and business development, or technology development.
• Strong track record of building and managing strategic partnerships with industry and university partners.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and negotiation skills.
• Ability to work independently, take initiative, and manage competing priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• In-depth understanding of the U.S. K-12 education and tutoring ecosystems, as well as student and family privacy provisions.
• Demonstrated experience of preparing and managing program budgets.
• Highly aligned with the mission of the National Tutoring Observatory with a passion for driving innovation and positive impact on student math learning.
• Established network in tutoring, learning sciences, or education technology communities.

What We Prefer

It would be a bonus if you have any of the following:

• Advanced degree in relevant field such as engineering, information or learning science, education, policy, or business preferred
• Working knowledge of math or tutoring research, responsible AI and technology infrastructure/platform and software development.

Important Notes About Applying

• Please submit both a cover letter and a resume to be considered for this position.
• There is no relocation assistance available for this position.
• There is no visa sponsorship available for this position.
• We will begin reviewing applications on a rolling basis starting 01/02/2025

Rewards and Benefits

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Non-Union Positions

Noted pay ranges reflect the potential pay opportunity for each job profile. The hiring rate of pay for the successful candidate will be determined considering the following criteria:

• Prior relevant work or industry experience
• Education level to the extent education is relevant to the position
• Unique applicable skills
• Academic Discipline

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EEO Statement:

Diversity and Inclusion are a part of Cornell University's heritage. We are a recognized employer and educator valuing AA/EEO, and we do not tolerate discrimination based on any protected characteristic, including race, ethnic or national origin, citizenship and immigration status, color, sex/gender, pregnancy or pregnancy-related conditions, age, creed, religion, actual or perceived disability (including persons associated with such a person), arrest and/or conviction record, military or veteran status, sexual orientation, gender expression and/or identity, an individual's genetic information, domestic violence victim status, familial status, marital status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. We also recognize a lawful preference in employment practices for Native Americans living on or near Indian reservations in accordance with applicable law.

Cornell University embraces diversity and seeks candidates who will contribute to a climate that supports students, faculty, and staff to all identities and backgrounds. We encourage individuals from underrepresented and/or marginalized identities to apply.