Program Manager Vocational School Programs

Program Manager

Newton MA I 30 hours per week I Salary $50K - $56K based on experience

Studio HPDC

The Studio for High-Performance Design and Construction is a non-profit organization committed to advancing sustainable energy-efficient and high-performance building practices through a combination of education workforce development and professional community building for people invested in addressing climate change through our built environment. Studio HPDCs impact model focuses on development of new approaches to training certification and career pathways in high-performance building with a vision of widely distributing learning and professional opportunities to make careers in sustainable building trades accessible at the scale needed to decarbonize our homes schools businesses and communities.

In 2024 Studio HPDC began a period of organizational growth and expansion with a coherent set of organizational norms routines processes and policies to support two portfolios of workforce education programs focused on two distinct audiences: existing building companies and vocational schools. Within the vocational schools portfolio are a mix of established programs like the Studio HPDC Tech School Accelerator and programs at the earliest stages of development and piloting like the Studio HPDC High-Performance Building for Trades Instructors program and our High-Performance Campus Buildings project. The Program Manager - Vocational School Programs will be Studio HPDCs third employee and a significant contributor to the culture and development of Studio HPDC as an organization.

The Program Manager Role

The Program Manager will have day-to-day responsibility for the delivery of the Studio HPDC Tech School Accelerator Pilot program focused on bringing high-performance building career awareness and technical content into Massachusetts vocational schools. The Program Manager will also participate in a supporting role in earlier stage vocational school programs with the expectation that the Program Manager will take on responsibility for delivering vocational school programs that have moved past the pilot stage.

This role requires a unique combination of skills including project management data analysis team-building creativity cultural competency technical expertise in sustainable building practices curricular design and facilitation skills and the ability to develop and manage comprehensive educational programs that align with the organizations mission and goals.

The Program Manager - Vocational School Programs reports to the Executive Director. This is a 30-hours per week part-time position with the potential to increase to 40 hours a week as the Studio HPDC Vocational School Program portfolio grows and expands in 2027. This position does not have any direct reports or supervisory responsibilities with the possible exception of short-term internship roles as approved by the Executive Director.

Primary Responsibilities:

Program Delivery: Studio HPDC Tech School Accelerator Pilot Program

• Manage the delivery of core program elements of the Studio HPDC Tech School Accelerator Pilot Program across multiple school partners: industry conference attendance high-performance building site visit in-school activities
• Collaborate with education and industry partners in the creation and delivery of program activities emphasizing community and peer-sharing relationships across partners
• Clearly communicate plans progress and learnings to the Executive Director and external partners through use of written timelines weekly check-in meetings debrief and summary documents
• Track impact and participation metrics for the Tech School Accelerator Pilot program and support regular grant reporting requirements
• Ensure materials are created with the aim to be shared publicly incorporating a Creative Commons license and recognize all relevant parties and are organized and updated in the Tech School Accelerator sharing database
• Participate in all grant-related administrative activities as requested by the Executive Director or MassCECs Technical Assistance partner in order to secure disbursement of awarded grant funding to Studio HPDC
• Contribute to grant proposals funding applications and other initiatives to secure resources for future Tech School educational programs and activities

Represent Studio HPDC with External Stakeholders

• Engage with diverse audiences including vocational school leaders and instructors contractors tradespeople architects engineers policymakers learning scientists donors and community members to increase literacy for high performance building practices.
• Represent the organization at industry events conferences and community outreach activities related to high-performance building education
• Participate in and contribute to building science community discussions hosted by Studio HPDC or its close partners

Qualifications:

• Minimum of 2 years of experience in developing and delivering educational programs preferably in the field of sustainable building energy efficiency or environmental sustainability. Experience with vocational schools and entry-level adult workforce education preferred
• Demonstrated ability to manage projects and drive them to successful completion: developing and executing on workplans delivering complex project activities on a timeline and budget
• Familiarity and some direct experience with high-performance building practices including energy efficiency renewable energy systems sustainable materials and green building certifications.
• Comfort and skill operating in a small growing organization where systems and processes are being built as we deliver the work.
• Excellent communication presentation and facilitation skills with the ability to effectively convey complex technical information to diverse audiences.
• Expertise with cultural competency: understanding the diverse cultural backgrounds histories and experiences of students in social justice neighborhoods which may include various racial ethnic religious and socioeconomic groups)
• Equity-focused mindset: recognizing systemic barriers that may hinder student access to technical education and career paths and actively working to dismantle these obstacles.
• Passion for environmental sustainability and a commitment to promoting high-performance building practices through education and capacity-building.
• Skilled at use of Google Suite required. Use of Canva Squarespace social media platforms a plus.

Location:

Studio HPDCs office and workshop training space are in Newton MA. The Program Manager should plan to be at Studio HPDCs office 2-3 days a week with the option for remote work on 1-2 days.

Pay and Benefits:

• Salary range $50K - $56K at 30 hours per week
• 10 PTO days 12 Massachusetts state holidays
• 401k plan available for contribution
• Free EV charging at Studio HPDC workspaces