National Adoption Association

Role Description Join a team that makes a difference in the lives of children and teens in the US foster care system! The Chief Program Officer (CPO) is a vital member of NAA's senior leadership team and serves as the organization's lead executive for program strategy, integration, and delivery. Reporting directly to the Chief Executive Officer, the CPO oversees NAA's federally funded programs while also providing strategic leadership for membership engagement, professional learning, certification initiatives, and practitioner-facing content. - Serve as a key member of the senior leadership team and partner closely with the CEO on organizational strategy, growth, and long-term planning. - Provide executive oversight and leadership across NAA's program portfolio, ensuring alignment with organizational priorities, mission, and vision. - Support the development, stabilization, and scaling of emerging initiatives and strategic priorities across the organization. - Help strengthen organizational integration and coordination across programs, partnerships, membership initiatives, professional learning efforts, and strategic projects. - Support organizational decision-making by identifying operational, programmatic, and leadership needs associated with growth and increasing complexity. - Help reduce over-reliance on the CEO for day-to-day program coordination, alignment, and execution by establishing stronger leadership structures, communication, and accountability across program areas. Qualifications - Bachelor's degree required. Master's degree preferred. - A minimum of 10 years of progressive leadership experience in child welfare or related human services fields required. - Minimum of five years in an executive-level leadership role with responsibility overseeing complex national child welfare programs and supporting organizational strategy required. - Experience with ACF cooperative agreements, grants, or large-scale initiatives required. - National child welfare experience overseeing federally funded programs or as a funder of child welfare programs preferred. - Experience supporting professional learning, membership engagement, certification, technical assistance, or other field-facing initiatives strongly preferred. - Experience working with executive leadership, boards of directors, funders, and external partners preferred. - Demonstrated experience leading cross-functional work and coordinating across multiple programs, stakeholders, or teams. Requirements - Deep knowledge of child welfare practice, permanency, foster care adoption, kinship, guardianship, post-adoption support, and related systems and policies. - Understanding of barriers that contribute to racial and ethnic disproportionality and inequitable outcomes. - Demonstrated ability to lead complex programs and supervise senior leaders in a mission-driven environment. - Ability to improve cross-program collaboration, establish clear ownership and accountability, and support organizational effectiveness in a growing and evolving environment. - Ability to translate organizational vision and strategic priorities into practical plans, initiatives, and measurable outcomes while managing complexity and competing priorities. - Experience supporting professional learning, membership engagement, technical assistance, certification, training, or practitioner-facing initiatives that strengthen the field and advance best practices. - Ability to navigate complex organizational, governmental, and external dynamics with diplomacy, sound judgment, and emotional intelligence. - Ability to analyze complex information and use data, outcomes, and stakeholder feedback to guide decision-making, improve performance, and support organizational learning. - Builds trust and productive working relationships across teams, partners, boards, and stakeholders. - Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to engage diverse audiences, facilitate alignment, and represent the organization with credibility and professionalism. - Strong organizational and project management skills, including the ability to manage multiple priorities, support high-performing teams, and ensure timely execution of complex work. - Demonstrates high ethical standards, sound judgment, accountability, and commitment to high-quality outcomes. Benefits - The CPO salary range is $150,000 - $160,000, commensurate with experience and education. - Competitive salary and a generous benefits package, including a gold health plan, dental and vision insurance that is 100% employer paid for employees. - Employer retirement plan contribution. - Professional development opportunities. - Meaningful work as part of a dedicated group of professionals making an impact. How to Apply Please apply online at https://adoptnaa.isolvedhire.com/jobs/ with a resume and cover letter. Applications without a cover letter will not be considered. Target start date is August 2026. NAA is an Equal Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability, or other protected status.

Job Announcement Join a team that makes a difference in the lives of children and teens in the US foster care system! NAA is seeking a Diligent Recruitment Advisor to join its team! Program Overview The National Center for Diligent Recruitment ("Center") operates within AdoptUSKids (AUSK), a five-year federally funded collaborative project of the Children's Bureau. The National Center for Diligent Recruitment has the following goals: - Increase the capacity of states, tribes, and territories to effectively collect and analyze quantitative and qualitative data to guide their focused recruitment efforts. - Provide on-site, intensive technical assistance to support the work of states, tribes, and territories in constructing their robust diligent recruitment plans that have significant and strategic outcomes. - Identify, document, and disseminate methods and approaches to diligent recruitment that are informed by evidence, include system change work, and can be replicated. This may include furthering the evidence-base of family finding, relative outreach, reunion support, and intensive recruitment and retention services within the communities of origin of the children and youth in the foster care system. The National Center for Diligent Recruitment will work with child welfare leaders to promote evidence-informed, best, and promising diligent recruitment approaches to improve the safety, permanency, and well-being of children, youth and families who are involved with the U.S. foster care system. This Center will provide intensive on-site technical assistance (TA) and capacity building support to states, territories, and tribes (STTs) to develop and actualize data informed diligent recruitment plans that result in concrete outcomes for children, youth and families who are being served by the system. The Center's website will be a repository of knowledge, best practice, and accomplishments of all on-site work in STTs and its dissemination strategy will promote best practices. Position Overview The Diligent Recruitment (DR) Advisors will report to the Director of Intensive Technical Assistance. They will provide intensive technical assistance through onsite and virtual support based on each jurisdiction's needs. The DR Advisors will assist systems in overcoming barriers to actualize diligent recruitment plans and the intended plan outcomes. DR Advisors will incorporate effective use of data, community partners and lived experience engagement, and customer service into their capacity-building work with sites through effective consulting, coaching, training, and project management approaches. Work is expected to be performed remotely with the requirement of travel up to 45%- 50% within the US. Occasional overtime (evenings and weekends) may be required. Education and Experience Requirements - A master's degree in social work, nonprofit management, public administration, or a closely related field is preferred; (will consider a bachelor's degree with extensive professional experience) - A minimum of 10 years of professional experience in child welfare. Public child welfare experience is preferred. - A minimum of 5 years of supervisory experience - Deep understanding of technical assistance delivery, capacity-building work, effective consulting/coaching/ training approaches, and adult learning styles - Demonstrated experience in the development and implementation of diligent recruitment plans - Demonstrated experience delivering technical assistance, training, or coaching to affect system change in public child welfare - Ability to travel onsite up to 45-50%, averaging 3 trips per month to deliver capacity building services and attend organizational/programmatic conferences, meetings, and convenings. Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities - Public Child Welfare Knowledge. Possesses knowledge, skills, and abilities gained from public child welfare agency experience. Expert in diligent recruitment, family finding, implementation science, data analysis, and coordination. Awareness of applicable federal child welfare regulations, reporting requirements, and compliance reviews. - Coaching, Mentoring, & Capacity Building. Demonstrated ability to design and deliver coaching, mentoring, and training to child welfare staff and community partners, grounded in adult learning principles and best practices in family engagement. Ability to build trust, foster engagement, and tailor coaching and training approaches to diverse audiences and organizational contexts. - Vision. Understands and communicates the shared vision of the project; influences others to translate vision into action. Ability to recognize and address systemic challenges and service gaps affecting children in foster care. Demonstrates commitment to authentic youth engagement related to all demographics. - Relationship Management, Stakeholder Engagement, and Partnership Development. Demonstrates professionalism, courtesy, and respect in all interactions; maintains a positive demeanor and approachable style. Effectively navigates differing priorities and perspectives, fostering productive dialogue and collaboration across teams and organizations. Possesses strong skills in stakeholder engagement and partnership development, including coordination with community organizations, faith-based groups, and other external partners to support shared goals. - Project Management. Possesses exceptional project management skills, including the ability to sequence tasks, manage competing priorities, and meet high-performance expectations. Adapts effectively to changing demands and maintains flexibility in dynamic environments. Proactively identifies potential interferences in project success and takes initiative to address them. Exercises sound judgement aligned with the Center's goals and objectives. - Effective Communication. Professional communication style (verbal and written) with the ability to communicate project needs and concerns to the Director of Intensive Technical Assistance. Practices active listening; keeps others well informed; openness to others who express contrary views; adheres to the communication model as outlined in our collaboration agreement. - Organizational Assessment and Implementation Science. Ability to assess organizational readiness and capacity, and to tailor technical assistance strategies that align with agency goals, community needs, and system-level priorities. Proficiency in applying implementation science frameworks to guide the adoption and sustainability of effective recruitment and retention practices across diverse jurisdictions. - Data-Informed. Values the strategic use of data to inform child welfare practice, particularly in family recruitment, development, and support. and the ability to understand it. Interprets data related to child welfare outcomes and system performance to guide decision-making and improve program effectiveness. Supports departmental efforts to use data for tracking progress, identifying trends, and refining strategies. - Accountability. Holds self-accountable for measurable high-quality, timely, and cost-effective results. - Strategic Thinking. Possesses strategic thinking skills with the ability to anticipate needs, identify opportunities, and align recruitment and support efforts with broader child welfare goals. Applies a systemslevel perspective to planning and decision-making, ensuring initiatives are responsive to agency priorities, resource constraints, and long-term sustainability. - Integrity/Honesty. Possesses high ethical standards; consistently demonstrates ethical standards in words and actions. Maintains confidentiality, accountability, and transparency while representing the agency and supporting child welfare initiatives. - Team Building. Participates in team-building activities and meetings to contribute to the accomplishment of group goals and the goals of our funder. Role and Responsibilities The Diligent Recruitment Advisors provide intensive technical assistance to states, tribes, and territories. The Advisors are matched to jurisdictions that align with their specialization. The Advisors will have mastery of various areas of diligent recruitment to include and not limited to: - MEPA Requirements - Working with faith & community partners - Family engagement and support - Kinship care - Urban recruitment/retention - Rural recruitment/retention - Children with complex needs - County-based systems - Focused & child-specific recruitment Technical Assistance Delivery. - Provide intensive technical assistance (T/TA) to states, territories, and tribes (STTs), both onsite and virtually. - Assess jurisdictional needs and STT readiness through data review, partner input, and context analysis. - Support jurisdictions in developing, updating, and implementing effective and measurable data-driven diligent recruitment (DR) plans. - Serve as a liaison between jurisdictions, internal teams, and external partners. - Facilitate and/or coordinate meetings, site visits, and other convenings to support engagement and progress. - Ensure consistent communication and documentation across all TA activities. - Deliver content, resources, and guidance based on assessment finding. - Guide sites through coaching, training, and capacity-building support to jurisdictions utilizing adult learning principles and best practice to achieve DR outcomes. - Adjust strategies as needed based on feedback and evolving conditions. - Track progress using project management tools (i.e. Excel, Airtable). - Assist jurisdictions in the collection of feedback and data to assess impact and inform improvements. - Utilize CQI principles to identify success, challenges, and next steps. Project and Capacity Building Support. - Develop and manage project timelines, deliverables, and milestones across multiple projects. - Coordinate across teams to ensure clarity, accountability, and progress. - Assess team and jurisdictional capacity to identify strengths and gaps. - Apply implementation science and capacity-building strategies to foster sustainable change within systems. - Promote sustainable practices that support long-term growth and effectiveness in alignment with federal expectations. - Support the development and dissemination of tools, resources, and guidance to strengthen DR practice and implementation strategies. - Track progress using project management tools and performance indicators. - Utilize CQI principles, sharing outcomes and lessons learned to support ongoing improvement. - Foster a collaborative culture across internal and external partners and jurisdictions. - Support team development through shared learning. - Lead or co-lead initiatives that promote innovation and system change. - Promote and support effective collection, analysis, and use of both quantitative and qualitative data to guide recruitment strategies for internal and external team development. Relationship Management. - Support the authentic engagement of youth and families in all phases of decision making related to the planning, implementation, and evaluation of DR practice. - Build and maintain respectful, collaborative relationships with child welfare leaders and community partners. - Communicate effectively with internal teams and jurisdictional partners to maintain clarity and alignment of project goals, timelines, and deliverables. - Translate complex information into accessible formats for all audiences. - Monitor and report on progress, challenges, and outcomes to ensure transparency. - Collaborate actively with NCDR and AUSK staff and leadership to ensure consistency and quality in technical assistance delivery. - Participate in cross-functional planning and problem-solving sessions. - Share insights, lessons learned, and promising practices to strengthen collective impact. - Uphold NAA core competencies of convening, connecting, and collaboration. - Communicate effectively with internal teams and jurisdictional partners to ensure alignment and clarity in project goals. - Collaborate actively with fellow DR Advisors, Center staff, and leadership. Additional Notes Work is expected to be performed remotely with the requirement of travel up to 45%- 50% within the US. Occasional overtime (evenings and weekends) may be required. This position is grant-funded. Please note that NAA is currently unable to do business in the State of California. Benefits and Compensation: The Diligent Recruitment Advisor salary range is $90,000 - $95,000, commensurate with experience. As a member of our team, you will not only receive a competitive salary and a generous benefits package including a gold health plan, dental & vision insurance (100% employer paid for employees!); employer retirement plan contribution; and professional development opportunities, among others. You will also enjoy your work - knowing you are a part of a dedicated group of professionals making an impact. NAA is an Equal Opportunity employer committed to a diverse workforce. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability. About the National Adoption Association (NAA) The National Adoption Association (NAA) is the national leader advancing best practices in adoption from foster care. ***.adoptnaa.org Our Philosophy We believe that adoption is addition, not subtraction. We unite birth, kin, and adoptive families for the benefit of children and youth. Our approach honors cultural identity, familial connection, and youth voice-supporting healing, belonging, and stability for children in foster care. NAA conducts background checks on all employees.

Job Announcement – Diligent Recruitment Data Advisor Join a team that makes a difference in the lives of children and teens in the US foster care system! NAA is seeking passionate and collaborative diligent recruitment data experts to play a critical role in the National Center for Diligent Recruitment at AdoptUSKids. Overview: The National Center for Diligent Recruitment ("Center") operates within AdoptUSKids (AUSK), a five-year federally funded collaborative project of the Children's Bureau. The National Center for Diligent Recruitment has the following objectives: - Increase the capacity of states, tribes, and territories to effectively collect and analyze quantitative and qualitative data to guide their focused recruitment efforts. - Provide on-site, intensive technical assistance to support the work of states, tribes, and territories in constructing their robust diligent recruitment plans that have significant and strategic outcomes. - Identify, document, and disseminate methods and approaches to diligent recruitment that are informed by evidence, include system change work, and can be replicated. This may include furthering the evidence-base of family finding, relative outreach, reunion support, and intensive recruitment and retention services within the communities of origin of the children and youth in the foster care system. The National Center for Diligent Recruitment will work with child welfare leaders to promote evidence-informed, best, and promising diligent recruitment approaches to improve the safety, permanency, and well-being of children, youth and families who are involved with the U.S. foster care system. This Center will provide intensive on-site technical assistance (TA) and capacity building support to states, territories, and tribes (STTs) to develop and actualize data-informed diligent recruitment plans that result in concrete outcomes for children, youth and families who are being served by the system. The Center's website will be a repository of knowledge, best practice, and accomplishments of all on-site work in STTs and its dissemination strategy will promote best practices. Position Overview: The DR Data Advisor will provide technical expertise grounded in previous, relevant experience and demonstrated understanding of data architecture, data analytics and data trends and patterns in Child Welfare and Diligent Recruitment. The DR Data Advisor will partner with and support the DR Advisors and Consultants in the delivery of Intensive Technical Assistance related to Diligent Recruitment in the States, Tribes and Territories. Education and Experience Requirements: - A master's degree in computer science, statistics, or a closely related field is preferred; (will consider a bachelor's degree with extensive professional experience) - A minimum of 10 years of professional experience in public child welfare - Demonstrated experience of relational database systems and the types of data architecture used in child welfare systems - Demonstrated experience conducting, interpreting, and communicating data analytics - Demonstrated experience in identifying significant differences in data; data patterns and trends; and assessing data quality - Demonstrated experience in interpreting and implementing data standards such as data quality measures and analyzing data quality results for the purposes of program and data quality improvement - Knowledge and understanding of approaches to calculating and assessing data trends related to disproportionality and disparate outcomes - Knowledge of and experience with various databases/platforms/software, such as Airtable, data dashboards, and SQL queries, that demonstrate the skills to adapt and learn new databases/platforms/software - Excellent verbal and written communication skills in presenting data concepts and issues to program staff as well as STT data and IT partners - Ability to travel onsite to deliver capacity-building services up to 40% or 3 trips per month, on average Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: - Public Child Welfare Knowledge. Possesses knowledge, skills, and abilities gained from public child welfare agency experience. Expert in data architecture and data analytics in relation to diligent recruitment. - Data Informed. Values data, ability to understand data, supports the department in how they use data, and uses data to inform decision making. - Holds self-accountable for measurable high-quality, timely, and cost-effective results. - Understands and communicates the shared vision of the project; influences others to translate vision into action. Ability to recognize and address systemic challenges and service gaps affecting children in foster care. Demonstrates commitment to DEI and youth voice. - Relationship Management. Treats others with courtesy, sensitivity, and respect; possesses a good sense of humor. Honors different priorities, perspectives, and points of view in all situations. - Effective Communication. Professional communication style (verbal and written) with the ability to communicate project needs and concerns to the Director of Tailored Technical Assistance. Practices active listening; keeps others well informed; openness to others who express contrary views; adheres to the communication model as outlined in our collaboration agreement. - Project Management. Possesses exceptional project management skills. Determines the necessary sequence needed to achieve goals, handles multiple demands and competing priorities, meets high performance expectations and objectives. Flexibility with the ability to adapt as needed. - Strategic Thinking. Proactive in anticipating workload fluctuations and increases. Ability to make reliable independent decisions that are consistent with The Center's goals and objectives. - Team Building. Participates in team building activities and meetings to contribute to the accomplishment of group goals and goals of our funder. - Integrity/Honesty. Possesses high ethical standards; consistently demonstrates ethical standards in words and actions. Additional Notes: NAA conducts child protective services and sex offender registry checks on all employees. Occasional overtime (evenings and weekends) may be required in addition to travel up 40% per year for events. Roles and Responsibilities: The Data Advisor will serve as a subject matter expert within the NCDR focused on the understanding of national and state level child welfare data related Diligent Recruitment Plans. - Technical Assistance. Provide technical assistance to the STTs receiving services from the NCDR on utilizing data to develop, implement and assess the outcomes related to the DR plans. Provide technical assistance to the STTs receiving services from the NCDR on understanding the data available in their systems and identifying gaps in the available data. Provide recommendations on the use of various databases, platforms, and software, as needed. Serves as project co-lead with Diligent Recruitment Advisors as appropriate. - Data Collection & Analysis. Analyze, manipulate, and process the compilation of the National Center for Diligent Recruitment data as needed for the Data Dashboard, agency audits, response to requests from the Children's Bureau, and other data shared externally. Partner with the DR Advisors to explore needs of STTs and prepare outreach to STTs that includes data specific to each STT. Identify relationships and trends that could affect the results of research related to disproportionality and disparate outcomes. - Database Management. Maintain databases, ensure data accuracy, integrity, and security. Optimize database structures for efficient data retrieval and storage. Provide recommendations on the use of various databases, platforms, and software. Stays up to date on latest technology to improve diligent recruitment plans. - Insights & Reporting. Develop reports, dashboards, and visualizations to communicate findings effectively to partners. Provide actionable insights and recommendations based on data analysis. Support the DR Advisors by synthesizing and interpreting data and promoting data-driven best practices. Provide actionable insights and recommendations based on data analysis. - Quality Assurance. Gather, review, and provide quality assurance regarding data collection throughout the project. Oversee data pulls from programming partners' systems as well as validation of data collected and entered by program partners. - Present data concepts and issues to program staff, STT data, and IT partners. Maintain cross-collaborative communication and partnerships within the National Center for Diligent Recruitment including collaborating with the Evaluation Team on data-related issues, data tracking, and interpretation of evaluation findings. Provide clear understanding and insight to others of data analytics and findings. Coordinates with other Data Advisor on data tool development. Benefits: As a member of our team, you will receive a competitive salary of $90,000 to $95,000 (commensurate with experience) and a generous benefits package including a gold health plan, dental & vision insurance (100% employer paid for employees!); employer retirement plan contribution; and professional development opportunities, among others. You will also enjoy your work - knowing you are a part of a dedicated group of professionals making an impact. NAA is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to a diverse workforce. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability. How to Apply: No phone calls please. Apply online with a cover letter and resume. The cover letter must include a detailed description of your experience with diligent recruitment. About the National Adoption Association (NAA) The National Adoption Association (NAA) is the national leader advancing best practices in adoption from foster care. www.adoptnaa.org Our Philosophy We believe that adoption is addition, not subtraction. We unite birth, kin, and adoptive families for the benefit of children and youth. Our approach honors cultural identity, familial connection, and youth voice-supporting healing, belonging, and stability for children in foster care. NAA conducts background checks on all employees.