Director of Policy

First 5 LA is in its second year of implementing the First 5 LA Strategic Plan 2024-2029, marking a new era of impact-focused, equity-based, partnership-driven, and integrity-centered efforts to create a future where every child is born healthy and thrives in a nurturing, safe, and loving community. First 5 LA’s strategic plan reflects a profound commitment to ensuring that all children prenatal to age 5 and their families have their basic needs met, have nurturing relationships and environments, and a solid foundation for well-being, lifelong learning, and success. It also recognizes both the community’s tremendous assets and the structural inequities that disproportionately impact marginalized communities. The shift towards an equity-based approach focused on race, poverty and geography underscores the importance of community empowerment and cross-sector partnerships that grow social movements, catalyze public policies, and promote systemic reforms that prioritize high need children prenatal to 5 and their families.

Overview

Guided by our values of impact, equity, partnership, and integrity, First 5 LA works to address structural inequities and drive systemic change that prioritizes marginalized families. First 5 LA’s strategic plan reflects a profound commitment to ensuring that all children prenatal to age 5 and their families have their basic needs met, have nurturing relationships and environments, and a solid foundation for well-being, lifelong learning, and success. 

The Director of Policy is a member of the First 5 LA Leadership Team and holds organization-wide leadership responsibilities. This role serves as a direct report and thought partner to the Vice President of Community Engagement and Policy (VPCEP), contributing to strategic decision-making and cross-functional alignment across the organization. The position requires strong management capabilities and a deep commitment to multi-racial and multi-cultural work and strategies, ensuring that equity is embedded across all aspects of leadership, strategy and decision-making. 

The Director of Policy, in partnership with the Vice President, is responsible for developing and tracking First 5 LA’s policy agenda, provides strategic direction and oversight for the Public Policy & Early Care and Education Department (PPECE), and advances First 5 LA’s vision through the design, implementation, and continuous refinement of policy advocacy priorities and systems change strategies. While First 5 LA has historically relied on external advocacy and lobbying consultants, the Director of Policy will collaborate with the VPCEP to build our internal capacity, shifting toward a model that prioritizes in-house expertise with the integration of program staff across the organization and centers the experiences and voices of parents with children under the age of 5. The Director will also contribute thought partnership on how to structure and grow the agency’s internal and advocacy and lobbying capabilities. This includes developing strategies, infrastructure, and talent to support sustainable, internally driven policy work. As a key leader in the Los Angeles County policy landscape, the Director will represent the organization in high-level policy arenas, contributing to shaping the advocacy agenda, and act on opportunities to align and integrate policy advocacy and systems change strategies with other investment portfolios to maximize impact.

First 5 LA’s strategic direction centers equity; therefore, as a member of the Leadership Team, the Director of Policy is expected to lead with a deep equity lens and maintain a broad, organizational perspective while modeling strategic and inclusive leadership across all levels of the organization. As head of the Policy Department, the Director is responsible for leading through change, coaching and mentoring direct reports, leveraging team strengths, addressing areas of growth, and driving high team performance. This role requires a high level of emotional intelligence to build, nurture and sustain trusting relationships with both internal colleagues and external stakeholders and partners.

Key Responsibilities

1. Strategic Direction and Integration 

• • The Director of Policy is supervised by the Vice President of the Center for Community Engagement and Policy (VPCEP) and is expected to work under the guidance of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) to ensure alignment and coherence across the organization.
  • Serves as a thought partner to the VPCEP, identifying and supporting points of integration between the various components of the Department to other strategic priorities outlined in the 2024-2029 Strategic Plan.
  • Works with other members of the Leadership Team to inform the vision, cohesive direction and alignment, and collaboration across areas to maximize impact and organizational effectiveness.
  • Collaborates with the Communities Department to ensure community voice in the policy agenda and systems change priorities.
  • Partners with the Impact & Accountability Department (I&A) to develop and implement population level and performance measures, evaluation frameworks, and data plans grounded in Results Based Accountability (RBA). This includes using the Equity Index and data to inform decision making, track progress, and assess the impact across initiatives. 
  • Provides deep content knowledge in the PPECE Department, applies critical and creative thinking, effectively articulates and advances a strategic vision and theory of change in alignment with the Strategic Plan.
  • Provides content knowledge to advance First 5 LA’s policy agenda, and systems change goals and priorities.
  • Leads workforce planning by recommending strategic assignments and approaches to effectively execute work plans. Ensures the department is structured and resourced to meet organizational goals while fostering accountability and performance.
  • Works to align budget priorities across the Center of Community Engagement & Policy (CCEP) to further integration, realize cost savings, and maximize impact.
  • Ensures sound financial management of programs and grants portfolio consistent with First 5 LA fiscal and contract monitoring policies.

      2. Initiative Design and Contract Procurement

• • Oversees the sunsetting and/or evolution of select current work and investments and guides the design of new strategic plan policy advocacy initiatives, goals and work, while leading the procurement process in partnership with Contract Administration & Purchasing (CAP) to evaluate new grants within the center. 
  • Supports the Policy Department in defining intended outcomes during initiatives design and ensures that mechanisms for learning objectives are incorporated in the solicitation or procurement process.
  • Ensures that grants, initiatives and programs consider organizational capacity building needs of potential grantees. 
  • Ensures that grants, initiatives and programs align to First 5 LA governance guidelines.
  • Facilitates strategic partnerships, identifies and cultivates relationships to design initiatives or grant programs, and to advance the outcomes articulated in the Strategic Plan.
  • Ensures that grants, initiatives and strategies consider community impact, feasibility and perspective in design and implementation.
  • Leads the transformation of the Public Policy & Early Care and Education Department into a sustainable model that equitably prioritizes families with young children in Los Angeles County. The Director will align interventions with First 5 LA Strategic Plan priorities, applying lessons learned and needs identified during the Implementation Planning process. This includes sunsetting programs or investments from the previous strategic plans that have fulfilled their purpose or lack demonstrated impact, and designing new work and initiatives that leverage proven strategies to maximize the outcomes for children prenatal to age 5 in high need areas in LA County.

      3. Strategy and Portfolio Management, Grant Monitoring and Learning

• • Any new public policy and systems change work and investments and shifts in partnerships will be determined by diligently using the Equity Index and reflect a commitment to equity, measurable impact and sustainability.
  • Ensures alignment between grantee activities with goals and strategies and oversees contract performance monitoring in accordance with the requirements of a public entity.
  • Ensures learnings from grantee interactions are used to inform adjustments to initiatives and are shared across the organization.
  • Ensures grantee reporting includes performance measures that align with First 5 LA’s impact framework and compliance policy.
  • Advises and supports the Policy team in their stakeholder engagement and relationship-building efforts, ensuring that clear, effective communication and collaborative partnerships are consistently modeled. 
  • Works with the I&A Department to ensure evaluations, analysis, and data efforts are executed and aligned with First 5 LA’s Impact Framework; works in collaboration with the Center of Family Systems & Human Resources, shares learnings across the organization and contributes best practices to the field.
  • In collaboration with I&A, implements a data strategy for PPECE and contributes to the organization’s data strategy.
  • Collaborates with all First 5 LA Departments to ensure the integration of their program priorities, especially the experiences of families with children prenatal to age 5 to inform policy, legislative, and budget advocacy priorities.

      4. Leadership and Collaboration 

• • As a member of the Leadership Team provides thought-partnership and advice to leadership team members on the policy agenda and works in partnership with the Vice President of Community Engagement & Policy to collaborate with all centers in the organization.
  • Represents the PPECE Department on the First 5 LA Leadership Team which is responsible for staff meetings and ensuring organization-wide support for the 2024-2029 Strategic Plan. Provides strategic direction and ensures effective implementation of initiatives across cross-functional teams and efforts.  Provides leadership to the Policy & ECE department, fostering a culture of team building, collaboration, innovation, rigor, and action. Must bring a strong background in performance management and accountability to ensure the department is both well-supported and held accountable for delivering measurable results. This includes hiring, supervision, setting clear expectations, and coaching to support the development of team members, implementing systems to track progress and impact, and working with Human Resources to address and resolve complaints/challenges that arise about team members.
  • Coaches and mentors diverse team members to achieve results that focus on impact to family outcomes and advance the strategic plan. 
  • Leads the development of the PPECE annual budget and monitors expenditures against budget to remain a fiscally responsible organization and maximizes the use of financial resources to support organizational goals.
  • Models and leads strong departmental collaboration with other departments and teams across the organization.  

       5. Operates With a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Lens

• Consistently considers the implications, actions, and decisions, centering the experiences and perspectives of team members with diverse identities as well as the communities we ultimately exist to support.

Qualifications

• Education: A bachelor’s degree in public policy, social sciences, public administration or a related field is preferred. A master’s degree is a plus.
• Experience: Minimum of 8 years in a leadership role with a track record of leading successful policy strategies and initiatives with a track record of leading successful teams. Knowledge of the early care and education landscape and systems including innovations in other states and localities, changes to policy and practices, and updates to best practices in child development with a commitment to culturally affirming practices within ECE that support families and providers. Embraces change as part of the organization’s evolution. Manages complexity and uncertainty and is nimble enough to shift direction as needed. Open to feedback and welcomes a variety of viewpoints. Encourages creativity and innovation aligned with the organization’s strategic priorities. Proven experience using data and metrics for evaluation, continuous improvement, and decision making. 
• Collaboration and Relationship Building: Proven track record of collaboration with internal and external partners. Demonstrated ability to collaborate effectively across various departments and levels of the organization. Proven experience in creating a network of relationships within communities, government, and advocacy sectors in Los Angeles County and across the state. 
• Leadership: High degree of integrity with proven ability to lead, inspire, mentor, and manage teams within a collaborative environment. Strong interpersonal skills with the capacity to build and nurture relationships with diverse internal and external stakeholders.
• Strategic Thinking: Proven track record of strategic thinking, analyzing complex issues, and developing and implementing innovative solutions. Experience in shaping and executing strategic plans aligned with organizational goals. Proven ability to develop and execute strategic efforts with external partners that drive positive outcomes and systemic change.
• Advocacy and Communication: Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Demonstrated experience in advocacy, public speaking, and effectively communicating complex policy issues to diverse audiences. Exceptional presentation skills with the ability to engage and influence diverse stakeholders, including the Board of Commissioners. 
• Commitment to Mission: Demonstrated experience with public family serving systems, understanding early childhood development, coupled with experience advancing equity and improving outcomes for children and families. 
• Analytical Skills: Demonstrated experience using and leveraging data and research to drive decision-making and to measure the impact of initiatives, and in using data to advance organizational goals and equitable outcomes.

This job description is intended to convey information essential to understanding the scope of the job and the general nature and level of work performed. This job description is not intended to be an exhaustive list of qualifications, skills, efforts, duties, responsibilities or working conditions associated with this position. This job description is general and may evolve over time. The job description is subject to periodic updating. At management’s discretion, the employee may be assigned different and/or additional duties or responsibilities.

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• First 5 LA

• 213-482-6038