Associate Accreditation

Arlington, VA • Student Supports • Posted 10/06/2023

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WHO WE ARE

Rooted in community for more than 40 years, Communities In Schools (CIS) strives to bring community resources inside public schools, where they are accessible, coordinated, and accountable. Founder Bill Milliken said, “It’s relationships, not programs, that change children. A great program simply creates the environment for healthy relationships to form between adults and children. Young people thrive when adults care about them on a one-to-one level, and when they also have a sense of belonging to a caring community.” 

CIS programs are conducted annually throughout the United States, serving 3,270 schools; 1.8M students with over 15,000 community volunteers and 118 CIS affiliate organizations across the country. Their programs for students include providing needs assessments, support teams with corresponding plans to address academic and non-academic needs, delivery of multiple tiers of support for both students and families, progress monitoring and evaluation and assessment with parents and student support systems.

MISSION AND VALUES

Communities In Schools (CIS), is “all-in” for kids. It is our passion—it is our mission. At the National Office, CIS collaborates with local affiliate organizations to provide resources and create communities of caring adults who work hand-in-hand with educators to make sure young people have the tools they need to stay in school and achieve in life. We are the nation’s largest dropout prevention organization, and we achieve our mission by hiring bright, creative, and innovative team members who demonstrate a passion for what they do. 

CIS also holds the following talent beliefs: 

• Every staff member is passionate and committed to the mission.
• As a National Office, CIS employees have a responsibility to live our values and integrate principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion across the organization and lead by example.
• In turn, CIS is committed to continuously improving decision making, incentivizing creativity, and building engagement and we do this by building a diverse workforce, fostering a climate of inclusion, and shaping business practices and policies that promote equity.

ABOUT THE ROLE

This position will be critical in supporting the accreditation team with implementation of accreditation, annual risk management assessment (ARMA), and certification for the 111 organizations in the Communities In Schools’ network. In addition to project support and operational support to the Principal, Standards & Accreditation and broader Organizational Health team, this position works closely with the Program Manager, Standards & Accreditation and the network leaders around ARMA and accreditation/certification reviews. Through these reviews, this position will be able to understand affiliate and state office non-profit business best practices and model implementation which, in turn, will provide broader support for Student Supports initiatives. 

PRIMARY DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

• Assist in implementing the protocols for the accreditation and reaccreditation of CIS affiliates, state offices, and licensed partners.   
• Review, document, and evaluate affiliate demonstration of progress toward accreditation. 
• Use existing and new channels to extend the reach of resources associated with the Accreditation Standards. 
• Track organizations’ reviews through the Salesforce system.
• Streamline procedures in the accreditation team to ensure efficiency throughout various systems.
• Communicate with affiliate and state office network regarding compliance and model implementation requirements, processes, and procedures.

SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATES ARE REQUIRED TO HAVE THE FOLLOWING SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's Degree (or equivalent years of experience) in related field and a minimum of 3 years of related work experience.
• A background in accreditation systems and process is a plus. 
• Knowledge of Salesforce is a plus.
• Must be detail oriented, organized, and methodical as well as creative and nimble when it comes to flexibility in responsibilities. 
• Understanding of a federated network is helpful.
• Must have exemplary communications skills both verbally (in person and phone) and written (email and documents). 
• An understanding in nonprofit business practices.
• Must be able to manage a variety of projects at one time in an organized fashion. 
• Must have analytical skills and ability to be innovative and creative.

TRAVEL

Up to 25%

ABOUT US

CIS staff continue to work in a virtual environment; however, the national office is open and available for staff to use as appropriate. 

To ensure the health and safety of staff and job applicants, all interviews will be conducted by phone and/or video conference.

BENEFITS & PERKS

Work that makes a difference—the opportunity to contribute to an important mission!

Competitive and comprehensive compensation and benefits package, including:

• Five weeks of Paid Time Off
• Generous 403b Retirement Savings Plan contribution
• 10 Paid Holidays
• 90% of employee health care premiums paid by the organization
• Summer Work Schedule and Winter Break
• Employer-paid short-term and long-term income replacement programs, and much, much more!

Communities In Schools is committed to a workforce that is representative of the varied communities we are privileged to serve. We provide a work environment that does not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, gender, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, mental or physical disability, genetic information or any other basis protected by applicable law. CIS prohibits harassment of applicants or employees based on any of these protected categories. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

For more information on Communities In Schools please visit our website.