Program Director-SYEP/WLG/CareerReady

Position Title: Program Director

Program: Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP)/

Work, Learn, Grow (WLG), Career Ready

Site: Brooklyn/Bronx/Staten Island

Reports To: Senior Director of Workforce Initiatives, NYCID

Salary Range: $65,000 - $70,000

Hours: TBD

About NYCID

We believe in building community and nurturing personal growth. We improve lives through conflict management, social-emotional learning, and youth and workforce development. Through our core values of Collaboration, Accountability, Recognition, and Resilience, NYCID helps people develop skills that move New York City toward the goal of being a more civil and economically stable city for all.

About The Programs

The Program Director provides leadership across several NYCID workforce programs. Together, these programs serve approximately 2,000 youth each year and include the following:

• Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP): A Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD)-funded program providing paid summer employment and career-readiness programming for New York City youth ages 14–24. NYCID operates Older Youth (16–24) and Younger Youth (14–15) tracks, CareerReady school partnerships, Community-Based enrollment, and a year-round Sector-Focused component.
• Work, Learn & Grow (WLG): A New York City Council-funded continuation of SYEP for in-school youth ages 16–21, providing career-readiness training and up to 25 weeks of paid employment from October through March. The program serves approximately 90 youth annually.
• CareerReady (CR): An SYEP track operated in partnership with NYC Department of Education high schools. The program connects classroom learning with summer career exploration and is delivered on-site at partner schools, serving approximately 160 youth annually.
• Special Initiatives: NYCID operates two DYCD special-initiative tracks within SYEP. Sector-Focused combines industry-specific training with placements in a targeted sector. The Anti-Gun Violence Employment Program (AGVEP) provides youth from Crisis Management System neighborhoods with paid work, mentoring, and violence-interruption supports. Both tracks have their own DYCD enrollment, reporting, and worksite requirements.

How the SYEP Team is Organized

The SYEP program is organized into six areas of responsibility. Each area is led by a coordinator or specialist with expertise in that area. The Program Director does not perform the day-to-day work of each area; instead, the Director leads the team, coordinates their work, establishes priorities, removes barriers, and is accountable for overall program results.

• Community Liaison: School, family, and community relationships; recruitment and presence in schools.
• Administration: Enrollment, documentation, timesheets, payroll keying, and DYCD paperwork.
• Data & Communications: YEPS data entry and reconciliation, rosters, participant and worksite communications, and reporting.
• Job Development: Worksite recruitment, youth placement, employer relationships, and site monitoring.
• Younger Youth Coordination: The 14–15 project-based learning track, site coordination, and curriculum delivery.
• CareerReady Coordination: In-school participant support and NYCPS liaison responsibilities.

Position Summary

Under the supervision of the Senior Director of Workforce Initiatives and the Chief Program Officer, the Program Director is responsible for the successful operation of SYEP and WLG from recruitment and enrollment through program closeout and the final DYCD audit. The Director provides overall direction to the program's coordinators and specialists, coordinates work across program areas, maintains the program's compliance with DYCD and NYCPS requirements, and serves as a senior point of contact for key partners.

This is a leadership position. The Director is expected to lead through the team rather than take over work that belongs to a coordinator or specialist. The Director identifies priorities, makes decisions, follows up on deadlines, and ensures that responsibilities are clearly assigned and completed.

The position requires travel among NYCID locations in Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Staten Island, as well as to partner schools and worksites throughout New York City.

Key Responsibilities

1. Program Planning and Direction

• Develop and manage the annual SYEP and WLG program calendar, including recruitment and enrollment, orientations, placements, summer operations, audit closeout, and WLG operations.
• Establish clear procedures for eligibility, placement, payroll deadlines, program monitoring, and other key program activities.
• Review current program information and data to identify the most important operational issues and assign each issue to the appropriate team member with a clear deadline.
• Lead weekly SYEP staff meetings and regular check-ins with program coordinators. Maintain a written record of decisions, responsibilities, and outstanding items.

2. Team Leadership and Coordination

• Coordinate the work of program coordinators and specialists so that information and responsibilities move smoothly from one program area to another.
• Ensure that important handoffs occur on time, for example, that youth placements are communicated to the staff responsible for data entry and that approved worksite information is available for payroll processing.
• Provide day-to-day leadership and guidance to coordinators and contribute to their performance evaluations. Formal personnel decisions are made in collaboration with the Senior Director and Chief Program Officer.
• Identify problems early and bring significant issues to senior leadership with a recommended solution or course of action.

3. DYCD Compliance, Reporting, and Program Accountability

• Maintain overall responsibility for the program's compliance with DYCD requirements, including accurate YEPS information, enrollment and placement targets, timesheet and payroll deadlines, worksite monitoring, evaluations, case notes, and audit closeout.
• Serve as NYCID's primary program contact with DYCD program managers and ensure that required responses and follow-up are completed on time.
• Review program progress and provide updates during weekly Chief Program Officer meetings.
• Review and approve major funder reports prepared by the Data & Communications and Administration teams.

4. Issue Resolution and Escalation

The Program Director should not be the first point of contact for every day-to-day issue. Coordinators are expected to resolve routine matters within their areas of responsibility. The Director becomes involved when an issue requires leadership-level decision-making, crosses multiple areas of the program, or presents a significant risk.

Examples of issues that should be escalated to the Program Director include:

• DYCD or another funder is involved.
• There is a safety, abuse, or mandated-reporting concern.
• The matter involves a personnel issue.
• Legal counsel, the media, or an elected official becomes involved.
• A problem affects two or more program areas and there is no clear owner.
• The staff member responsible for the issue is unavailable and there is no appropriate backup.

5. Partner, Participant, and Family Relationships

• Maintain leadership-level relationships with partner schools, DYCD, and major worksite employers while coordinators manage routine day-to-day communication.
• Participate in participant and parent orientations and ensure that program information is communicated clearly and consistently.
• Ensure that staff recognize when a young person's employment barrier may be related to mental health, family circumstances, housing, or justice-system involvement and respond in a trauma-informed manner.
• Ensure that appropriate referrals are made to NYCID supports or outside providers when additional assistance is needed. The Director sets the standard and monitors implementation but does not carry the participant caseload.

6. Program Technology and Systems

• Work with the Chief Operating Officer (COO) to ensure NYCID's program technology supports program needs and DYCD requirements.
• Define what the program needs its participant, worksite, data, and audit tools to accomplish and ensure staff use the systems appropriately.
• Meet regularly with the COO during the program cycle to review workflow changes, data quality, and audit tools before important DYCD deadlines.
• Identify system problems or gaps promptly and communicate specific needs to the COO.

Minimum Qualifications

• At least five years of experience in youth workforce development, youth development, education, human services, or a related field, including at least two years leading a program or multi-person team.
• Background in mental health, counseling, social work, or a closely related field, with practical experience helping young people identify and address barriers to employment.
• Direct experience with DYCD-funded programs, preferably SYEP, and familiarity with YEPS strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to lead a program through a team by setting priorities, facilitating effective meetings, and holding staff accountable for deadlines.
• Experience using live data dashboards and reconciliation reports to make operational decisions.
• Knowledge of conflict resolution or mediation practices.
• Bachelor's degree in a related field, or equivalent experience.
• Ability to complete required NYC Public Schools fingerprinting.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Strong judgment and decision-making skills, particularly when working under time-sensitive program and payroll deadlines.
• Clear and professional written and verbal communication with staff, DYCD representatives, families, schools, and employers.
• Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage a program calendar with multiple deadlines and interdependent activities.
• Ability to build positive working relationships with young people ages 14–24 and with the adults who support them.
• Working knowledge of trauma-informed practices and an understanding of mental health, family, housing, and economic barriers that may affect a young person's ability to obtain or maintain employment.
• Ability to recognize when a participant needs additional support and make appropriate referrals.
• Ability to protect confidential participant, personnel, payroll, and program information.

What Success Looks Like in the First Year

• Youth who are enrolled in the program are placed and begin their employment on time, with placements accurately reflected in YEPS before the first payroll.
• Payroll is approved and participant hours are entered by the required DYCD deadline each week during the summer.
• Required monitoring visits, evaluations, and case notes are completed on schedule rather than after the fact.
• The program completes a clean DYCD audit closeout in September, with all outstanding items tracked and addressed.
• Program coordinators clearly understand their responsibilities, how their work connects to other areas, and when an issue should be escalated to the Director.

Working Conditions and Additional Notes

• This is a 12-month position with a particularly demanding period from June through August.
• The position may require extended hours during the summer, as well as occasional evening, weekend, or holiday-period work.
• Travel is required between NYCID locations in Staten Island and Brooklyn and to partner schools and worksites throughout New York City.
• Fingerprinting by the NYC Department of Education is required; the $135 processing fee is reimbursed upon hire.
• Bilingual Spanish/English skills are a plus.

New York Center for Interpersonal Development

130 Stuyvesant Place

Staten Island, New York

Tel: (718) 815-4557

Fax: (718) 273-4169

NYCID is an Equal Opportunity employer/program. NYCID is committed to creating an inclusive, diverse, and anti-racist environment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, ethnicity, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status, and other protected status as required by applicable law.

Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities.

TTY/TTD 1-800-662-1220

Pay: $65,000.00 - $70,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• 403(b)
• 403(b) matching
• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Health savings account
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Vision insurance

Work Location: In person