Middle Grades Principal

Westside Atlanta Charter School•Atlanta, GA

11d

About The Position

Westside Atlanta Charter School seeks an innovative, student-centered Middle School Principal to lead grades 5–8. The Principal will shape a rigorous and supportive middle school experience that prepares students for high school and beyond, addressing adolescents’ academic, social, emotional, and developmental needs and ensuring students are known, challenged, supported, and empowered to take increasing ownership of their learning. The Principal will lead high-quality, standards-based instruction; strengthen literacy and mathematics across content areas; use assessment and student-support data to guide decisions; and develop teachers and staff through clear expectations, feedback, coaching, and professional learning. The role also fosters belonging, curiosity, character, student voice, and academic excellence, and builds strong partnerships with families and the broader Westside community. Westside Atlanta Charter School was established by neighbors, individuals, and families seeking to increase educational equity on Atlanta’s Westside. The school opened in 2013 and grew from grades K–2 to a K–8 school. Its work is grounded in holistic growth, curious minds, community belonging, and academic excellence.

Requirements

Successful teaching and/or leadership experience in middle grades, preferably grades 5–8, with a strong understanding of adolescent development and middle school students’ academic and social-emotional needs.
At least four years of successful school leadership experience driving academic achievement, instructional improvement, and positive school culture in a high-performing or high-accelerating school.
Valid Georgia educational leadership certificate appropriate for the position, or the ability to meet applicable Georgia certification and reciprocity requirements.
Expertise in standards-based instruction, curriculum implementation, assessment literacy, data analysis, and using evidence to improve student outcomes.
Experience implementing MTSS/RTI and coordinating differentiated academic, behavioral, and student-support interventions.
Ability to lead and develop adults through observation, coaching, feedback, professional learning, and performance management.
Effective communication skills and ability to build strong, respectful relationships with students, families, teachers, staff, and community partners.
High expectations, sound judgment, responsiveness, flexibility, and commitment to collaborative decision-making.
Strong commitment to equity, inclusion, student belonging, and the belief that all students can learn and achieve at high levels.
Organization and ability to manage competing priorities, day-to-day school operations, and time-sensitive student and staff needs.

Nice To Haves

Experience in a charter school.
Experience serving a diverse urban population.

Responsibilities

Create a safe, inclusive, and affirming environment where students in grades 5–8 feel known, respected, challenged, and supported.
Establish consistent, developmentally appropriate expectations for attendance, punctuality, behavior, academic effort, integrity, and student responsibility, using restorative approaches.
Promote student voice, agency, leadership, collaboration, and positive peer relationships while supporting students through adolescent social and emotional transitions.
Model high expectations for every student and prioritize student learning, well-being, and growth in instructional and operational decisions.
Build a culture aligned with Westside’s values of holistic growth, curious minds, community belonging, and academic excellence.
Lead a coherent, rigorous, standards-based instructional program across grades 5–8, aligned with the school’s mission, instructional priorities, and curriculum.
Support strong content-area instruction, interdisciplinary planning, collaboration among teachers, and consistent expectations for high-quality student work.
Strengthen literacy across the curriculum, including reading comprehension, vocabulary, writing, and disciplinary literacy, and support effective mathematics instruction and conceptual understanding.
Conduct classroom observations and learning walks and provide actionable feedback, coaching, and follow-up to improve teaching and student outcomes.
Ensure instruction is engaging, culturally responsive, differentiated, and accessible to students with varied strengths, needs, language backgrounds, and learning profiles.
Support a middle school program balancing academic rigor with enrichment, exploration, student interests, and preparation for high school.
Analyze state, interim, curricular, and classroom assessment data to identify trends by grade, content area, student group, and individual learner.
Work with teachers and support staff to turn data into instructional priorities, measurable goals, reteaching plans, enrichment opportunities, and timely interventions.
Monitor academic progress, attendance, behavior, engagement, and other indicators to identify students needing additional support or challenge.
Lead implementation of MTSS and RTI processes, including progress monitoring and coordination of academic and behavioral supports.
Partner with special education, English Learner, counseling, gifted, and other support personnel to promote access, compliance, and meaningful participation in grade-level learning.
Communicate student progress clearly and constructively with students and families, including next steps and shared responsibility for improvement.
Oversee day-to-day middle school operations, including schedules, transitions, supervision, attendance follow-up, student discipline, and effective use of staff and learning spaces.
Establish and monitor procedures that support a safe, orderly, welcoming, and well-organized environment during the school day and school-sponsored activities.
Coordinate with school leadership and relevant staff on student services, crisis response, family concerns, and compliance with school policies and applicable requirements.
Support enrichment, clubs, student leadership opportunities, and other experiences that foster connection, exploration, and a positive middle school identity.
Address student and staff concerns and resolve problems with sound judgment, consistency, timely communication, and alignment with school values.
Listen and respond appropriately to students, families, staff, and community stakeholders with professionalism, empathy, and follow-through.
Build trusting family partnerships and keep families informed about academic progress, student development, school expectations, and opportunities to participate in school life.
Create meaningful ways for families to contribute to student success and school improvement while maintaining confidentiality and professional boundaries.
Collaborate with the elementary principal and school leadership team to support continuity and transitions into grade 5, and work with high school partners or receiving schools to strengthen readiness for the next stage.
Represent Westside’s mission and values and contribute to a cohesive K–8 school community.
Recruit, select, develop, and retain a strong and diverse team of educators and staff committed to the school’s mission and values.
Set clear performance expectations, provide regular feedback, support professional growth, and address performance concerns in a timely, fair, and direct manner.
Develop teacher leadership and collaborative practices through professional learning communities, shared planning, peer learning, and evidence-informed reflection.
Use student outcomes, classroom evidence, and staff feedback to identify professional learning needs and evaluate instructional initiatives.
Partner with school leadership to support staffing, resource allocation, continuous improvement, and implementation of schoolwide priorities.