Hiring Organization Information
Position Information
Kent Youth and Family Services seeks an Executive Director with passion, experience, and capacity to ensure the continued access for low-income and under-resourced children and families to high-quality Behavioral Health, Early Learning, and Afterschool programs. The preferred candidate will have a successful track record of creatively leading organizational growth and can demonstrate mastery of navigating complex finances in a rapidly changing environment. They must be highly collaborative yet decisive, resourceful, have unwavering high standards, and be confident with accountability for self and others.
Kent Youth and Family Services (KYFS) was formed in 1970 by a group of concerned parents and community leaders that saw a need for support services for youth in the area. We are now proud to be celebrating 54 years of serving our community, providing mental health and substance use disorder services, early childhood education, and after school programs for low-income youth and their families.
KYFS serves clients ranging in age from 0-25 years old. Our clients reside as far as Enumclaw and Kirkland, with the majority living in South King County. Through our core programs, we currently directly serve approximately 2,320 unique children, youth, and young adults. 95% of our participants are from low-income families and 75% are BIPOC and/or immigrants.
KYFS provides behavioral health services through mental health and substance use disorder counseling, offered in-office, via telehealth, and in 17 Kent School District schools. We provide early childhood education (Headstart and ECEAP) in five locations and 22 classrooms throughout Kent and Covington, and after school programming in three King County Housing Authority communities on the East Hill of Kent.
With an annual budget of $7.5 million, KYFS employs over 100 staff, 65 of whom are full-time. Program staff reflect the diversity of our participants. The Board is 13 strong and represent key stakeholders and partners.
The Executive Director reports to the Board of Directors and is responsible for all facets of the day-to-day operations and affairs of KYFS.
Board Relations: Establish and maintain a productive relationship with the Board through open and honest communication on matters affecting the welfare of KYFS, and by supplying the information, tools, and resources necessary for effective governance. Engage in strategic planning and visioning. Actively participate in committees and board development, including the ongoing training, recruitment, and orientation of board members.
Program and Organizational Management: Develop, communicate, and implement an annual operating plan that anticipates and addresses community needs in alignment with the strategic and organization business plan. Make course corrections as necessary ensuring day to day operations are of high quality, relevant, and efficient.
Fiscal Management: Ensure long–term financial viability of the organization. Ensure sound fiscal practices, budgets, record keeping, and reporting are established and executed. Steward resources entrusted with KYFS to serve our youth.
People Leadership: Build a competent, diverse, and empowered workforce and Board. Direct the hiring, supervision, evaluation, and development of staff. Create a positive work environment that inspires innovation, accountability, and inclusion.
Financial Development: In partnership with the Board, provide top leadership to the organization’s philanthropic efforts. Implement a strategic financial development plan that helps to expand mission reach by maximizing community partnerships, engaging volunteers, and cultivating and soliciting top donors and community leaders. Ensures KYFS has the resources needed to effectively meet the mission.
Communication: Uphold the values and represent the organization in the highest regard in all community interactions internally and externally. Genuinely collaborate with staff, Board, and the different communities of KYFS. Remain transparent and appropriate. Interpret the work of KYFS to all stakeholders and ensure its cause, vision, values, and goals are understood.
The preferred candidate will have a successful track record of creatively leading organizational growth and demonstrates mastery of navigating complex finances in a rapidly changing environment. They must be highly collaborative yet decisive, resourceful, have unwavering high standards, and be confident with accountability for self and others. Additionally, KYFS seeks the following skills and attributes:
- Leads with an equity lens while focusing on the delivery of mission. Has compassion, respect, and familiarity with traditionally marginalized populations.
- Has a strong business acumen. Experience with multifaceted budgets greater than $3 million with governmental funding and regular course corrections. Is an expert with Excel and financial models. Can digest complex financial information and make it accessible to non-finance people. Incorporates data in decision making.
- Can demonstrate success leading diverse staff and volunteers to strong results. Collaborative and communicative by nature, and able to make tough decisions in a timely manner. Is transparent, honest, and caring.
- Ability to navigate uncharted & complex waters. A resourceful problem solver who makes it a habit to reach out to others for help and guidance. Forward thinker; creative and open to new ways.
- Proven success personally cultivating donors and asking for major gifts. Success inspiring others to participate in fundraising.
- Commitment to developing staff and volunteers to realize their professional potential and maximize contributions. Doesn’t waver in setting high expectations and holding self and others accountable.
- Willing and able to do any job that needs doing. Equivalent skills in daily operations, community engagement, and future planning. Works as part of a team, doesn’t try to do it all themself, effectively engages others.
- Ability to engage people in genuine conversation, make friends, and positively represent KYFS. Willing to be out front but shares the spotlight and lifts-up others. Earns trust with all whom they work.
- Experience managing Behavioral Health, Early Learning (Headstart and ECEAP), and Afterschool support programs.
REQUIRED CRITERIA
KYFS believes that required experience can be gained through on the job performance. While a college degree in social sciences, behavioral health management, or business administration can be useful, it is not required. It is required that candidates demonstrate:
- A minimum of 5-7 years of progressively increasing management experience that will transfer into a community-based agency servicing a very diverse community of under-resourced children, youth, and families.
- High level of competence with fiscal management, fundraising, staff and volunteer development, Board support, and program advancement.