Chief Technology Officer

Aspire Public Schools • Oakland, CA

14h • Hybrid

About The Position

Aspire NorCal is seeking a Chief Technology Officer (CTO) to lead its technology, data, and AI initiatives. This role is central to modernizing how the support office serves 22 schools and approximately 10,000 scholars across Northern California. Reporting to the President and serving on the Executive team, the CTO will oversee data, systems, technology vendors, data security, internet connectivity, devices, software, and the policies governing AI and system usage. The core objective is to redesign how Aspire NorCal operates by leveraging technology to make teammates' work easier and more effective. This involves understanding current challenges, improving data architecture, modernizing systems, and integrating AI to enhance efficiency and performance. The CTO will also manage the balance between in-house capabilities and vendor partnerships. The role builds upon an existing foundation of a rebuilt data warehouse, reporting layer, and piloted self-service dashboards and AI tools. Success will be measured by improved teammate experience, such as faster access to trusted information and streamlined processes. The CTO will ensure thoughtful adoption of new technologies, build internal capabilities, and create value for schools and the organization. Key first-year objectives include drafting an AI policy, initiating security assessments, deploying self-service data tools, addressing teammate pain points, managing the data and systems separation from Aspire Los Angeles, launching an IT service model and a new HRIS, and demonstrating measurable reductions in manual work and increased teammate satisfaction.

Requirements

• 10+ years leading data and technology.
• At least 5 years as the senior technology leader in a national or multi-site organization.
• Experience building or rebuilding a modern data platform (warehouse, reporting layer, governed self-service) and driving adoption by non-technical users.
• Experience leading AI adoption beyond pilots, including policy writing, training, and implementing audited automation into daily work.
• Experience running a security and privacy program covering sensitive personal data.
• Experience managing outsourced IT and major vendors against service levels, including at least one make-or-buy decision.
• Experience leading technology through restructuring, rapid growth, or a separation, designing systems while the organization changed.
• Views technology as an enabler, not a gadget, and measures success by whether people's jobs got easier.
• Service-minded, treating principals, teachers, and support teammates as customers.
• A teacher and manager at heart: explains clearly, builds others' capability, and makes the team less dependent on any one person.
• Disciplined about economics: understands automation and outsourcing are not automatically savings.
• Attracts strong talent and holds people and vendors to a high standard.
• Bachelor's degree required.
• Must reside in a county where Aspire NorCal schools are located: San Mateo, Alameda, Contra Costa, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, or Sacramento.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with K–12 scholar data is strongly preferred.
• An advanced degree in technology, business, education or a related field is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead the technology, data, and AI work for Aspire NorCal's modernization plan.
• Oversee Aspire NorCal's data, systems, technology vendors, data security, internet connectivity infrastructure, teammate and scholar devices and software, and AI policy and training.
• Redesign how Aspire NorCal works using technology to make teammate's work easier and more effective.
• Listen to schools and teammates to understand the current state, fix data and architecture, modernize core systems, and redesign work using AI.
• Decide what technology functions belong with teammates and what belong with vendors.
• Take the data warehouse and self-service dashboards from pilot to daily use.
• Find and remove daily pain points such as duplicate entry, manual reconciliation, and workarounds.
• Build a feedback loop for continuous improvement of systems and data.
• Ensure systems, data, and tools support strong teaching, learning, and scholar outcomes.
• Partner with the Chief Schools Officer to provide timely, actionable data on scholar progress and evaluate/scale instructional technology.
• Partner with academic leaders to vet AI tools for safety, privacy, and accessibility, and integrate educator feedback into training.
• Write and maintain Aspire NorCal's AI policy for Board adoption, covering approved tools, uses, data handling, human review, and disclosure.
• Extend the AI policy to scholar use, covering approved tools, age-appropriate uses, and data protections.
• Set data access rules for AI, ensuring answers come from governed sources with appropriate access rights.
• Build a tiered training system for AI use (safe use, power users, automation design).
• Track AI tool usage and retire underperforming tools.
• Run a disciplined pipeline of AI use cases, defining work changes, audits, error costs, and success metrics.
• Own the security program, including identity and access management, multi-factor authentication, device management, backups, vendor risk review, and incident response.
• Protect scholar and teammate data under relevant privacy laws (FERPA, California student-privacy law, employment-records law).
• Ensure vendor contracts for scholar data handling are compliant.
• Protect sensitive data (HR, finance, surveys) with scheduled access reviews.
• Run security awareness training alongside AI training.
• Report security posture, incidents, and risks to the President and Board.
• Own the enterprise systems roadmap, ensuring student information, HRIS, payroll, finance, and recruiting systems are connected with single data entry.
• Partner with CFO and People team on new HRIS and payroll/finance modernization.
• Deliver data and systems separation from Aspire Los Angeles by July 1, 2027, ensuring a clean cutover, no lost history, and no service gap.
• Manage all outside technology vendors and hold them accountable to service levels.
• Manage the technology budget against cost per scholar and published benchmarks.
• Build and lead a small, senior, well-managed team, augmented by tools and vendors.
• Implement excellent management standards for managers, including regular check-ins, clear goals, feedback, development conversations, and prompt course correction.
• Serve as a strategic advisor to the President, CEO, and Executive team.
• Lead technology change with clear communication and focus on school and teammate experience.
• Identify and interrupt inequitable practices within their area of leadership and influence.

Benefits

• Eligible for Aspire health benefits
• Retirement through CalSTRS or CalPERS, depending on the role's credential requirements, with a 403(b) option
• Paid time off
• Additional teammate benefits to be determined in accordance with updated employee value proposition to be shared prior to offer.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive