Managing Director of Humanities, K-8

About Achievement First

Achievement First (AF) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that currently supports 41 public charter schools in New York, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. Consistently rated as one of the top charter school networks in the country for almost 25 years, AF is committed to continuous improvement, programmatic evolution for enhanced student outcomes, and sustainable growth. The majority of AF students are Black and Latinx children from low-income families who will be the first in their families to graduate from college. AF currently employs more than 2,200 staff — 64% of whom identify as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color — who collectively educate nearly 15,000 students in Brooklyn and Queens, NY; New Haven, Bridgeport, and Hartford, CT; and Providence, RI.

The mission of Achievement First is to deliver on the promise of equal educational opportunity for all of America’s children. AF knows that every child—regardless of race, zip code, or economic status—deserves access to great schools. At AF, students realize their potential and develop the skills they need to graduate from high school, succeed in college, thrive in a competitive world, and serve as the next generation of leaders in their communities. At AF, students and staff embark on a shared journey to fulfill their incredible potential.

We are looking for a Managing Director of Humanities, K-8 to join our Teaching and Learning team.

Your Impact

Reporting to the Chief Academic Officer (CAO), the Managing Director of Teaching and Learning will work directly with network instructional teams and school leaders to craft, refine and execute the vision behind exemplary instructional programs across K-8 Humanities. The Managing Director will manage a team of senior content and grade-level experts to drive the strategy in their respective content areas and grade bands to implement this vision across our schools. Your responsibilities will be:

Set Program Vision and Ensure Alignment to Network Priorities:

• Craft a clear vision for K-8 humanities instruction and leadership (inclusive of curricula, assessments, training and school supports for both teachers and leaders) across the network through effective collaboration with regional superintendents, school leaders and other network teams.
• Program Alignment: Ensure alignment to network vision for instruction K-12, appropriate grade level differentiation within K-8 Humanities Vision, and attempt to create vertical and horizontal cohesion across academies (ES and MS) and contents wherever possible. Strategic and effective partnership with leaders at network and schools is essential for this work.
• Communication & Execution of Vision: Communicate and invest school and network stakeholders in reading assessment strategy, curricular decisions, professional development approaches, and school support strategy.
  
  

Team Management and Development:

• Manage a team of 2 Senior Directions (K-8 ELA and K-8 History), who each manage a team of directors, to meet their goals and develop their teams
• Cultivate a strong team culture through effective and consistent team meeting and communication structures across K-8 Humanities, ensuring consistent and high leverage development for all team members.
• Manage Senior Director team on all workstreams required to support vision including (but not limited to):
• Team Capacity Planning: create strategic resource allocation plans, determining priority work and supporting hiring of contractors or other supports as needed, developing quarterly and annual team plans
• Assessment Strategy: set assessment strategy, analyze data of state/national exams, interim assessments, ongoing quizzes and unit tests, and manage network response to data
• Resource Development: create and manage creation of strategic resources for schools to use in implementing curricula and assessments
• Training and School Support: implement school support plans with fidelity aligned to team Teaching and Learning’s vision for coaching and response to data; and to cultivate future content area leaders through lateral coaching.
  

High Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM) Selection and Implementation of Instructional Vision

• In 2022, AF strategically transitioned to High-Quality Instructional Materials (HQIM) across multiple K-12 subject areas. In K-8 ELA, we have adopted Wit & Wisdom, Geodes, and FUNdations for our ELA and ES Humanities programs. This role is critical in leading the implementation of these materials to advance our instructional vision, as well as evaluating their impact and guiding any future adjustments.
• In evaluating our current materials and selecting any new materials the following will be essential:
• Ensure horizontal alignment and vertical alignment of HQIM across K-12
• Lead an inclusive and data driven process with stakeholders at schools and the across the network
• Collaborate with Regional Sups (and by extension schools) on scheduling, grading and other academy specific implications
• Consider and determine implications for assessment strategy across academy and subject levels
• Create and manage school support and other implementation structures (PD, resources and direct 1:1 or small group school support) aligned to network strategies and needs of program
• Design and facilitate Professional Development, exemplifying best adult learning practices and serving as a model for directors and senior directors.
• Determine benchmarks to monitor the inputs of implementation (teacher, leader and network actions) and outputs of student achievement outcomes
  

Educational Background, Work Experience And Skills You’ll Have

All successful candidates for this position will have:

• A bachelor’s degree; Masters’ Degree Preferred
• At least three years of experience managing leaders (e.g., deans, assistant principals, or network managers/directors)
• A track record of leading student achievement, this must include both achieving ambitious outcomes with teachers as a teacher as well as leading and managing individuals and teams to do the same.
• Ambitious outcomes can include both absolute performance and growth.
  

The following skills, characteristics and competencies are required to be successful on this team:

• Deep expertise in ES/MS Humanities, including the Science of Reading and its implications
• Skilled in differentiating instruction for diverse learners, including students with disabilities and multilingual learners
• Strong strategic thinker with goal-setting, data analysis, and problem-solving skills
• Effective team leader, adept at navigating challenges to drive ambitious outcomes
• Strategic planner and communicator, capable of guiding teams toward vision execution
• Skilled in stakeholder engagement, change management, and influence across all levels
• Committed to equity, growth mindset, self-awareness, and relational trust
• Adaptable, independent, and responsive to direction as needed
• Detail-oriented, highly organized, and proactive in communication
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• Deep belief in the Achievement First mission and educational model
  
  

This role requires regular travel, including occasional evening or weekend work, to our schools across New York, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. Candidates must be based in or willing to relocate to one of the 3 regions.

Compensation

Achievement First sets salaries are set through a lens of equity, and based on the requisite skills, education, and experience relevant to the role. The salary for this position is $150,331.20 In order to uphold our commitment to equity, Achievement First does not negotiate pay. Additionally, Achievement First offers to all regular, full-time employees a comprehensive benefits package that includes paid time off, medical, dental, vision, and life insurance, a 403(b) retirement benefit package with match, and paid Family Leave.

Achievement First is an equal opportunity employer and an organization that values diversity. People from all diverse backgrounds are strongly encouraged to apply. Spanish language proficiency is a plus. You can learn more about diversity at Achievement First here: http://achievementfirst.org/about-us/diversity/