Program Director

Fostering Hope Foundation, a Colorado Springs-based 501c3 nonprofit, seeks a creative, curious, and experienced program director to take our innovative approach to improving foster care to the next level. Over the last 18 years, Fostering Hope has radically improved foster care outcomes and become a trusted community partner to the child welfare system and its other partners. Our next Program Director will build on this legacy, especially as the needs of children and the families serving them become increasingly complex.

Who we are

We serve foster families, their teens, and young adults after aging out. For foster families, our goal is to reduce foster parent burnout and placement disruptions by enhancing stability, enrichment, and relational wealth. As the youth prepare to age out, our program adapts to help the youth navigate the challenges and joys of early adulthood by continuing to provide a network of voluntary and practical support.

Our culture is highly collaborative and often described by our employees as family-like. This is a sentiment we also hear from volunteers, donors, and the families and youth we serve. We approach our work with humility and optimism, recognizing that we do not profess to have all the answers but deeply believe a better future is possible and the answers are out there.

What the job entails

The Program Director will be responsible for:

•     Providing leadership and reflective supervision of the program and its staff.

•     Monitoring and analyzing data to make program-related decisions. Working closely with outside evaluators when appropriate.

•     Cultivating and/or strengthening relationships with our child welfare partners, faith communities, businesses, and other social agencies.

•     Working closely with the Executive Director in administrative, fund development and governance needs of the organization.

Who we are looking for

Our ideal candidate will have these characteristics:

•     You relish the idea of applying your knowledge and experience in new and unconventional ways, especially in supporting volunteers as they help restore a sense of family and belonging to foster families and aged-out youth.

•     You are collaborative, work well with other leaders, and embrace our principles as an organization that is always learning.

•     You are naturally inquisitive and disciplined, and search for information, patterns, and lessons learned to apply for the good of those we serve and the organization.

•     You are equally comfortable supervising staff and developing people and relationships as you are with analyzing data for program improvement.

•     You are flexible and lead confidently in a fluid, familial environment.

•     You value the role that the volunteers’ faith perspective has in creating meaning and persistence in their service to the children and families.

•     Most of all, you have a deep and abiding passion for children in foster care, and for the foster parents who so bravely commit to caring for them.

Requirements

The person chosen for this role will have one or more of the following:

• A doctoral or advanced degree in psychology, neuropsychology, or social work with an emphasis on family systems.
• At least 3 years of experience in working with youth/young adults who have experienced early trauma.
• A deep understanding and internalization of trauma-informed care as critical to success in working with this population.
• Experience in program management.
• Respect for and experience in working with the diverse religious traditions of our volunteers.
• The ability to support staff and utilize reflective supervision to process their experience.
• Experience working with community-based nonprofits and volunteers.
• Experience in applied research preferred.