Writers Room Manager at the John D. O'Bryant School of Mathematics and Science

826 Boston seeks a communicative organized and flexible individual to serve as the Writers Room Manager at the John D. OBryant School of Mathematics and Science (OB). We are seeking a candidate with a strong command of diversity equity and inclusion principles who can build on the current strengths of OB Writers Room programs including engaging students in meaningful writing opportunities supporting students social-emotional development partnering with teachers to enhance writing instruction in their classrooms and curating meaningful creative writing and youth leadership opportunities.

826 Boston serves students in the Boston Public Schools (BPS) district through its innovative Writers Room program.The OB is a 7th-12th grade school in Roxbury with more than 1500 students. It is one of three college preparatory public exam schools in Boston which means that students must pass an admissions test or meet specific criteria to be admitted. The OB was the site of the first 826 Boston Writers Room which opened in 2013.

Mission

826 Boston is a nonprofit writing tutoring and publishing organization where students in grades K-12 and beyond can share their stories amplify their voices and develop as leaders in school and in life.

Responsibilities

The Writers Room Manager will work 40 hours a week. Regular in-person hours are required. Applicants must be residing in Massachusetts and able to commute to the in-person location listed below before the role starts.

• In-Person Hours: Monday through Thursday: 7:30 AM-3:30 PM
• In-Person Location: John D. OBryant School of Mathematics and Science 55 Malcolm X Blvd Roxbury MA 02120
• Remote Hours: Most Fridays. There are required all-team meetings professional
  development and tasks to complete on virtual Fridays.
• Occasional departmental and organizational meetings will take place on Fridays at
  our Tutoring Center located at 3035 Washington Street Roxbury MA 02119.
• There is some flexibility with hours and a potential hybrid schedule during summer and school breaks

Program Management

• Develop lead and oversee programming at the 826 Boston Writers Room at the John D. OBryant School of Math and Science including class support drop-in tutoring after-school clubs creative writing workshops and publishing projects
• Serve as the key liaison between 826 Boston and the OBryant community (students teachers and school administrators)
• Prepare coach and participate on a tutoring team of staff interns and volunteers to support 7th-12th grade students seeking writing support across all content areas (humanities and STEM); example assignments include short-form text-based writing assignments research papers and college essays
• Support students in developing social-emotional learning skills and processing life experiences through writing and other mediums
• Collaborate with the Publishing Manager in executing student-authored publications including class books a literary magazine the student newspaper and program-wide anthologies
• Provide support throughout the publication cyclefrom giving feedback to student authors and copy editing the manuscript to designing the publication and planning the book release party

Community Partnerships

• Manage strong relationships with OBryant staff by actively collaborating with more than 15 teachers annually representing 826 Boston at weekly partner meetings and leading biannual meetings with school leadership
• Build cultivate and maintain partnerships with community members and organizations (e.g. local universities writers and artists) to offer programmatic opportunities in the Writers Room
• Collaborate with the Volunteer Management Team to onboard and train volunteers from partner universities and companies; oversee volunteer support by scheduling shifts communicating teacher expectations and providing consistent coaching feedback and support
• Manage relationship with Edvestors a school improvement organization that funds our Slam Poetry Coach role; this includes attending occasional virtual meetings submitting club rosters and grades by assigned deadlines and ensuring the Writers Room is adhering to all grant requirements
• Collaborate with the nonprofit Mass Poetry to support the OB Slam Teams participation in its annual Teen Spoken Word Festival

Personnel Management

• Provide regular training coaching feedback and support to all OBryant Writers Room team members; guide direct reports in setting individual goals aligned with team and organizational priorities; identify areas for professional growth and provide relevant resources and training opportunities
• Supervise two full-time Writers Room Program Assistants a part-time Slam Poetry Coach (6 hours/week) a College for Social Innovation Fellow (30 hours/week) and one-two part-time interns (8-20 hours/week)
• Submit biweekly progress updates to the College for Social Innovation Fellow program complete two evaluations per semester and communicate any challenges involving the fellow as they arise
• Communicate progress to supervisor and seek counsel when help is needed to execute goals

Data Collection and Evaluation

• Maintain program data and reporting including tracking volunteer and student attendance overseeing student and teacher surveys collecting student release forms and participating in biannual organization-wide presentations
• Coordinate program evaluation in partnership with the Senior Deputy Director to measure and monitor student progress improve program design and report out on program impact to school partners

Additional Responsibilities

• Support organization-wide summer programming
• Collaborate with the Development and Communications team to coordinate opportunities for OBryant students to perform or share original work at 826 Boston and community events
• Support In-School Program Co-Directors with leading monthly department meetings and completing administrative tasks as needed
• Assist the Executive Director and Foundations Relations Director with scheduling visits to the Writers Room for potential donors board members and community partners
• Provide support at select outreach and fundraising events including nights and weekends on rare occasions

Qualifications

The ideal candidate is a team player with a steadfast commitment to improving the quality of K-12 education including adopting antiracist/anti-oppressive approaches with a desire to work in a collaborative and inclusive culture and a passion for youth empowerment through writing and publishing.

826 Boston recognizes that impostor syndrome and the confidence gap might prevent some applicants from applying. Few candidates will have all of the relevant experience listed below but 826 Boston is committed to assessing candidates with transferable skills and a willingness to be trained for this role.

Skills and experiences

• 3 years of professional experience working in a K-12 school or education/youth development nonprofit
• Ability to create engaging programming environments that encourage innovative creative and student-centered thinking
• Demonstrated commitment to fostering community building a strong sense of team and embracing values of diversity equity inclusion and belonging
• Knowledge of and fluency with social and racial justice intersectionality BIPOC and LGBTQIA history and historic/current systems of oppression
• Experience editing written work to prepare for publication
• Exceptional organizational time project management and resource management skills
• Experience with and/or willingness to learn high school-level STEM tutoring practices
• Ability to give and receive feedback with humility regulation and tact
• Ability to incorporate anti-racist and anti-oppressive practices into analysis planning and programming
• Ability to take initiative demonstrate flexibility and thrive in a fast-paced environment
• Familiarity with the Boston Public Schools system particularly the schools in Roxbury Dorchester and Jamaica Plain
• Experience with and/or willingness to learn Google Apps Salesforce Airtable Canva InDesign and similar platforms as the organizations needs evolve
• Proficiency in Spanish Mandarin Vietnamese Haitian Creole or Cape Verdean Creole preferred but not required

Compensation

826 Boston offers a competitive salary commensurate with experience in a similar position with the potential for an annual performance-based bonus. The salary for this position is $62000 annually.

We offer competitive salaries and benefits and are committed to equity trust and transparency in compensation. Basing compensation on someones ability to negotiate or their prior salary can lead to inequities and bias in how people are paid particularly for groups experiencing historical oppression. Therefore we do not ask for prior pay history from our candidates and our offer-making process is negotiation-free for salaries and benefits. New hires are typically brought into the organization at a salary based on internal equity and the budgeted amount for the role.

Benefits include flexible work from home options generous paid time off (including 15 PTO days 5 days of sick leave 13 paid holidays 6 Summer Fridays off and an organization-wide two-week winter break); health dental and vision insurance (826 Boston covers 80% of premiums) parental leave paid sabbatical and more.

This is an exempt full-time position that reports to the In-School Program Co-Director. The start date is July 1 2026.

826 Boston Diversity Equity and Inclusion Statement

At 826 Boston we honor and actively work toward diversity equity and inclusion (DEI) across our organization. We are committed to centering the voices of the students who we serve to creating inclusive spaces and to incorporating feedback from our community into our decision-making processes. Our DEI lens is always evolving through the courageous conversations in which we participate and the relationships that we build through our work and service. We strengthen our cultural competency through experience training and feedback which informs the development of all new organizational practices and goals and the evaluation of all existing procedures.

826 Boston is dedicated to providing a platform for student advocacy through writing and publishing our work and mission we are committed to dismantling white supremacy culture by recognizing that we are complicit in systems of racism and oppression. We will work to hold ourselves accountable in addressing these harmful structures and behaviors.

About Us

826 Boston is part of a national network of youth writing centers co-founded by the award-winning author Dave Eggers and educator Nínive Calegari that were named in GOOD Magazines 30 Places We Want to Work. Since opening inBoston has delivered its free youth writing and tutoring programs to more than 35000 students and has been recognized by The Boston Globe as one of the best places in the city to volunteer. 826 Bostons youth writers have published their work in The New York Times The Boston Globe and in numerous award-winning 826 Boston books including A Place for Me in the World which was hailed as a triumph of middle school education by The Boston 2013 the 826 National network garnered the prestigious American Literacy Prize awarded by the Library ofBoston was named one of the Bostonians of the Year for our steadfast commitment to diversity equity and inclusion.

Accommodations

826 Boston provides reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities at every stage of the application process. Disclosing a disability or requesting a need for accommodations is a separate process from admissions and will have absolutely no bearing on a candidates application status. 826 Boston will make every effort to meet your request but specific requests are not guaranteed. If you need to request an accommodation please contact Catherine Gomez at

How to Apply

Please include why you are interested in 826 Boston and how your experience has prepared you for this position in your cover letter. The priority application deadline for this position is May 8 2026. After that date applications will be considered on a rolling basis. It is in your best interest to apply as soon as possible.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race color religion sex sexual orientation gender identity national origin disability status protected veteran status or any other characteristic protected by law.

Required Experience:

Manager