About Summer Discovery:

Summer Discovery's mission is to provide best-in-class, immersive summer college enrichment experiences that perfectly balance courses curated by top tier universities in diverse fields of study, with opportunities for students to have fun, travel and explore new places with new friends. We support students in their mission to deepen their knowledge of their academic passion and foster college-ready confidence through hands-on learning experiences in their preferred field of study.

We are the industry trailblazers, applying nearly sixty years of learning, refinement and relationship building into what we do each day. Simply put, our team is obsessed with summer and determined to help our students excel, building lifelong skills, embracing intellectual curiosity, innovation, and a love of learning.

About The Role:

We are seeking a Regional Director to lead strategic operations and partnership management across a portfolio of summer programs. This is not traditional program management—this role is heavily focused on executive relationship ownership and operational excellence at scale. You will oversee multiple campus locations, drive growth within existing university partnerships, and lead teams that deliver transformative educational experiences to thousands of students each summer.

You'll own the full spectrum of regional operations: from managing executive-level university partnerships and contract renewals, to overseeing program budgets and P&L accountability, to building high-performing teams of Program Managers and seasonal staff. This role requires someone who can think like a strategist, execute like an operator, and engage like a trusted partner to top-tier universities—all while maintaining the highest standards of program quality and student experience.

Responsibilities:

• Own partner relationships throughout the full lifecycle, serving as the executive relationship owner for university and program partners with strong year-round engagement
• Lead strategic initiatives within your assigned region to maximize growth and success of existing partnerships while identifying opportunities for program expansion
• Oversee comprehensive operational planning and execution across multiple campus locations, ensuring alignment with strategic goals and partner requirements
• Supervise and guide full-time Program Managers in program preparation and execution while maintaining oversight of key deliverables
• Travel extensively during peak season (minimum 4 weeks) to provide high-level support and guidance, ensuring consistent delivery of Summer Discovery's standards across all locations
• Build and maintain high-performing teams through comprehensive training programs, year-round recruitment, and succession planning
• Serve as ultimate approver for program budgets within your region with P&L accountability, overseeing controllable spending, travel expenses, and resource allocation
• Manage contract lifecycle for all regional partners, including renewals, amendments, and compliance reporting
• Lead planning, execution, and budget management of major company conferences throughout the annual cycle
• Develop and maintain risk management protocols, including emergency response procedures and crisis management plans
• Lead program evaluation and improvement initiatives, incorporating feedback from partners, students, and staff to enhance program quality

You may be a good fit if you:

• Have 8+ years of operations management experience with minimum 5 years in a senior leadership role overseeing multiple locations or programs
• Excel at partnership management and relationship development at executive levels, particularly with universities or educational institutions
• Are a proven leader who can build and manage sophisticated multi-site operations with distributed teams in dynamic environments
• Have extensive experience managing complex budgets with P&L responsibility and demonstrated success in budget optimization
• Possess exceptional communication skills with experience presenting to senior executives and managing diverse stakeholder groups
• Have strong financial acumen and can partner effectively with finance teams on budget planning, monitoring, and reconciliation
• Demonstrate the ability to design and implement comprehensive training programs and develop talent pipelines
• Can balance high-level strategic thinking with meticulous attention to operational details and program quality
• Are passionate about education and creating transformative experiences for students

Preferred experience:

• Background in residential summer program leadership or camp operations
• Experience in both direct-consumer and managed services business models
• Educational or enrichment program operations background
• University partnership experience
• Advanced proficiency in CRM systems (Salesforce, Hubspot) and financial management tools (Ramp, Tabs)
• Understanding of education industry trends and managed services partnerships

Note: This role is hybrid and will work out of our New York City office 4 days per week and will require occasional travel to training, meetings, and other activities during the year. This role will also involve 7+ weeks on a campus in a summer position between May-August.

Logistics

Education requirements: Bachelor's degree required.

Location-based hybrid policy: This role requires working from our New York City office 4 days per week during non-summer periods, with flexibility for the remaining day.

Travel requirements: Extensive travel during summer season (minimum 4 weeks) and periodic travel throughout the year for training, conferences, and campus visits.

What We Offer

• Senior leadership role with significant strategic impact and autonomy
• Competitive full-time compensation package
• Opportunity to shape transformative educational experiences at scale
• Lead a dynamic team across multiple program locations
• Executive-level partnership relationships with top-tier universities
• Collaborative environment with nearly 60 years of industry expertise

Employment is contingent upon a satisfactory employment background check.

Summer Discovery embraces diversity and equal opportunity. We are committed to building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. The more inclusive we are, the better our work will be.