Job Details

Reading Partners' research-backed literacy programs offer collaborative, community-driven solutions based in the science of reading to ensure students receive the quality education they deserve.

About the Organization

Reading Partners is changing the education landscape. We are a leader in working to solve the literacy crisis in our country by leveraging community volunteers in under-resourced schools. Our diverse and expansive volunteer base provides one-on-one tutoring to students twice weekly, and our program is proven to help children master the reading fundamentals they need to unlock their potential as successful, happy, and confident readers in school and in life. Our people are our heartbeat and our greatest resource; we are all passionately rallied around our mission to help children become lifelong learners by empowering communities to provide individualized instruction that truly works. Join our stellar, committed team leading the charge to deepen our impact and expand our service.

Reading Partners is a proven, evidence-based national program that helps students who have fallen behind in reading accelerate their literacy skills. A MDRC study found that Reading Partners has a statistically significant impact on reading comprehension, sight-word reading, and fluency—equivalent to 1.5 to 2 months of additional literacy growth in a single year, which helps students who have fallen behind in reading accelerate their literacy skills.

Today, Reading Partners is making bold, transformative bets to dramatically scale our impact—aiming to reach hundreds of thousands of students annually through a combination of direct service, strategic partnerships, and technology-enabled innovation. At the heart of our strategic plan is a deep commitment to reimagining what it takes to close the literacy gap—centering racial equity, advancing scalable solutions, and expanding our reach beyond traditional models.

Our growth is fueled by catalytic investments, including an $8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education and a $20 million unrestricted gift from MacKenzie Scott. These resources enable Reading Partners to test, refine, and scale innovations designed to reshape the literacy landscape for students across the country.

About the Role

What You'll Do

The Chief Innovation & Technology Officer (CITO) is a critical, future-defining role at Reading Partners. The CITO will lead the charge on our most transformative strategic bets at the intersection of education technology, innovation, and literacy. Reporting directly to the CEO, the CITO will play a pivotal role in shaping the organization's innovation strategy and launching new tech-enabled products into the market that will enhance literacy outcomes for children. The CITO will lead Product Development, IT, and R&D and collaborate closely with the program and regional teams, to oversee the entire app lifecycle from concept to pilot to implementation, and ensure alignment with Reading Partners' mission and long-term goals. They will lead and manage the organization's current technology solution, Reading Partners Connects, and any new technology initiatives and applications created as part of our strategy of leveraging new technology to advance literacy.

The CITO will pilot and lead the Innovation Lab, a new strategic initiative for Reading Partners, to explore new, community-centered, and revenue-generating delivery models beyond traditional tutoring. The Innovation Lab will serve as a dynamic hub for experimentation, design, and breakthrough thinking, focused on addressing the most pressing challenges in literacy through innovative, scalable solutions. The lab will prioritize equity, digital and hybrid solutions, and user-centered design, allowing for rapid experimentation while planning for long-term organizational alignment. The CITO will also cultivate an organization-wide culture of innovation throughout our multi-layered organization that leverages a hub and spoke model.

Finally, the CITO will shape and drive our innovation agenda, ensuring that bold ideas, technology, and equity-centered design converge to advance literacy outcomes at scale. The CITO will lead how we pilot and innovate, how we learn through that experience, and how we then scale to better serve students and families, ensuring every solution is informed by research, user experience, and impact. The CITO will be a key partner in evolving how Reading Partners shows up for students, families, and communities—designing for the future.

Key Responsibilities

Leadership and Management

• Act as a thought partner to the CEO and work closely with other members of the executive team to craft overall organizational strategy and goals, with specific ownership of innovation and technology, serving as a trusted advisor regarding technology innovation and transformation
• Serve as a liaison to the national Board of Directors and as the primary liaison to the National Board's Innovations and Transformative Bets committee
• Lead, manage, and guide cross-functional collaboration across Product Development, IT, and R&D; guide strategic thinking and problem-solving approaches for project teams, fostering the development of team members and managers, and cultivating a culture of excellence and innovation
• Create and sustain a deep partnership with the program team to ensure synchronicity in collaboration of program and technology
• Serve as an external-facing speaker as needed on topics at the intersection of innovation, technology, and literacy

R&D Integration and Innovation

• Create, develop, and manage a multi-year strategic approach to innovation across Reading Partners' technology, systems, and goals to facilitate achievement of the innovation strategy
• Lead the full innovation lifecycle—from concept to pilot to implementation—ensuring every solution is informed by research, user experience, revenue potential, and impact
• Collaborate cross-functionally and externally to create an aligned connection between the users' experiences and the infrastructure (systems, processes, policies) required to deliver on it
• Assess, identify, and recommend opportunities to build and leverage technology to further RP's overall strategic goals
• Develop and execute product life-cycle rollout plans to ensure the successful launch of new features and functionality
• Monitor and analyze industry trends and apply leading practices

Product Development, Technology, and Systems Leadership

• Provide strategic and architectural oversight of Reading Partners' core tech platforms, including Reading Partners Connects and any future products or integrations
• Ensure the planning, development, and roll-out of the suite of Reading Partners products is optimized for equity, user-centricity, efficiency, and is in alignment with regional programming
• Partner with IT leadership to modernize infrastructure, improve cybersecurity, streamline internal systems, and ensure scalable technical foundations
• Oversee the organization's key information systems in the areas of student enrollment and attendance, tutor recruitment and session delivery, and student performance
• Champion data governance, user privacy, and data interoperability across the organization

Creation and Leadership of the Innovation Lab

• Shape and define the Innovation Lab's strategy, roadmap, priorities, and structure
• Identify and test new delivery models beyond traditional tutoring to address highly complex challenges
• Explore digital, hybrid, and community-based solutions that meet students and families where they are
• Launch pilots and partnerships that open doors to new streams of impact and revenue
• Use evidence, community voice, and equity as the foundation, not the afterthought, of everything we build

Who You'll Work With

You will report to the Chief Executive Officer.

You will supervise the following departments:

• Information Technology (team of up to 7)
• Data Strategy and Evaluation (2 FTEs)
• Innovation Lab, which will have two subteams:
  • Product Development (2 FTEs)
  • User Experience (new team that focuses on engaging family and students in innovation and product development)

You will frequently collaborate across the Executive Team and with the Vice President of National Programs and the Vice President of Strategic Partnerships & Growth.

Required Skills and Experience

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience
• 5 years experience in a senior leadership role
• 10 years professional experience in enterprise technology strategy, software engineering, user-centered design, and/or product development with experience integrating technology with programmatic goals
• Experience leading innovation teams and/or introducing innovation frameworks to an organization or department
• Experience managing scalable technology products or platforms from concept to implementation, which have driven revenue/impact
• Entrepreneurial spirit with a strong orientation towards learning, design thinking, fast-paced piloting, and leveraging the importance of user experience
• Experience with AI with an ability for continued learning and coaching to the organization
• Experience setting a vision for product usage and impact, driving user adoption, and vendor management
• Experience setting vision, strategy, and goals for complex projects; capable of contributing to organization-wide strategy
• Demonstrated commitment to Reading Partner's mission, core values, and vision; deep commitment to race, equity, diversity and inclusion (REDI)
• The ability to drive innovation, change, and growth, and be a detail-oriented implementer who can mobilize teams to translate strategy into results
• A high degree of emotional intelligence, a positive can-do attitude, in addition to wisdom, curiosity, and empathy
• Experience working within a large, diverse, complex organization with networked structures and multiple stakeholders
• A willingness for in-depth learning about literacy; prior expertise in literacy is not required; prior experience in edtech is a plus

Additional Details

Location and Travel

This remote role can be based in one of the Reading Partners markets, which include:

• Baltimore, MD
• Charleston, SC
• Los Angeles, CA
• New York City, NY
• North Texas (Dallas or Fort Worth)
• San Francisco Bay Area, CA
• Seattle, WA
• Silicon Valley, CA
• Tulsa, OK
• Twin Cities, MN (Minneapolis or St. Paul)
• Washington, D.C.

There is a preference for New York City or the San Francisco Bay Area. This role requires approximately 25% travel.

Compensation

Reading Partners' compensation and benefits programs are designed to attract, motivate, engage, and retain top talent to propel our mission forward. We aim to set salaries based on objective, external, high-quality market data, adjusted for candidates in different geographic regions. We do our very best to ensure that we're bringing our best offer — therefore, we do not engage in salary negotiations.

This is a full-time, exempt, salaried position. The pay range for this position is $255,000 to $300,000 per year and, as explained above, is contingent on geographic location. After applying, candidates who move forward in the hiring process are provided with the salary for their geographical location.

Diversity at Reading Partners

Reading Partners is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without unlawful discrimination based on race, color, creed, national origin, sex, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, military status, prior record of arrest or conviction, or current employment status.