SY 26-27 Chief Operating Officer

School in the Square•New York, NY

7d•$220,000 - $250,000

About The Position

Our Central Office at School in the Square exists to support and strengthen our schools: our Early Childhood Center, our Elementary School, our Middle School, and our growing High School (9th through 11th for SY 26-27). The Central Office is responsible for delivering high quality academic, operational, talent, human resources, financial, and community engagement services and resources that enable school leaders and teachers to focus on student learning and success. We are looking for dedicated, mission-aligned Central Office staff who will work closely with school-based staff to provide guidance, resources, and problem solving support that will advance instructional quality, organizational effectiveness, and student outcomes. School in the Square is seeking a Chief Operating Officer (COO) to lead the design and implementation of the School in the Square operational vision and quality across all schools in the organization. This position reports to our Executive Director, and serves as the organization’s senior operational leader who oversees the Central Office Operations team and school-based operational leaders. The COO is responsible for spearheading a vision of and strategy for operational excellence by building tight, dependable systems that deliver the services and resources schools need so that school leaders, teachers and students can focus on learning. The COO has the primary authority and accountability for operational performance and continuous improvement of high quality service and resources across the network to ensure our schools can run efficiently and effectively. The COO will co-lead the organization’s day-to-day work alongside the Chief Academic Officer, ensuring that our academic priorities and operational systems reinforce one another, and supports school leaders with the resources and services they need for executing with clarity and consistency. A core responsibility of the COO is to lead the Talent and HR team that provides best-in-class human resources and talent initiatives to deliver quality services and resources including talent acquisition, onboarding and people systems supporting employee experience and retention, as well as instructional improvement. The COO will directly manage and collaborate with school-based operations leaders on key operational decisions and strategy. The COO will also directly manage the Central Office Operations Team: the Director of Building and Facilities, the Director of Data and Finance and the Talent and HR Team.

Requirements

At least 10 years of experience in PreK-12 education, with demonstrated success leading operational strategy at school in NYS charter schools.
A graduate of a Master’s Degree in business, operations, education administration, or other related focus.
Proven success as leader in education administration, operations management or related industries.
Demonstrated experience building and improving systems, processes, and team capacity across multiple schools
Demonstrated experience in navigating complex regulatory expectations and ensuring compliance.
Strong data literacy and experience leading data-driven improvement cycles.
Exceptional people leadership, coaching, and change-management skills.

Nice To Haves

Experience in Human Resources and/or Talent Acquisition preferred.
A doctorate is strongly preferred.

Responsibilities

Operational visionary who, in partnership with their Director of Operations Cabinet, sets and implements an operational strategy that delivers high quality service and resources to the schools and the central office.
Directly manages and coaches each school-based Director of Operations to execute on organizational wide priorities, including but not limited to day to day operations, school safety,facilities, budgeting, operational staff development and community engagement.
Directly manages and coaches the Central Office Operations Teams in providing schools high quality service and resources, including but not limited to building and facilities management, budgeting, human resources, and talent acquisition.
Implements organization-wide operational staff professional development vision.
Monitors and improves operational performance across all schools using advancement strategies that ensures the continual improvement of the standards and quality of all operational functions.
Collaborates with the Chief Academic Officer to ensure the day-to-day organizational wide and school operations support academic priorities.
Leads and facilitates external operational initiatives, including ensuring operational compliance with all relevant regulatory and legal requirements, and serving as the primary operational liaison with the NYS charter authorizers to support renewals, site visits and operational reporting are in compliance.