Educational Support Manager at Rikers Island - The Petey Greene Program, New York

About Us

The Petey Greene Program supports the academic goals of incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people through high-quality volunteer tutoring programs, while educating volunteers on the injustice manifest in our carceral system.

We envision a world in which all incarcerated people have access to high-quality academic programs and we strive to inspire our alumni - both students and tutors - to become advocates, and to take on leadership roles that reimagine the criminal legal system.

The PGP operates the largest multi-state volunteer tutoring program for currently and formerly incarcerated people. Since our founding in 2008, we’ve served over 21,000 students across more than 140 programming sites—including correctional and reentry programs—placed over 9,000 volunteers, and partnered with 40+ universities in seven states and Washington, D.C.

The PGP is headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey, but the majority of our 40 employees are based across the Northeast in regions where the PGP holds programming.

The Role

The Educational Support Manager will be responsible for supporting the implementation of the PGP’s new educational programming at Rikers Island, specifically in assisting incarcerated students at Rikers Island in accessing PGP programming that supports their educational needs and goals.

The Educational Support Manager will provide students with ongoing individualized guidance as well as support in accessing and enrolling in PGP-led educational programming at Rikers Island. This includes meeting with incarcerated individuals across the complex to identify interested students, determine their educational goals, and connect them with appropriate PGP educational programming. The Educational Support Manager will collaborate and coordinate with PGP program staff and instructors as well as multiple types of partners, including Rikers Island programs and education staff, external education providers, and higher education in prison programs. The Educational Support Manager reports to the PGP’s Associate Director of Rikers Island Programs.

Candidates will reside in the greater New York City area. The role is primarily on-site at Rikers Island, with the expectation that the Educational Support Manager will be in-person at Rikers Island four days per week, along with one work-from-home day.

This position is grant-funded through December 2028, with the possibility of renewal dependent on renewal of funding.

Major Duties and Responsibilities

• Regional Programming Responsibilities
  • Identify incarcerated individuals interested in participation in educational programming with the PGP, helping to determine their educational needs and relevant opportunities
  • Conducts student intake meetings to clarify student goals and connect students to relevant PGP educational programming at Rikers Island
  • Regularly checks in with students to provide support, navigate administrative requirements, collect feedback, and assess their progress
  • Leads regular educational case conferences for students participating in PGP programming and coordinates with PGP program managers and instructors
  • Manages relationships with other programmatic partners at Rikers Island, including management of student referrals and monitoring of student attendance and progress
  • Works with the Associate Director of Rikers Island Programs and PGP’s New York Program staff to track and collect programmatic data and provide reports to partners and funders
  • Collaborates with PGP’s New York and national program staff to implement and adapt new PGP educational programming that meets the needs of students incarcerated at Rikers Island
  • Builds and maintains relationships with NYCDOC stakeholders, including programs and education teams
  • Cultivate relationships with other service providers at Rikers Island, generating opportunities for holistic student support
  • On in-person days, participate in daily on-site meetings with PGP’s Rikers team members to align services, ensure coordinated student support, and collectively navigate daily work inside a carceral space
  • Share educational resources with soon-to-be-released students, to support in the continuation of their educational journey and connect with PGP tutoring support in the community
• National Organizational Responsibilities
  • Participates in and prepares for weekly meetings with the regional team and all PGP staff

Required Qualifications

• Associates Degree or some college
• 2-4 years of work experience
• Experience or skills in group facilitation
• Experience providing direct support to students, managing educational programs, and/or navigating educational processes.
• Experience working with non-traditional students
• Must be able to be cleared to enter NYCDOC facilities (if you have concerns about this requirement, we encourage you to still submit an application or reach out to us so we can discuss further)
• Ability to develop and maintain relationships with a diverse group of partners
• Ability to adjust communication style for various stakeholders (incarcerated students, correctional facility administrators, university or other educational partners, volunteer tutors, etc.)
• Extremely organized and detail-oriented
• Ability to problem solve
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
• Proficiency in Gmail, Google Drive, Google Docs, and Google Calendar
• Awareness of issues related to mass incarceration and broader social justice concerns.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in a related field (social work, education, etc)
• Bilingual in English/Spanish
• Experience working with or knowledge of the New York City Department of Corrections as an employee, partner, or a formerly incarcerated person.
• Experience working with New York City community-based organizations focused on supporting system-impacted or formerly incarcerated people
• Experience with and knowledge of tutor-centric educational programs and/or volunteer programs
• Experience collaborating with higher education institutions
• An understanding of the US criminal legal system and local policies.

The Petey Greene Program is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate in its personnel decisions based on race, ancestry, national origin, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital/domestic partner status, religion, age, disability status, veteran status, or former incarceration status.

We are committed to ongoing learning and reflection and we are continuously working to ensure that the Petey Greene Program is welcoming and supportive of staff members of all identities, including system-impacted people, people of color, and LGBTQIA+ people. We also believe that this work should be led by system-impacted people, whose perspectives and direct knowledge of the problems are necessary to achieving freedom and educational justice.

Benefits

The Petey Greene Program’s staff make our work possible and we are committed to providing a comprehensive benefits package to support employee’s well-being and professional growth. These benefits include:

• Medical, dental, and vision benefits with the PGP covering 60% (dental and vision) to 82% (medical) of premiums
• 100% employer-paid life insurance and short- and long-term disability benefits
• 401k retirement plan with 1% employer contribution
• Voluntary benefits offered including Pet Insurance and FSA Commuter and Transit Benefits
• 16 weeks of paid parental leave
• Paid winter break between Christmas and New Year’s day, in addition to 10 paid holidays throughout the year
• Full-time employees accrue 20 days of vacation time, 1 floating holiday, and 12 days of sick time per year
• PGP closes at 1 PM on Fridays from June through August
• Dedicated funds for employees to use towards professional development each year
• Monthly technology reimbursement
• Access to a local coworking space