Managing Director-Moynihan Center at CCNY's Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership

About the Moynihan Center at City College

The City College of New York will soon launch the Moynihan Center with a mission to develop and support access and excellence in public service leadership nationally. With an eventual annual budget of almost $2 million, the Center’s activities will revolve around two complementary fellowship programs: 1) The Moynihan Public Scholars, for outstanding early and mid-career scholars and professionals focused on public affairs, who will be supported with one-year fellowships to write and advance ideas as well as to teach classes at City College; and 2) The Moynihan Student Fellows, for promising students at City College, to help them obtain the necessary training to pursue successful careers as public service leaders. The Center will also host a rich program of public-facing events and seminars with the aim of becoming a first-class hub for research, teaching, and public discussion of important issues facing the nation and New York City.

The new Center honors the legacy of the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan – a towering figure in American politics and a lifelong public servant. Over the course of his career, Senator Moynihan’s interests and writing ranged from democratic culture and government transparency, to social policy, civil rights, international relations, and public architecture. The Moynihan Center’s areas of research and public engagement will be similarly broad-ranging and resolutely interdisciplinary. There will also be a unifying attempt to think about social and political problems in innovative ways that transcend partisan divisions, much like Senator Moynihan did during his career.

As Senator Moynihan’s alma mater, The City College of New York has a long history of supporting access to excellence and remains a highly diverse social mobility machine. Half of our students are first-generation college students; half are immigrants, and more than eighty percent are people of color. Such diversity continues to be missing from the ranks of public service, and the Center will aim to prepare students for leadership positions. Within the College, the Moynihan Center will be based in the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership, which is home to the social sciences as well as the College’s core leadership and public affairs programs. Based at City College’s historic campus in upper Manhattan, the Moynihan Center will build a vibrant relationship with the rest of New York City and will extend its reach into national and international affairs.

About the Position

We seek to hire the Center’s inaugural Managing Director, who will oversee the development and launch of the Center’s programs and activities and manage all aspects of the Moynihan Center at City College to ensure that it delivers on its mission.

The Managing Director will report to the Center’s Executive Director, Carlo Invernizzi Accetti, a Professor of Political Science at CCNY. The Managing Director will supervise the Center’s staff and, together with the Executive Director and in consultation with an Academic Advisory Committee composed of City College faculty and administrators, will also oversee the recruitment and selection of the two sets of fellows to be hosted by the Moynihan Center on a yearly basis, as well as the planning and implementation of the Center’s more public-facing events and activities.

The Managing Director will be responsible for managing the Center’s finances, producing and overseeing the implementation of regular budget reports, and monitoring and evaluating the Center’s ongoing activities and achievements, producing regular reports for the Center’s Advisory based on both qualitative and quantitative data. During the planning year for the Center’s launch, the Managing Director will also oversee the renovation and furnishing of the permanent home for the Moynihan Center on the fifth floor of CCNY’s historic Shepard Hall.

Essential Responsibilities

The Managing Director will:

Oversee the Center’s Administration 

• Develop and implement organizational strategies to fulfill the Center’s mission and goals;
• Run the Center’s day-to-day activities, ensuring it delivers a high-quality experience for all fellows and participants in public events;
• Supervise the Center’s staff members, sustaining a highly collaborative workplace culture, open and clear channels of communication, and transparent decision-making.

Lead the Center’s Startup

• Develop and implement a strategic timeline for the Center to hold its formal inauguration in the Spring of 2023 and host the first cohort of both categories of fellows starting in the Fall of 2023;
• Recruit the other staff members that will be working under the Managing Director’s leadership: a Fellows Manager, a Communications and Events Manager, and a Career Development Manager;
• Collaborate with a separate Project Manager in overseeing the renovation and operationalization of a physical office and event space for the Moynihan Center on City College’s main campus.

Recruit the Center’s Fellows

• Serve as a talent scout and organizational ambassador to help ensure that the Center receives an adequate pool of applicants for both categories of fellows;
• Evaluate applications for the two categories of fellows on a yearly basis, in collaboration with the Academic Advisory Board;
• Oversee the administrative onboarding, ongoing participation, and remuneration of both categories of fellows, in collaboration with the Fellows Manager and the Career Development Manager.

Manage the Center’s Finances

• Lead the Center’s financial planning and its implementation, including budgeting and forecasting;
• Work with City College’s administration and the Center’s staff to process and keep track of all expenditures, including salaries, fellowships and event organization;
• Produce regular written budget reports for the Board of Advisors.

Conduct Regular Evaluations of the Center’s Activities and Achievements

• Define clear metrics of success to monitor and evaluate the Center’s activities and achievements;
• Regularly collect qualitative and quantitative data about the Center’s activities and achievements;
• Produce regular written reports on the Center’s activities and achievements for the Board of Advisors.

Oversee Events, Communications, and External Relations

• Collaborate in planning, implementing and animating a rich program of public-facing events;
• Work to increase awareness of the Center’s mission and activities, ensuring adequate attendance and visibility, and developing a specific media strategy;
• Build, manage and update the Center’s website, in collaboration with the Communications and Events Manager;
• Regularly communicate on the Center’s activities and events with the Board of Advisors.

Ideal Experience and Qualifications

Candidates for the position should possess the following skill set and base of experience:

• A passion for the Center’s mission and familiarity with at least some of its thematic areas of focus: Democratic Culture and Cross-Partisan Cooperation; Social Policy; Institutional Transparency and Reform; Racial Justice in a Multi-Ethnic Society, International Development and Cooperation; Public Space, Design, and Public Art.
• Successful experience leading the growth of a project or organization, including a successful track record of managing a healthy organizational culture as a unifying team builder who inspires collaboration and accomplishment among staff (startup experience is a plus).
• Familiarity and experience with higher education. Capacity to navigate the complexities of a major university and ability to manage relations with other academic programs, faculty, and staff, which involves respect and appreciation for the role, resources, and rhythms of higher education institutions.
• Credibility and experience in animating a public-facing venture, involving formal occasions with high-profile guests and a vocation for national visibility.
• High level of emotional intelligence, humility, and capacity for deep listening and self-reflection.
• Energetic, resourceful, resilient, and flexible, with a good sense of humor.
• Bachelor’s Degree required; advanced degree preferred.

Benefits

The Managing Director will be expected to work full-time in-person on CCNY’s campus in New York City and will be an employee of the CUNY Research Foundation, which provides a generous and comprehensive benefits package.

Commitment to Equity and Inclusion

CCNY is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action employer. We are committed to equity and inclusion and strongly value the experiences of historically marginalized people and encourage them to apply. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.

How to Apply

In order to be considered, please send a cover letter highlighting your interest and relevant experience as well as a current resume or CV to ColinPowellSchoolJobs@gmail.com by Monday, June 27, 2022. Please be sure to put “Moynihan Managing Director” in the subject line of your email.

Please direct any questions about the position to Carlo Invernizzi Accetti at caccetti@ccny.cuny.edu.