About the position

Working alongside the Director of Education, the Associate Director of Public Education contributes to the strategic vision and makes operational the American Kidney Fund’s (AKF) public education programs and initiatives. The programs are designed to educate and raise awareness about the risks of kidney disease in the general public, while also educating patients and family members affected by kidney disease.

Are you someone who is:

• Collaborative: Ability to work cross-functionally with internal teams and external partners.
• Creative: A thinker who designs communications that audiences cannot stop reading and encourages engagement with the organization.
• Detail oriented: Can review and fact check educational materials and communications.
• Customer focused: Provides a high level of customer service to requests for information.

Every member of the public education team is hands-on and is able to see the direct results of their efforts. Join the team and grow professionally while making a difference in the lives of people living with kidney disease.

Employee benefits:

In addition to your competitive salary, paid holidays, vacation, sick and personal days; health, dental and vision coverage; life insurance and disability coverages; and a generous matching 403(b) retirement plan, we’ll shower you with perks, including:

• Culture: We make sure our team knows how much they are valued demonstrated through our Quality Work Environment (QWE) Task Force and employee-led recognition and social events throughout the year.
• Compressed work week: Start the weekend early with shorter workdays on Fridays – closing at 3 p.m. Labor Day to Memorial Day and 2 p.m. in the summer.
• Flexibility: Employees work from home three days a week.
• Clear expectations: You’ll know what you need to do to succeed; annual raises and bonuses for all employees are based on your performance.
• Location: Convenient location and a short walk to the popular Pike and Rose shopping center
• Parking: Arrive and leave work comfortably, thanks to an underground parking garage whose monthly cost is paid for by AKF. Metro subsidies are provided for those who do not drive.
• Dress code: Business casual through the week and casual on Fridays.

At AKF, we embrace diversity and emphasize the importance of working together as a staff to continue making the organization a great place to work.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

• Leads public education programs, trainings, and campaigns for kidney disease patients, transplant recipients, caregivers & families, and community health educators. Responsible for health education planning, implementation, and evaluation activities.
• Works closely with the Director of Education to develop a programmatic vision for public education programs, trainings, and campaigns that aligns with the AKF strategic plan.
• Manages the delivery of public education programs and campaigns assuring they meet all requirements and are successful in increasing awareness and promoting behavior change.
• Conducts frequent and ongoing evaluation activities of public education programs and campaigns, including needs assessments, environmental scans, and outcome evaluation, to assess the effectiveness of programs. Provides annual recommendations to the Director of Education to drive improvements.
• Supervises a small team in setting goals, capturing metrics, and establishing policies and guidelines.
• Edits, reviews, and fact checks educational materials and communications developed for AKF websites, social media, newsletters, emails, videos, factsheets, webinars, infographics, toolkits, blog posts, etc.
• Performs formative research through literature reviews, key informant interviews, and environmental scans to build the evidence base for public education campaigns.
• Coordinates clinical review with external subject matter experts, as appropriate, to ensure scientific and medical accuracy of content.
• Manages and leverages strategic partners to further the reach and impact of public educational programs, trainings, and campaigns.
• Conducts regular in-service training to keeps AKF employees abreast of evolving changes in the field of kidney disease prevention and treatment.
• Contributes to the development of abstracts, posters, oral presentations, and exhibit materials for scientific and public health conferences.
• Develops an annual budget and manages program expenses within budgetary constraints.
• Coordinates with outside vendors to design graphics, translate resources into Spanish, and print materials.
• Actively participates with Fundraising Department on reviewing and providing input to grant proposals and ensuring supporting contributors receive the benefits outlined in their sponsorship agreements.
• Assists with developing related business documents such as proposals, letters of agreement, project summaries, and reports.
• Collaborates across departments, including Communications, Fundraising, Government Relations, and Operations, to assure educational materials developed meet the needs of the entire organization and ensures the Public Education team maintains the same positive collaboration.
• Represents AKF in a professional manner through superior customer support and knowledge of AKF’s programs and services.
• Requires overnight travel to locations outside of Rockville, MD (less than 10%).
• Performs additional related duties, as assigned

• Bachelor’s degree in health-related field required: Health Education, Health Promotion, Community Health, Biology, Behavioral Sciences, Dietetics, Nursing or related discipline. Graduate degree in Public Health, Dietetics, or Nursing preferred.
• Certifications in CPH, CHES/MCHES, CDE, or health coaching a plus.
• Minimum of 3-5 years of work experience in health-related non-profit sector, health consulting firm, or another customer-oriented professional environment. At least 1-2 years supervisory experience preferred.
• Bilingual English/Spanish a plus.
• Demonstrated understanding of and experience in chronic disease, its prevalence, and its impact is strongly preferred.
• Knowledge of health literacy principles, plain language standards, cultural competency/humility, and behavior change theory required. Demonstrated track record of applying these concepts within the context of high-quality health education.
• Knowledge and understanding of principles and application of best practices of health education, both verbal and written.
• Clear understanding of social determinants of health, and its effect on health behaviors and health outcomes.
• Must be well-organized and detail oriented with skill in research, technical writing, and budget management.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills with experience communicating with various levels of professionals through both verbal and written correspondence.
• Strong project management skills required.
• Demonstrated ability to be highly flexible, provide exemplary customer service, and work independently and in a team environment.
• Valid driver's license required, with dependable transportation.
• Ability to lift materials and boxes up to 30 lbs.
• Ability to work some weekends or evenings as required.

AKF works on a hybrid work schedule with employees working two days in the office and three days of telework. AKF requires employees to be fully vaccinated by their first day of hire. A request for medical or religious accommodation may be provided and will be considered confidentially by HR on a case-by-case basis.

About the American Kidney Fund

The American Kidney Fund (AKF) is the nation’s leading kidney nonprofit fighting kidney disease on all fronts. We are proud to be recognized as one of the top 50 nonprofit employers in the United States by The Nonprofit Times. AKF is one of the nation’s top-rated nonprofits, investing 97 cents of every donated dollar in programs, and holds the highest 4-Star rating from Charity Navigator and the Platinum Seal of Transparency from GuideStar. We are able to reach this level of efficiency and effectiveness because of our incredible team.