National Center for State Courts

Compensation

Full Description

Who We Are The National Center for State Courts (NCSC) is a community of dedicated researchers, consultants, educators, and former practitioners who drive innovation and advancement in courts and justice systems. NCSC’s reputation for trusted leadership allows us to work alongside top judicial officers to examine some of the most complex and significant issues facing society. Our team of experts and court leaders are deeply committed to advancing just, free, and safe communities. To learn more about NCSC, visit NCSC.org NCSC is reorganizing to better serve the court community. As part of this process, we are seeking talented individuals to serve as directors for five distinct teams inside our Programs group. One of these teams is the Education and Professional Development team. The Director of Education and Professional Development provides strategic, operational, and thought leadership for a portfolio of education, training, and professional development initiatives. This position oversees a multi-disciplinary team of consultants, instructional designers, program managers, and support staff and is responsible for designing, delivering, and continuously improving high-quality educational programming. This role leads planning and execution of professional conferences, convenings, and meetings, ensuring programs are relevant, accessible, well-executed, under budget, and aligned with the evolving needs of the engagement and NCSC’s mission and strategy. This position also oversees partner association support and collaboration for many partner associations. In addition to leading their team, the position will also routinely interact with staff throughout NCSC, as well as Chief Justices, State Court Administrators, trial and appellate court judges, trial and appellate court administrators, court and judicial associations, and staff from various state and local courts. The position will also have frequent interaction with existing and potential funders at government agenciesandfoundations. Trusted Leadership. Proven Solutions. Fair and Impartial Courts. Education and Professional Development Leadership and Strategy • Set strategic direction for judicial and court administrator-focused education and professional development initiatives across state, local, and national programs. • Provide leadership on adult learning, judicial and court administration education, and professional development best practices. • Support ethics and conduct commissions regarding judicial ethics. • Ensure educational offerings align with NCSC strategy, support skill-building, leadership development, and continuous learning for judges, court administrators, and court staff. • Align programming with NCSC-wide strategy, funder requirements, accreditation standards (as applicable), and emerging trends in judicial and court administration. • Provide leadership to their team by setting goals and objectives, monitoring progress, and holding team accountable through constructive feedback. • Contribute to thought leadership through publications, presentations, and national initiatives. Program and Curriculum Oversight • Oversee a portfolio of education and training programs, including in-person, virtual, and hybrid formats. • Guide development and review of curricula, learning objectives, instructional materials, faculty selection, training, and oversight. • Ensure educational content is practical, high-quality, updated to incorporate best practices, learnings and trends from other NCSC work product, and is responsive to court and participant needs. • Use data and evaluation of education and professional development programs to refine curricula, delivery methods, and conference design. • Oversee evaluation of education and professional development programs, including participant feedback and outcome measures. • Incorporate evaluation, feedback, and data to continuously improve programs and learning outcomes. • Capture and share lessons learned and best practices across programs and teams. • Demonstrate conduct that upholds the basic Core Values of NCSC. Conferences, Meetings, and Event Logistics • Lead planning and execution of professional educational conferences, convenings, and meetings. • Oversee meeting logistics, including agendas, schedules, venues, sponsors, virtual platforms, accessibility, and participant experience. • Coordinate with internal teams, faculty, speakers, sponsors, and partners to ensure seamless event delivery. • Ensure events are inclusive, well-managed, and delivered on time and within budget. • Ability to think strategically and creatively, while able to adjust to changing circumstances and priorities. Partner Association Support and Collaboration • Serve as a strategic partner to affiliated and partner associations, supporting their education, governance, meeting, and conference needs. • Collaborate with association leadership and NCSC staff to design educational programming that aligns with member priorities, governance structures, and professional standards. • Build and maintain strong relationships with association leaders to anticipate needs, identify opportunities for collaboration, negotiate association support contracts that clearly define NCSC services and cover NCSC costs, and ensure responsive high-quality support. Revenue Development • Identify, pursue, and support diversified revenue opportunities to sustain and grow team initiatives, including grants, contracts, sponsorships, and foundation partnerships. • Collaborate with senior leadership, advancement staff, and other program teams to shape fundable ideas, develop proposals, and align project scopes with funder priorities, court needs, and NCSC mission and strategy. • Contribute subject-matter expertise to grant and RFP proposals, budgets, and workplans. • Build and maintain relationships with funders, court and judicial association leadership, foundations, court partners, conference sponsors, and national stakeholders to support long-term sustainability. • Identify opportunities to scale successful pilots or innovations into funded work. People Management and Team Development • Lead, mentor, and manage a team of education, program, and operations staff responsibly and empathetically. • Set clear expectations, provide regular feedback, and conduct performance evaluations. • Foster a collaborative, inclusive, and high-performing team culture. • Support professional development (especially in areas like instructional design, facilitation, project management, and event planning), workload balance, and succession planning. Client and Stakeholder Engagement • Serve as a senior point of contact for state and local court leaders, judicial officers, court administrators, funders, court and judicial associations, and partner organizations. • Manage and support a number of court and judicial associations, including coordinating educational offerings, meetings, governance support (as applicable), and member engagement. • Build and maintain trusted relationships with courts, educators, national partners, conference sponsors, and association leadership. • Represent NCSC in meetings, convenings, and national forums related to court education, professional development, and association activities. • Translate court and association needs and feedback into relevant, high-impact learning opportunities. • Collaborate with other program groups, communications, advancement, and finance + administration to support project success. • Advanced degree in education, public administration, public policy, law, organizational development, court administration or a related field or equivalent professional experience. • Significant experience (typically 8-12 years+) designing or managing education, training or professional development programs, with a strong preference in a court setting. • Demonstrated leadership and management experience overseeing multi-disciplinary teams. • Strong knowledge of court operations, adult learning principles and professional education delivery, and judicial administration. • Experience planning and delivering large-scale conferences or convenings. • Excellent written and verbal communications skills, including experience producing high-quality reports and presentations. • Proven ability to manage multiple complex projects simultaneously, including the ability to synthesize and summarize large amounts of information, translate research for a practitioner audience, and to focus quickly on the essence of an issue. • Previous leadership with state or local courts, preferred. Additional Skills & Abilities: • Ability to travel to client locations, meetings and/or conferences throughout the United States • Operational discipline, including recruiting and training new and/or promoted staff, assigning work, assisting with staff development, preparing proposals for new work, engaging in contract negotiation, and contract compliance, reviewing and approving staff timesheets and expense reports in accordance with NCSC and funder requirements. • Demonstrate use of sound judgment in practical matters and critical decisions, choosing wisely after contemplating various options. • Familiarity with accreditation, continuing judicial and legal education, and/or continuing educational requirements. • Proficient in the use of Microsoft Office applications, including Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint. Benefits NCSC is proud to provide a comprehensive benefits package for our regular full-time and regular part-time employees, consisting of: Insurance • Medical Insurance: PPO, HDHP options (HMO option for VA residents) • Dental Insurance • Vision Insurance • Employer Paid Life Insurance for Employee + Family • Employer Paid Accidental Death Insurance • Employer Paid Short-Term & Long-Term Disability • 125 Plan • Employee Assistance Program Retirement • Retirement: Money Purchase Plan Pension account (9% of salary) • Retirement Option: 403B Paid Time Off • All Purpose Leave (APL) • Paid Holidays (10) Other Benefits • Education Assistance • Paid Training and Development • Qualifying Employer for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness under 501(c)(3) The annual starting salary for this role is between $145,600 - $190,000. Factors that affect starting pay within the range include education, experience, and other qualifications as it relates to the position. Join our Team! This position closes on February 13. 2026. Please submit your resume and cover letter in addition to your completed NCSC application. For reference, include professional references only with at least one previous or current supervisor. NCSC is an equal opportunity/disability/veteran employer.