Chief Program Officer

About Forestdale

For more than 170 years, Forestdale has worked to strengthen families, empower communities, and ensure that every child has a safe, nurturing family and the resources needed to thrive. Forestdale provides a comprehensive continuum of services throughout Queens, Brooklyn, and the greater New York City region, including child welfare, foster care, prevention, behavioral health, youth development, parenting support, workforce development, education, and community-based family support programs. Forestdale's programs serve approximately 6,400 children, youth, and families annually. 

Forestdale believes that families are the primary source of strength and stability for children and that communities are strongest when families have equitable access to resources, opportunities, and support before crises occur. Through a commitment to prevention, family voice, harm reduction, immigrant inclusion, and community partnership, Forestdale seeks to reduce family disruption, advance social justice, and improve outcomes for children and families.

Why Join Forestdale?

This is an opportunity to lead transformational work at one of New York City's most respected family-serving organizations. The Chief Program Officer (CPO) will shape the future of prevention, family strengthening, behavioral health, youth development, and child welfare services while helping advance Forestdale's vision of stronger families, healthier communities, and a more equitable future for children and families.

The CPO will play a central role in building a system that supports families before crisis, honors family voice, strengthens communities, and contributes to a future where every child can thrive within a safe, nurturing, and connected family.

Position Summary

The Chief Program Officer serves as the senior executive responsible for the strategic leadership, quality, effectiveness, growth, and integration of all programmatic operations across Forestdale. As a key member of the Executive Leadership Team, the CPO provides vision, direction, and oversight to ensure that all services align with Forestdale's mission, strategic priorities, regulatory requirements, values of equity, accountability, innovation, and family-centered practice.

The CPO leads a diverse portfolio of child welfare, prevention, youth development, family support, and community-based programs. The position is responsible for advancing organizational excellence through strong leadership, data-informed decision making, continuous quality improvement, workforce development, program innovation, and cross-system collaboration.

The CPO will play a critical role in helping Forestdale strengthen preventive approaches that support families before crises emerge, reduce unnecessary family separation, and expand community-based solutions that keep children safe, connected, and thriving within their families and communities.

The Chief Program Officer reports directly to the Executive Director and serves as a key member of Forestdale's Executive Leadership Team. The position provides strategic leadership and supervision to the Assistant Executive Director of Foster Care Services, Assistant Executive Director of Preventive Services, Director of Learning & Professional Development, Director of Youth Development (Strong Futures), and the Directors of Parenting Programs, including Strong Mothers and Strong Fathers. In partnership with the Executive Director, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Operating Officer/General Counsel, Chief Development & Communications Officer, Chief of Staff, and Senior Program Leadership Team, the Chief Program Officer helps shape organizational strategy, drive program excellence, strengthen agency-wide collaboration, and advance Forestdale's mission and strategic priorities. This leadership structure is aligned with Forestdale's executive governance framework and supports effective oversight of program operations, quality, innovation, and impact.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Program Leadership

• Provide strategic leadership and oversight for all program operations.
• Translate organizational priorities into measurable program strategies and outcomes.
• Drive implementation of Forestdale's strategic plan and annual organizational goals.
• Ensure programs align with community needs, emerging best practices, and changing policy environments.
• Identify opportunities for program expansion, innovation, and diversification.
• Lead implementation of prevention-focused and community-based service models that strengthen families and reduce system involvement.

Program Excellence, Outcomes, and Grant Performance

• Provide executive oversight to ensure all programs deliver high-quality, trauma-informed, family-centered, and culturally responsive services that align with Forestdale's mission, values, strategic priorities, and commitment to equity and family well-being.
• Promote a culture of learning, innovation, accountability, and continuous quality improvement that supports excellence in service delivery, strategic decision making and organizational effectiveness.
• Ensure compliance with all regulatory, contractual, accreditation, and licensing requirements, while maintaining the highest standards of program quality and client care.
• Partner with program leaders to develop, monitor, and achieve program outcomes, quality indicators, and key performance metrics aligned with agency goals and funder requirements.
• Provide executive oversight of grant and contract performance, ensuring timely achievement of deliverables, outcomes and reporting requirements. 
• Address systemic program challenges, client concerns, and service delivery issues in a timely and effective manner, fostering a culture of responsiveness, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Chair and participate in executive-level program reviews, critical incident reviews, quality improvement committees, performance management sessions, and cross-program leadership meetings to ensure alignment, accountability, and organizational learning.

Family-Centered Prevention, Community Impact, and Systems Transformation

• Advance organizational strategies that strengthen families, promote safety, community well-being, and reduce barriers to accessing services and supports.
• Lead the development and implementation of a comprehensive prevention and family strengthening strategy that advances Forestdale's mission to support children, youth, and families before crises occur.
• Champion approaches that recognize families, youth, and caregivers as partners and experts in their own lives, ensuring family voice and lived experience are integrated into program design, implementation, evaluation, and continuous improvement.
• Oversee the expansion of prevention, early intervention, and community-based services that improve outcomes while reducing the need for system involvement.
• Strengthen pathways that connect families to timely, coordinated supports before challenges escalate, promoting stability, resilience, and long-term well-being.
• Advance integrated service models that connect child welfare, behavioral health, education, workforce development, housing, health, and community resources to address the holistic needs of families.
• Ensure program models incorporate restorative approaches, equity-centered practices, and community leadership.
• Identify and pursue opportunities to shift resources, investments, and organizational strategies toward prevention, early intervention, and community-based solutions that strengthen families and communities.
• Partner with internal and external stakeholders to advance innovative approaches that improve family outcomes, address systemic inequities, and support sustainable community impact.

Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging

• Advance Forestdale's commitment to racial equity, justice, and inclusion.
• Ensure equitable program access and outcomes for historically marginalized populations.
• Lead efforts to address disparities in services and outcomes.
• Support implementation of REDI (Race, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion) priorities throughout the organization.
• Foster culturally responsive and linguistically appropriate services.

Workforce Leadership, Talent Development, and Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Provide strategic leadership, supervision, and support to program leaders across Foster Care, Preventive Services, Strong Mothers, Strong Fathers, Strong Futures, and other assigned program areas, ensuring alignment with Forestdale's mission, strategic priorities, and organizational values.
• Recruit, develop, mentor, and retain high-performing leaders while fostering a culture of accountability, innovation, collaboration, and continuous learning.
• Ensure leaders receive ongoing coaching, reflective supervision, and professional development opportunities that enhance leadership effectiveness and program outcomes.
• Partner closely with Human Resources, Finance, Quality Improvement, Compliance, Development, and Operations teams to ensure coordinated planning, resource allocation, workforce support, and achievement of organizational goals.
• Collaborate across departments to promote integrated service delivery, operational excellence, and a seamless experience for children, youth, families, staff, and community partners.
• Participate in the recruitment, selection, onboarding, evaluation, and retention of supervisory and program leadership staff, ensuring the agency attracts and develops exceptional talent.
• Partner with Human Resources on employee relations matters, performance management, compensation recommendations, corrective action plans, and workforce planning initiatives while maintaining compliance with agency policies and employment regulations.
• Build and maintain a strong leadership pipeline that prepares future organizational leaders and supports long-term agency growth and sustainability.

Quality, Compliance, Risk Management, and Child Welfare Oversight

• Ensure compliance with all federal, state, local, licensing, accreditation, contractual, and regulatory requirements across all program areas.
• Partner with Compliance, Legal, Quality Improvement, Human Resources, and program leadership teams to strengthen oversight, mitigate risk, and ensure organizational accountability.
• Monitor audits, licensing reviews, accreditation requirements, corrective action plans, and performance improvement initiatives. 
• Chair and participate in critical incident reviews, performance management reviews, quality improvement committees, and other governance and oversight functions as appropriate.
• Serve as the Commissioner's Designee and authorized representative for designated child welfare functions, including approval of medical treatment, psychotropic medications, surgeries, and other legally required consents when applicable.
• Oversee adoption-related processes and approvals.
• Utilize quality, compliance, outcome, and risk-management data to identify trends, improve performance, and strengthen organizational effectiveness across all programs.

Financial and Operational Stewardship

• Collaborate with the Chief Financial Officer to develop and monitor program budgets.
• Ensure programs operate within financial parameters while achieving outcomes.
• Identify opportunities for efficiency, sustainability, and responsible growth.
• Participate in contract planning, rate advocacy, and funding strategy development.

• Oversee the financial and contractual aspects of program operations, ensuring fiscal responsibility and transparency.
• Monitor and approve expenditures, ensuring alignment with budgetary constraints and supporting sustainable program growth.

External Leadership and Advocacy

• Represent Forestdale with government agencies, foundations, partners, community organizations, and advocacy coalitions.
• Build strategic partnerships that expand resources and opportunities for families.
• Support advocacy efforts related to prevention services, child welfare reform, behavioral health access, immigrant family supports, family economic security, and equitable funding.
• Serve as a thought leader within the human services field.

Salary Range (Annual)

$220,000 - $240,000

Qualifications

Education

• Master's degree required in Social Work, Public Administration, Public Health, Psychology, Human Services, or a related field.

Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW), LCSW, or equivalent preferred.

Experience

• Minimum 10 years of progressively responsible leadership experience in human services, child welfare, preventive services, behavioral health, or family-serving organizations.
• Minimum 5 years of executive or senior leadership experience overseeing multiple programs and teams.
• Demonstrated experience leading complex, multi-service organizations.
• Experience managing large budgets and government-funded programs.
• Strong understanding of child welfare, prevention, behavioral health, regulatory compliance, and quality improvement.
• Experience advancing equity-focused organizational change.

                            Forestdale is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to building a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace.