Chief of Schools

Tacoma School District•Tacoma, WA

65d•$205,393 - $284,353

About The Position

This position provides leadership and guidance to programs and assigned schools in the ongoing development and improvement of the District's PreK-12 and alternative programs, per District goals, guidelines, and initiatives; provides support to the Superintendent by assuming primary administrative responsibilities concerning the assigned District's PreK-12 operation; fosters a work environment that is student-focused and results-oriented; places a priority on promoting an inclusive and equitable school and learning environment, on student learning, and on performance; supervises and evaluates assigned school principals, program supervisors, and assigned staff.

Requirements

Master's degree in education administration or related field; and five years of administrative experience, including increasingly responsible teaching and/or administrative experience in school environment; or any combination of experience and training which provides the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and ability required to perform the work.
Washington State teaching certificate and Principal or Administrative Certificate.
Fingerprints and successful WSP and FBI background clearance/sexual misconduct clearance.
Knowledge of supervisory principles and practices.
Knowledge of varying levels of school curricula, and special/support programs.
Knowledge of PreK-12 school philosophy, instruction, and affective teaching practices.
Knowledge of educational leadership, instruction, and assessment.
Knowledge of school district budgeting and accounting principles, methods, and techniques.
Knowledge of human resources processes of recruitment, hiring, supervising, evaluating, and disciplining employees.
Knowledge of curricular frameworks, pedagogy, and quality classroom materials.
Knowledge of counselling methods necessary for handling student academic and adjustment problems.
Knowledge of the required records, reports, documents, and related information which must be prepared and maintained.
Knowledge of student services available and referral procedures.
Knowledge in areas of planning, developing, implementing, assessing, evaluating, and monitoring PreK-12 programs.
Skill in using data to identify academic, behavioral, and social-emotional barriers to student learning and implement tiered interventions that promote equitable outcomes.
Skill in, and demonstrated past of, improving student achievement.
Skill in effective instruction and research-based teaching strategies.
Skill in understanding of the change process and how to coach others in this area.
Skill in school administration.
Skill in creating a shared vision, effective school improvement planning, and fostering shared leadership.
Skill in decision-making; demonstrated ability to exercise independent judgment.
Skill in obtaining, clarifying, and exchanging information.
Skill in coaching adults and capacity building.
Skill in assessing learning needs of principals with appropriate and effective professional development models.
Skill in effectively developing and delivering presentations.
Skill in designing school master schedules.
Ability to provide effective leadership.
Ability to be a learner and to model a learner's stance.
Ability to provide instruction and guidance to administrators, teachers, program supervisors, and instructional support staff.
Ability to implement curriculum development techniques and design.
Ability to develop, implement, and sustain a schoolwide MTSS framework.
Ability to analyze formative and summative data to identify strength and weaknesses.
Ability to preserve confidentiality.
Ability to organize, set priorities, and maintain effective follow-up procedures.
Ability to work as part of a team.
Ability to demonstrate reasonable reliable, and regular attendance.
Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with a variety of people in a multi-cultural, diverse socio-economic setting.

Responsibilities

Collaborates with the Superintendent and Deputy Superintendent in providing leadership and strategic direction for the planning, development, implementation, promotion, and evaluation of the educational objectives of District's PreK-12 and alternative programs; ensures development and maintenance of a positive educational program; works closely with District Enrollment Services regarding student choice; provides leadership and guidance to assigned principals and program supervisors for the comprehensive alignment of School Improvement Plans, the District's Improvement Plan, and other program needs.
Monitors, observes, and evaluates assigned principals in the clinical supervision process to improve effective instruction; coaches and supports principals in goal setting, planning, evidence collection, and development of school improvement plans with frequent formal and informal school visits; provides feedback and support to teachers and principals to improve effective instruction; collaborates with Professional Development (PD) and other applicable District departments to develop and deliver PD support, based on the collective needs of the Principals, and for the continual improvement of instructional leadership and instruction.
Holds principals and program supervisors accountable for promoting inclusive and equitable school and learning environments that establish and maintain conditions that are optimal for learning, characterized by high expectations, provides social support and differentiation of instruction based on formative and summative assessments; provides powerful learning experiences for principals and program supervisors through modeling, joint-work, whole group sessions, and principal networks.
Conducts performance evaluations of assigned principals, program supervisors, and assigned staff to ensure the attainment of goals and objectives, in consultation with the Deputy Superintendent (or other designee), and in accordance with the District policies and procedures; provides principals, administrators, and program supervisors with opportunities to improve professional skills; accountable for, and provides guidance to, principals, program supervisors, and assigned staff regarding their individual professional development plans.
Visits assigned schools and program offices on a regular basis to provide support and recognition for efforts, to address issues and concerns, to maintain visibility, and to generate creative solutions to the District and other challenges; provides feedback on school visits to principals and program supervisors; assists principals to build capacity of assistant principals to prepare them to become instructional leaders; serves as mentor for assigned principals in the development of individual school plans; leads and monitors the assigned schools in their progress toward attainment of strategic goals and objectives.
Reviews and assists each principal and program supervisor with integrating the essential components of effective instruction in their school programs; assists and supports effective school centered decision-making teams; identifies barriers that are limiting principal's instructional leadership and broker both instructional and non-instructional resources; studies and evaluates, and, as appropriate, recommends adoptions of new materials, methods, and programs.
Assists in the planning of transition programs and activities for students entering and exiting assigned school; ensures integration and articulation of services for participating students; facilitates readmissions process for assigned schools; monitors discipline and attendance for assigned schools; supports schools/buildings with building-based investigations and liaises with Human Resources on matters that shift into District based investigations.
Develops, approves, and monitors budgets for financial and efficiency effectiveness, as required; sets priorities, with an emphasis on cost consciousness, for staffing, materials, and equipment requisition; works together with administrators of the assigned buildings for staffing and enrollment decisions; collaborates with Budget and Human Resources to determine correct staffing allocations; recommends and approves expenditures; monitors program expenditures to ensure compliance with budget allocations and District procedures.
Provides leadership to principals and program supervisors to assure cooperative planning between program staff and building staff in matters related to programs; keeps departmental administrators informed of special projects; provides proactive communication with building leaders about new and ongoing District initiatives; shares ideas and provides coherent and consistent support to principals and program supervisors; works with department administrators to assist in problem solving needs and solutions for program direction; provides mediation and facilitation when required.
Represents the District on matters relating to students enrolled in designated programs; interprets, communicates, conceptual understanding, and applies local, state, and/or federal legislation, requirements, and standards to District staff, programs, and services; represents programs on a wide variety of committees and special projects; participates in board meetings and professional meetings.
Provides leadership for the implementation of a Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS), including academic Response to Intervention (RTI), behavioral, social-emotional, and language interventions to promote student success and equity.
Maintains liaison and active participation with District staff, parents, students, professional associations, community based organizations, the public, and a variety of interest groups; presents information to the Cabinet and School Board as necessary; investigates/responds to inquiries and concerns from staff, citizens, individual parents, and parent groups, follows up with appropriate action and resolution; works in developing internal and external partnerships and provides liaison duties with area businesses, as approved.
Supervises assigned staff; makes hiring recommendations; appropriately evaluates, commends, and disciplines employees; approves leaves and overtime; may assign and review work; ensures staff receives District-wide and department information that will enhance overall quality of the assigned schools; evaluates District-wide leadership assignments.
Coordinates ongoing diagnosis and assessment of assigned PreK-12 programs' achievement by managing the collection, analysis, and reporting of data; assists in the preparation of a variety of reports for the Deputy Superintendent (or other designee) and School Board.
Provides District level support, in collaboration with other administrators, for one or more District programs which may include: Title I, LAP, Indian Education, Head Start, Even Start, Kindergarten, Early Childhood Education, or other programs.
Maintains and updates knowledge and skills required for success in the position by participating in professional development activities as needed or as assigned; participates in local, regional, and national associations pertaining to designated programs; maintains knowledge of educational trends, development, and latest research; provides information to District staff regarding current trends; attends District meetings, as required.
Monitors operations and provides guidance to the assigned school(s) programs, the before and after school programs, summer school programs, and the sports and activity programs.
Manages special projects and performs related duties as assigned.
Regular, reliable, predictable attendance or physical presence is an essential job requirement and critical to the performance of the work.