Lower School Dean of Student Life

Job Title: LS Dean of Student Life

Reports To: Head of EC & LS

FLSA Status: Exempt

Division: Deans

11 Months

Alexander Dawson School Overview

Located near Red Rock Canyon in the Summerlin community of Las Vegas, Nevada, The Alexander Dawson School at Rainbow Mountain is a top-ranked independent school serving approximately 580 students from Early Childhood through grade eight. As the state's first Stanford University Challenge Success partner school, Dawson embraces a modern learning philosophy and student-centered educational program emphasizing academics, creativity, student safety and wellbeing, and a healthy school-life balance. Our graduates are prepared to achieve their individual potential, savor life, and meet the challenges of the world.

Shared Values & Competencies of Dawson Employees

Alexander Dawson employees are leaders committed to modern learning and engaged and innovative collaborators. They succeed in this working environment because they tend to see opportunities before problems, lead with questions, assume positive intentions, are professional and respectful in their relationships, and work effectively with colleagues of varied backgrounds.

• Commits to shaping a just, inclusive community and understands how centering equity impacts all aspects of the job

• Adapts a nimble mindset when dealing with frequent change, delays, or unexpected events

• Acts with intentionality, transparency, humility, and honesty

• Develops solutions when faced with problems, challenges, or dysfunctions and makes decisions with resolve and empathy

• Communicates with empathy and clarity with multiple stakeholder groups

• Builds trusting relationships and demonstrates teamwork through attentive listening and a commitment to collaboration

• Believes they can learn from others and lead with questions to gain perspectives

• Acts ethically, morally, and legally to maintain compliance with organizational policies

Lower School Program (Grades K-4)

Guided by the Mission of the School and driven by Alexander Dawson’s strategic plan, the Alexander Dawson Lower School is a place of joyful learning. The Lower School faculty are caring, creative, and knowledgeable teachers who are passionate about whole-child education. As a modern learning institute and a Challenge Success school, Dawson teachers create lessons and learning environments that balance the intersection of academic knowledge, competency skills, and habits of mind. Remaining current on best practices related to competency-based education and Project-based Learning is a top priority for all Dawson faculty. Lower School teachers, students, and families value the strong sense of community and the personalized learning experiences the School provides through its literacy, math, social studies, world languages, science, art, music, health & fitness, design lab, library, and SEL curriculum. The Lower School culture emphasizes team dynamics and an ongoing commitment to learning from others. The Lower School program is proud to be accredited by the Northwest Association of Independent Schools (NWAIS).

Culture & Atmosphere

The Alexander Dawson School seeks a passionate educator committed to the Dawson Mission and sensitive to and understanding adolescents. The Dean of Student Life is student-centered and integrates restorative practices into faculty and student responsibilities and our commitment to DEI work. The Dean of Student Life is a primary advocate for students at Dawson and is responsible for all disciplinary matters. The Dean is a central and visible figure in students' daily lives. As such, the Dean influences School culture through interactions with and programming for students.

Ultimately, the goal for this position is to strengthen the Dawson community by bridging conflict, mending relationships, and repairing harm through inclusive processes that engage all stakeholders. The Dean of Student Life is responsible for designing, implementing, supporting, and evaluating relational discipline and restorative justice programs at Dawson. They will develop and expand proactive strategies that build and strengthen the student culture and design and facilitate training for students and staff. The responsibilities of this position can be summarized into four priority areas: Proactive/Preventative Engagement, Responsive Restorative Practices, Faculty Training, and Teaching and Learning.

This full-time, 11-month position begins on July 1, 2025. The successful candidate must attend a new faculty onboarding program from July 22-24, 2025.

Essential Functions

The essential duties and responsibilities of this position include but are not limited to the following:

General Leadership & Professionalism

• Demonstrates cultural competence and commitment to the School’s Mission and Core Values surrounding diversity and inclusion

• Maintains strong working relationships with families, administrators, faculty, staff, and students

• Ensures a safe and positive culture for all students and staff

• Models and encourages collegiality, collaboration, and transparency

• Maintains a positive family partnership to support the behavioral expectations designed for Dawson students

• Communicates regularly and proactively with students, families, and faculty

• Supervises the implementation of consistent, fair, and appropriate student disciplinary procedures

• Is a visible presence at school, including all divisional activities and events

• Develops and meets annual goals in support of the overall strategic plan and school-wide goals

• Facilitates training and coaching for students and staff on restorative practices, peer mediation, meaningful restorative conversations, and techniques for resolving conflict

• Provide resources, coaching, and professional development to staff on classroom management and classroom culture

• Serve on community teams as needed

• Serve as a member of the Admissions team to assist with testing and student shadow days

• Works with the Admissions team to assist with the transition and acclimation of new students

• Performs other duties related to being an active community member at Dawson, including advisories, community meetings, service-learning projects, and other community events

Proactive & Preventive Engagement

• Models a relational approach to interacting with students, families, and staff and works explicitly to build relationships within the community

• Facilitate meetings with families to address student performance, behavioral concerns, and overall academic and social development, ensuring clear and constructive communication

• Builds a strong school culture of equity, inclusion, leadership, and respect based on principles of restorative justice and Dawson’s Core Values

• Checks with students and faculty to keep a pulse on student culture

• Supports students and staff through observations, coaching, modeling restorative language, and debriefing with both staff and individual students

• Observes staff and provides frequent, non-evaluative feedback about classroom management and behavioral interventions

• Manages school-wide bullying prevention efforts, initiatives, and responses (i.e., social media safety, recess protocols, etc.)

• Organizes and analyzes case management data to identify behavioral trends and opportunities for support; informs stakeholders

• With an asset-based approach, identifies positive student trends and celebrates successes

• Facilitates regular community-building engagements and learning circles as proactive measures

• Regularly solicits feedback on restorative interventions to improve future programming

• Collaborates with the EC Dean of Students to create a seamless transition for students rising from Early Childhood

• Collaborates with the MS Dean of Student Life to create a seamless transition for students rising to Middle School

• Leads faculty training in relational discipline and builds cohesion among classroom behavioral expectations

• Documents student behaviors, consequences, and family outreach in memos to file

• Annually reviews and makes recommendations for family handbook language

• Collaborates with the Enrollment team on how to best support new students and families

Responsive Restorative Practices

• Facilitates and oversees mediations, listening circles, and other appropriate processes in response to conflict

• Develops and manages a system to respond to incidents on campus, incorporating staff and student voice and involvement

• Collaborates with division heads, assistant division heads, and counselors for appropriate community interventions

• Manages student restoration plans, day-of-reflection modules, and reinstatement plans; uses Canvas to create a bank of restorative practices

• Designs and implements a variety of creative proactive and responsive interventions, which could include any of the following: restorative circles, mediations, community meetings, weekly group sessions, day-of-reflection modules, restorative group programming, community service or art, etc.

• Tracks social and behavioral incidents to identify patterns and inform interventions

• Works with the division heads and assistant division heads to maintain and update handbooks and policies related to discipline

Teaching & Learning

• Supports and plans for “Plus” day and special events

• Collaborates with the campus leaders in the design of community meetings

• Develops skill-building with student leaders; provides ongoing coaching about relationship building, strong decision-making, and inclusivity

Competency:

• Adaptability – Able to deal with frequent change, delays, or unexpected events

• Analytical – Synthesizes complex or diverse information; collects and researches data

• Attendance/Punctuality – Is consistently at work on time

• Confidentiality – Maintains confidential information

• Customer Service – Responds to requests for service and assistance

• Dependability – Keeps commitments

• Design – Generates creative solutions; demonstrates attention to detail

• Ethics – Treats people with respect; works with integrity and ethically; upholds organizational values

• Initiative – Asks for and offers help when needed

• Innovation – Develops innovative approaches and ideas

• Judgment – Exhibits sound and accurate judgment

• Leadership – Inspires and motivates others to perform well; makes self available to staff

• Motivation – Demonstrates persistence and overcomes obstacles

• Oral Communication – Excellent verbal communication skills; responds well to questions; demonstrates group presentation skills

• Organizational Support – Follows policies and procedures

• Problem Solving – Identifies and resolves problems promptly; develops alternative solutions

• Professionalism – Reacts well under pressure

• Project Management – Develops project plans; coordinates projects; completes projects on time and within budget; manages project team activities

• Professionalism – Treats others with respect and consideration regardless of their status or position

• Quality Management – Looks for ways to improve and promote quality; demonstrates accuracy and thoroughness

• Safety and Security – Observes safety and security procedures; reports potentially unsafe conditions

• Strategic Thinking – Identifies external threats and opportunities

• Teamwork - Ability to work independently and in teams

• Technical Skills – Strives to build knowledge and skills; shares expertise with others

• Written Communication – Writes clearly and informatively

Qualifications:

• Ability to work collaboratively with all of the leadership team and Dawson community stakeholders

• Excellent organizational and supervisory skills are required

• Strong oral and written communication skills; ability to write routine reports and correspondence; ability to speak effectively before families or employees of the organization

• Growth mindset, sense of humor, passion for education, and commitment to seeking professional development

• Sound judgment, respectful toward all individuals and groups, and dedication to our School’s Mission and Vision

Education & Experience:

• Bachelor’s Degree (B.A.) from a four-year college or university

• Master’s degree preferred

• Five years of related experience and/or training or equivalent combination of education and experience

Work Environment:

• The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

• The noise level in the work environment is usually quiet.

Physical Demands:

• The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand; walk, use hands; reach with hands and arms, and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The employee must frequently lift and/or move up to 10 pounds and occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.