Director of Summer and After School Experiences
About The Position
La Jolla Country Day School (LJCDS) is seeking an entrepreneurial, energetic, and highly motivated Director of Summer and After School Experiences to lead and grow our summer, extended-day, and after school programs. The Director will own these programs end-to-end—from developing the vision and program portfolio, to driving enrollment, managing the business, hiring and leading staff, and ensuring an exceptional experience for every child and family. This role offers a rare combination of entrepreneurial freedom and institutional support. The Director will have the opportunity to build programs that can serve children and families, develop young leaders and staff, introduce new families to LJCDS, and create experiences children remember long after summer ends. The Director will operate like the leader of a small business within the LJCDS community, with the facilities, relationships, resources, and mission of a leading independent school behind them. This is a hands-on leadership role with busy seasons, long days, unexpected challenges, and significant opportunity to shape what these programs can become. We aren’t looking for someone simply to maintain what exists. We’re looking for someone excited to build what comes next.
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree required
- 3+ years of progressively responsible experience leading camps, auxiliary programs, youth organizations, enrichment programs, or related operations
- Experience working with children and families and leading seasonal or part-time teams
- Proven experience developing and managing programs, including budgeting, enrollment, staffing, and operations
- Strong business acumen, including pricing, revenue forecasting, and financial analysis
- Experience with marketing, enrollment growth, customer engagement, or community outreach preferred
- Knowledge of child development, age-appropriate programming, supervision, and positive behavior management
- Proficiency with registration platforms, databases, and program-management systems; working knowledge of Google Workspace
- Ability to work flexible hours, including evenings, weekends, extended hours, and peak seasonal periods
Nice To Haves
- Relevant degree in education, business, recreation, child development, hospitality, nonprofit management, or a related field preferred
Responsibilities
- Develop and execute a vision and strategy for Country Day's enrichment programs, to include summer, after school, and extended day
- Assess the needs of LJCDS families and the broader San Diego community to identify new offerings, partnerships, and growth opportunities
- Develop and manage the annual program portfolio, including offerings, schedules, capacities, pricing, and requirements
- Evaluate enrollment, family feedback, and market trends to continuously strengthen programs
- Own enrollment goals and develop strategies to drive participation, retention, and growth
- Develop effective digital marketing, communications, and community outreach strategies, in partnership with the Marketing and Communications team
- Build relationships with community organizations and represent LJCDS at relevant events and outreach opportunities
- Ensure timely, clear communication with families throughout the registration and program experience
- Develop and manage annual program budgets, pricing, enrollment targets, revenue projections, and expenses
- Monitor financial and enrollment performance and use data to inform decisions that support program quality and revenue goals
- Oversee registration and billing processes to ensure an efficient, user-friendly experience for families
- Recruit, hire, train, schedule, supervise, and retain exceptional seasonal staff, with clear roles, expectations, and performance standards
- Build a team culture centered on safety, service, professionalism, inclusion, and a genuine commitment to children
- Coach and develop staff and cultivate future program leaders
- Oversee day-to-day operations across all programs, ensuring high-quality and consistent program delivery
- Coordinate staffing, schedules, facilities, registration systems, communications, supplies, and other operational needs
- Manage campus space and vendor relationships to support successful program delivery
- Anticipate and resolve operational challenges while keeping appropriate stakeholders informed
- Make the physical and emotional safety of every child the highest priority
- Establish and reinforce safety protocols, emergency procedures, supervision standards, and risk-management practices
- Plan programming for students of faculty and staff on non-class days during the school year
Benefits
- Salary Range $75,000-$95,000
- This position may also be eligible for a performance-based incentive tied to program goals.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Manager
