Outreach & Partnerships Manager

Overview

Who We Are:

National Louis is a 135+ year old university that has been grounded in the values of innovation, access, excellence, and equity from its inception. As an institution, we believe in providing access to educational opportunity and that education is our greatest lever for social and economic mobility. We are a student-focused community that is committed to continuous improvement and superior student service.  We believe that through education we are able to empower change and build healthy communities. Our hard-working community is based on collaboration and respect for all team members and students.

What You Will Do:

The LE3 Outreach & Partnerships Manager is the primary liaison between NLU’s innovative new LE3 program and team and the central NLU Marketing/Outreach/Enrollment team. This role is responsible for waking up each day focused on connecting working adults to the opportunity of a new kind of bachelor’s degree that includes work as a central component—building awareness, generating leads, and converting interest into enrollment. Acting as a face of LE3 in the community and the bridge to NLU’s central Marketing and Enrollment teams, the Manager develops partnerships, designs and executes outreach strategies, and manages a small team of interns to expand LE3’s reach. Success in this role is measured by increased visibility of LE3, a strong connection between LE3 and the central Outreach and Enrollment teams, a strong prospective student pipeline, and steady progress toward ambitious enrollment targets.

Essential Responsibilities

Outreach & Engagement

• Build awareness through events, employer partnerships, and grassroots outreach.
• Host or co-host info sessions, webinars, and community presentations.
• Maintain a prospective student pipeline with relationship-centered follow-up.

Partnership Development

• Cultivate partnerships with employers, workforce boards, and community organizations.
• Represent LE3 at events and build pathways to connect partners to enrollment.

Collaboration & Communication

• Partner with NLU Marketing and Enrollment teams to ensure clear, effective messaging.
• Share insights from outreach efforts to improve strategies and student conversion.

Intern Supervision

• Recruit, train, and manage community outreach interns.
• Guide interns in event support, social media, and student ambassador projects.

Strategy & Innovation

• Test and refine outreach strategies that resonate with working adults and first-gen students.
• Track and analyze outreach data to inform continuous improvement.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent mix of experience and education (i.e. High School diploma/GED and 5 years of related experience)
• 2+ years of experience in community engagement, outreach, partnership development, student recruitment, workforce development, nonprofit program management, or closely related area
• At least 3 years of demonstrated success building and sustaining partnerships with employers, community-based organizations, and/or feeder programs
• At least 1 year of experience collaborating cross-functionally with marketing, enrollment/admissions, and academic teams to align messaging and recruitment processes
• At least 1 year of experience supervising/managing others and/or coaching others towards professional growth
• Exceptional relationship building skills
• Strong presentation and facilitation skills (comfortable leading information sessions/presentations both in-person and virtually)
• Demonstrated ability to think creatively and innovate new strategies for outreach and partnership efforts
• Familiarity with CRMs (i.e. Salesforce)
• Willingness to work evenings and weekends as needed

NLU Inclusion Statement:

National Louis University is deeply committed to serving its community, advancing access and equity, and ensuring that all individuals are welcomed and valued.  We are dedicated to fostering a culture where diversity, equity, and inclusion remain at the core of who we are. These are more than just words to us: they are truly a way of life for the NLU community. We recognize that differences in abilities, age, ethnicity, gender (identity and expression), race, religion, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, and background bring richness to our work environment. We affirm diverse perspectives, innovative contributions, and authentic presentations of self from every member within the NLU community. We believe inclusion is grounded in the actions we intentionally take each day. Our goal is to inspire and empower NLU employees and community members to cultivate an environment where we collectively focus on uplifting and advancing our institutional culture.

Compensation and Benefits

At National Louis University, we offer our employees an innovative environment to work together and inspire the ideas that will make an impact. As our external environment changes, our employees are provided the opportunities and tools needed to grow both personally and professionally to remain successful. NLU employees and dependents are offered a wide range of benefits, including but not limited to, Health Insurance benefits, Retirement benefits, Paid Time Off and Educational Opportunities. Additional information regarding full-time staff benefits can be found here.

The salary range of the grade for this position is $51,966 to $75,351 annually.  Compensation decisions are dependent upon the facts and circumstances of each position and candidate.  Offers are based on multiple factors permitted by law, including but not limited to: budgetary considerations, job-related knowledge/skills, experience, market considerations, tenure and standing with the university (applicable to current employees), and internal equity. 

Application Instructions

Please Include the following along with your application:

• Resume (Required)
• Cover Letter (Optional)
• Current NLU employees please also submit an Internal Posting Form