Vice President, Education and Research

Job Overview:

The Vice President, Education & Research is responsible for contributing informed analyses of pedagogical trends, educational research, and educator and student needs to define the educational objectives and goals of Lexia’s curriculum and professional learning products while also articulating the goals and principles of our Efficacy Research. The ideal candidate has led edtech curriculum/content design and development with demonstrated literacy expertise and experience ensuring high quality research standards, content and editorial practices, and assessment item development. We are looking for someone who has the skills and experience to efficiently scale the practices of the teams who produce literacy products and tools that are used in classrooms, as well as those developed as internal resources and for customer evaluations. The person in this role will serve as a member of the Product Leadership team reporting directly to the SVP, Product and have a highly visible presence amongst company executives and customers.

The Vice President will:

• Define the educational goals and objectives for Lexia’s Curriculum & Professional Learning product offerings.

• Provide guidance on the development of research and evaluation roadmaps, including priorities, goals, approach, and methodologies.

• Provide internal guidance to translate educational frameworks into products, messaging, and services.

• Work collaboratively with Product Engineering and Product Management to ensure efficient adherence to product development frameworks and timelines.

• Apply the needs of Education & Research to the overall operating budget while upholding fiscal responsibility and accountability for all respective cost centers.

• Manage relationships with leading researchers and company advisors in literacy and language curriculum.

Job Responsibilities:

Student Curriculum Development:

• Set the goals and objectives for student curriculum development, ensuring alignment with Lexia's educational mission and pedagogical vision.

• Support best practices for curriculum design that are inclusive, engaging, and effective for diverse student populations.

• Stay ahead of trends in educational research and best practices to guide the development of innovative instructional materials.

• Drive efforts to scale and optimize content creation and instructional design, centering processes around effective emerging technology.

Professional Learning Curriculum Development:

• Collaborate with product leaders and program authors to establish the educational priorities for enhancing professional learning products.

• Advise on emerging trends and educator needs in professional learning to continuously enhance the quality and relevance of training programs.

• Manage on-going evolution of digital-first professional learning curriculum design by providing the educational vision for a suite of offerings.

• Support internal efforts to extend the reach of professional learning products to new and recurring customer base.

Product Research & Assessment:

• Provide strategic oversight for research activities that inform product development, including Machine Learning and other advanced analytics.

• Serve as a thought-leader in identifying potential opportunities to extend assessment and reporting offerings for customers and aligning strategy with opportunities.

• Steer forward-thinking assessment strategy with experience and expertise in scalable assessment design and practical development methods.

• Guide utilization of AI to serve specific, purposeful student and educator needs.

• Support the integration of classroom insights into product roadmaps by maintaining an ongoing dialogue with educators through research, site visits, focus groups, and user testing.

Efficacy Research:

• Guide both the long term and annual process of identifying research objectives and advising on research strategy.

• Support the development and implementation of best practices for evaluating, publishing, and communicating research findings for our products.

• Serve as an internal advocate and external spokesperson responsible for communicating research findings to stakeholders, ensuring they are informed about the value and impact of Lexia products.

Advisory Relationships and External Advocacy:

• Manage Educational Leadership Council, including consultative projects, in-person events and external collaborations.

• Guide regular discussions with external advisors and educational consultants to inform educational feature and content delivery aimed at increasing literacy outcomes for students.

• Partner with Senior Leadership and customer-facing teams to communicate consistent messages regarding product pedagogy, instructional design, and outcomes.

• Contribute to Strategic Planning and Senior Leadership discussions as needed to inform product strategy and pedagogical direction.

• Consult and support on strategic sales and industry events.

Job Requirements:

• 15+ years of experience in EdTech, with at least 5+ years in a Vice President or equivalent executive leadership position

• Deep knowledge of literacy, EdTech product design, and instructional design best practices

• Advanced Degree in Education or related field (e.g., School Psychology, Communication Sciences and Disorders, Child Development, Neuroscience, etc.) is required

• Background in classroom or direct-instructional settings

• Experience prioritizing efficacy research initiatives and managing research roadmaps, manuscript submissions, and dissemination of findings

• Professional, polished oral communication and presentation skills, with exceptional written communication and smart editorial instincts

• Excellent communication and collaboration skills with business and technical teams

• Proven administrative business acumen, including budget management, outsourcing management, and structured scaling of teams and processes

• Demonstrated excellence coaching and managing high performing teams

• Agile product development process experience a plus

To learn more about our organization and the exciting work we do, visit https://www.lexialearning.com/.

Remote First Work Environment 

Our Remote First approach gives employees the flexibility and trust they need to effectively balance work with life. It creates a culture in which all employees are valued and where success is measured in results. It allows us to work collaboratively, inclusively and for greater positive impact, regardless of our individual locations.

If you will be working remotely, either occasionally or on a permanent basis, you must have a reliable internet connection through a cable or fiber-optic broadband service with minimum speeds of 10 Mbps download and 5 Mbps upload.

The successful candidate will be expected to actively participate in video-based interviews during the recruiting process and ongoing virtual meetings with their camera on, as part of their role.

As part of our Remote-First benefits, Cambium offers reimbursement to help cover the cost of setting up your home or remote office.

An Equal Opportunity Employer

We are dedicated to fostering a culture that celebrates unique backgrounds, ideas, and experiences. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex (including pregnancy, gender, gender identity/expression, or sexual orientation), national origin, protected veteran status, disability, or genetic information (including family medical history).

We will provide reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities.  You may request an accommodation during the recruiting process with your Talent Acquisition team member.