Manager, Professional Learning

Manager, Professional Learning

We are looking for a Manager of Professional Learning to join our Professional Learning Services team. Reporting to the Sr. Director of Customer Experience, you will lead and coach a high-performing team of Professional Learning Managers to deliver best-in-class professional learning. You will spearhead the design of innovative professional learning content, ensure all sessions align with current pedagogical best practices, and maintain a deep, evolving mastery of Newsela’s product suite. You will deliver high-quality professional learning at schools and districts across the country, in addition to overseeing our Partner Program so that every Newsela customer receives a world-class experience.

What You'll Be Doing

Team Management & Development

• You’ll manage a team of PLMs, helping them sharpen their facilitation skills and ensuring they have the resources needed to drive teacher success at scale.
• Conduct regular 1:1s and observations (virtual or in-person) to provide actionable feedback on facilitation and presentation style
• Design and execute internal onboarding for new PLMs
• Manage team capacity and projects to ensure equitable distribution of work and delivery

Content Design

• You’ll oversee the design, build, and iteration of new and existing Professional Learning content based on educator feedback, NPS scores, and internal data to ensure high-impact learning and PL session retention.
• Collaborate with the Customer Success and sales teams to ensure materials reflect customer feedback and expectations
• Partner with the Marketing and Product teams to ensure all PL materials accurately reflect the latest UI/UX updates
• Ensure Newsela’s Professional Learning offerings are grounded in proven educational research and highly effective adult-learning best practices

Instructional Innovation

• You’ll move beyond the standard webinar, exploring new ways to deliver PL—from asynchronous modules to hybrid workshops—that fit the busy lives of modern educators and school/district leaders.
• Ensure our training reflects the latest in education research and adapts instantly to every new feature launch
• Evaluate effectiveness of professional development resources to drive teacher engagement and adoption adapting content as needed to meet the needs of our educators, administrators, and students

Partner Program Strategy

• You’ll manage our external Professional Learning partners by forecasting, budgeting, and building relationships to ensure every Newsela customer receives a world-class experience.
• Source, vet, and onboard high-quality educational partners and independent consultants to deliver Newsela PL sessions at scale
• Oversee the PL partner budget, ensuring vendor spend aligns with quarterly targets and maximizes ROI
• Collaborate with the Fulfillment team to strategically assign partners to sessions based on their subject matter expertise and availability
• Review post-session data and NPS for partner-led sessions, providing regular coaching to vendors to maintain a consistent Newsela experience

About You

• You have 5+ years of experience in professional learning, instructional design, or educational leadership.
• You have experience in managing direct reports and coaching them toward measurable performance goals.
• You are available to travel up to 30% of the time year round, and up to 50% of the time during high-volume delivery seasons.
• You have a strong understanding of adult learning theory, literacy instruction, and the current K-12 landscape.
• While not required, a Masters degree related to the field of education is a plus
• Proficiency with Salesforce, G-Suite, and modern LMS education platforms
• Preferences: A data-driven decision-maker and leader, you draw on your pedagogical knowledge to inform professional learning strategy, and you’re always on a quest to find new and effective ways for educators to better serve the needs of their students.

Why You’ll Love Working At Newsela

• Health & Wellness: Comprehensive medical benefits with employer contribution to premiums and to HSA accounts. Additional benefits such as pet insurance, free access to the Calm app, and more to help you stay healthy: mind, body, and soul.
• Work From Home: We are a fully remote company. We provide a monthly tech stipend to support your WFH needs!
• Supporting ALL Families: Inclusive benefits to support you and your family, including parental leave, fertility support, adoption, and more!
• Financial Wellbeing: Invest in your future with our 401(k) plan, which includes a employer match to help you build long-term financial security.
• Time Off: Flexible PTO plus 10 company holidays plus winter break (Dec 24th - Jan 1st).
• Professional Development: Newsela offers an annual learning and development allowance to employees to attend external training sessions, classes, workshops, conferences, and educational materials to foster professional growth within their current role and career aspirations at Newsela.
• Make A Difference: No matter your role or department, the work you do each day helps share the future of education and improves the lives of students and teachers.

About Newsela

Newsela takes authentic, real world content from trusted sources and makes it instruction ready for K-12 classrooms. Each text is published at five reading levels, so content is accessible to every learner. Today, over 3.3 million teachers and 40 million students have registered with Newsela for content that's personalized to student interests, accessible to everyone, aligned to instructional standards, and attached to activities and reporting that hold teachers accountable for instruction and students accountable for their work. With over 15,000 texts on our platform and multiple new texts published every day across 20+ genres, Newsela enables educators to go deep on any subject they choose.

Final compensation will be determined based on the candidate’s individual skills, qualifications, and experience. Total compensation for this role also includes incentive stock options and benefits.

Base Compensation Range

$88,000—$100,000 USD

Key skills/competency

• Professional Learning
• Instructional Design
• Team Management
• Adult Learning Theory
• K-12 Education Landscape
• Customer Experience
• Content Development
• Partner Program Management
• Salesforce
• LMS Platforms