Director of Student Health Services

KIPP Texas Public Schools • Houston, TX

22h • Hybrid

About The Position

The KIPP Texas Director of Student Health Services is a senior leader who supports schools in fostering healthy and safe environments so students can achieve optimal health and learning outcomes. The role serves as a thought partner, problem solver, and change agent for internal and external stakeholders, helping ensure students have access to care that meets their diverse emotional and behavioral needs.

The Director leads implementation of the strategic direction for School Health Services, including new strategies and project timelines. Working collaboratively with regional and school leaders, school-based health staff, and the state team, the Director helps deliver high-quality programs and improve student achievement. The role reports to the Managing Director of School-Based Mental Health and spends approximately 50% of its time in schools working directly with teams. The position is hybrid, reporting to a central office or schools four days a week, and requires travel between campuses and regional offices.

Requirements

• Registered Nurse with five years of direct patient care experience.
• Minimum of seven years of progressive leadership experience, including at least three years of direct people management.
• Proficiency in Google Workspace and Microsoft Office.
• Ability to travel between campuses across KIPP Texas cities as needed.
• Ability to execute and monitor strategic plans, annual goals, and quarterly benchmarks for program improvement.
• Knowledge of state education law related to student and school health reporting requirements.
• Demonstrated integrity and alignment with KIPP Texas's mission and commitment to students and families.
• People leadership skills, including managing, coaching, and developing clinic staff across multiple campuses through direct and matrix management structures.
• Strong operational and systems thinking, including the ability to build scalable tools and processes that support consistent student care and performance across a regional portfolio.
• Ability to analyze clinic data and staff performance and develop evidence-based improvement strategies.
• Clear, professional communication skills for engaging with regional and school leaders and campus staff.
• Ability to make sound decisions with imperfect information, adapt to competing priorities, and maintain composure.
• Strong planning skills and flexibility to operate at both strategic and tactical levels.
• Ability to build a team culture grounded in accountability, trust, appreciation, and shared commitment to results.
• Ability to move about inside and outside the school throughout the workday and attend conferences, meetings, and training sessions virtually and in person within the Region.
• Reliable transportation for travel between campuses.
• Ability to maintain emotional control under stress and work with frequent interruptions.

Nice To Haves

• School Nurse experience.
• Master’s degree in a related education field.
• Familiarity with school nursing platforms such as Skyward and ImmTrac.

Responsibilities

• Lead collaborative departmental meetings supporting strategic initiatives, including developing a Student Health arc-of-the-year roadmap.
• Evaluate the Student Health program to ensure student education objectives are met and performance tracks against annual targets.
• Identify, analyze, and apply current nursing and medical research findings to improve health care delivery and strategy.
• Provide operational leadership for School Health Services, ensuring quality programming, consistent intervention support, and compliance with state statutes concerning protected health information.
• Maintain district compliance through accurate state-required reporting, policy updates aligned with state guidance, proper student health data maintenance, and proactive disease prevention and response systems.
• Ensure student health concerns are documented and supported to promote success in the classroom.
• Partner with Special Education to manage Individual Health Plans, including one-to-one nursing and homebound services.
• Coordinate implementation of state mandates such as CPR/AED, screenings, immunizations, and Type 2 Diabetes requirements, and serve on relevant health advisory and safety committees.
• Supervise Student Health staff, including conducting performance evaluations and developing improvement plans.
• Manage the Student Health budget for financial responsibility and efficient resource allocation.
• Lead hiring efforts for district and campus-level staff by establishing criteria for education, experience, and staffing needs.
• Ensure state and regional Student Health teams provide excellent communication and customer service.
• Coordinate professional learning for school teams and Student Health providers.
• Collaborate with external partners and internal constituents to optimize systems, utilization, and knowledge.
• Spend approximately 50% of the time in schools working directly with teams to improve health programming.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the Managing Director of School-Based Mental Health.

Benefits

• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans with coverage options for employees and their families.
• Competitive vacation and flexible paid time off policies.
• Paid family leave.
• Flexible spending account or high-yield HSA.
• Employee assistance programs.
• Employee-paid legal plans, LifeLock identity protection, life insurance, and disability insurance.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director
• Education Level: No Education Listed