Role Status: Contractor Role, average 15-20 hours/week

Location: In office at VECF offices in Richmond, Virginia or Remote

Compensation: Commensurate with experience; hourly rate is anticipated to be $75/hour

Organization:
The Virginia Early Childhood Foundation (VECF) is a statewide non-profit public-private partnership with the vision that every region in Virginia will ensure opportunities for all families with young children to thrive. Its mission is to serve as the non-partisan steward of Virginia’s promise for early childhood success. In partnership with key state agencies, VECF supports the work of local communities and regions in strengthening their early childhood systems. The Foundation provides competitive grants and technical assistance to regional early childhood initiatives formed to build capacity and infrastructure in local communities for delivery of high-quality early childhood programs.

Contractor Role Overview:
The ECCE Business Academy Support Contractor will play a significant role in VECF’s efforts to position the Business Academy as a resource for the child care industry. The Business Academy budgeting tool was developed for use by ECCE site leaders in Virginia, with support from a VECF contractor. The purpose for its development and utilization by ECCE site leaders is to inform their consideration of using tuition funding they receive for delivery of ECCE services to intentionally and over time achieve competitive compensation for early educators. Eventual pay parity with elementary school teachers promises to increase stability and quality in the early educator workforce that will in turn reduce costs and increase revenue to ECCE sites. Lower turnover and improved ability to attract and retain teachers in classrooms and steady payment for services in open/operating classrooms will stabilize the productive operation and sustainability of ECCE sites. The Business Academy builds budgeting skills and provides a clear and adaptable view of the direct impact implementing teacher pay targets will have on sites’ overall budgets. This position requires a dynamic individual who can balance administrative precision with strategic leadership. This role demands a high level of strategic thinking, stakeholder engagement, and adaptive leadership to navigate complex and evolving project landscapes.

Key Responsibilities:
Leadership and Coordination

• In collaboration with other VECF staff, consider how the Business Academy can fit within a broader agenda to strengthen Virginia’s ECCE leaders’ capabilities to increase compensation of the ECCE workforce
• Lead communications and coordination with external contractors. Provide strategic oversight to address emerging questions and ensure seamless execution.
• Collaborate with internal and external stakeholders to drive planning and problem-solving.
• Prepare funder reports with insights on program impact and sustainability when requested.
• Contribute to monitoring and evaluation efforts to measure the impact of the Business Academy, support continuous improvement, and inform scale-up and relevant policy development and change.

Program Execution

• Monitor timelines, deliverables, and engagement to meet key milestones.
• Facilitate data collection and evaluation to inform scaling and replication strategies.
• Respond to inquiries from external contractor, internal staff and Ready Region representatives with thoughtful and timely solutions.

Minimum Qualifications:

• 3+ years proven track record of successful project management, program support and/or operations roles
• Ability to problem-solve, self-direct, and manage workload
• Ability to balance multiple demands, exhibit strong task management skills, find efficiencies, and be flexible in handling last-minute needs and changes
• Outstanding organizational skills, attention to detail, and ability to meet strict timeframes
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills for varied audiences.
• Proficiency in Office Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field (e.g., education, public administration, nonprofit management).
• Familiarity with Virginia’s early childhood education system and/or Ready Region network.
• Experience working with contractors and navigating complex project environments.

Physical Requirements and Work Environment:

• Prolonged sitting and computer use, occasional walking or standing
• Occasional light lifting (up to 15 lbs)

Interested contractors should submit a resume, cover letter, and three professional references to Jobs@vecf.org by Friday, September 19th. Interviews may be scheduled on a rolling basis as applications are received and contractors are identified for potential fit.

VECF maintains a drug-free workplace.

Click here to download PDF.

Last Updated: 08.29.2025