Job Description

POSITION OVERVIEW
The Chief Academic Officer (CAO) supports the integration of the academic teams across the KIPP Indy Public Schools. Through systems design and management, as well as relationship management across these teams, the CAO helps to meet annual academic targets and drive year-over-year improvement in results in standardized test achievement across our schools. The CAO also works closely with other regional and KIPP Indy teams to streamline communication, and identify and problem-solve/remove obstacles, to enable school management and academic teammates to focus exclusively on instruction.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Team and Organizational Leadership

• Serve as a member of KIPP Indy’s Region Wide Leadership Team (RWLT) to set vision and direction, establish and refine strategic priorities, and lead organizational culture
• Collaborate with RWLT to support organizational health, mitigate and address risks, and model core values
• Build deep relationships with school and regional leaders, acting as a strategic advisor to them and problem-solving as issues arise
• Cultivate relationships with critical KIPP Indy stakeholders, including families, board members, community partners, and partners
• Participate in and staff all KIPP Indy Board of Directors meetings and functions
• Manage School Leaders and school leadership teams across the KIPP Indy network of schools
• Support the organization’s growth strategy, collaborating with the RWLT to evaluate the financial implications of different growth scenarios

Supporting KIPP Indy’s Head of Schools

• Design and support the execution of cascading meeting structures and reporting mechanisms designed to support the effectiveness of school management and Academic Achievement Teams across our network and to keep the HOS apprised and connected to the work.
• Help manage schools’ effectiveness and drive accountability for the HOS by such means as preparing and presenting various data sets and associated recommendations to the HOS, and creating and managing accountability systems for the HOS.
• Serve as a thought partner to the HOS, both in high-level strategy as well as implementation across schools in all cities
• Support the HOS in writing, editing, and proofreading documents and presentations.

Coordinate KIPP Indy Academic Achievement Teams

• Ensure team strategies and systems are aligned to the larger organization's vision and plan.
• Facilitate and/or lead weekly leadership alignment team meetings, including planning and facilitation.
• Lead quarterly leadership team step-backs, including planning and facilitation.
• Create and oversee regional communication structures, aligned to the organization’s overarching internal communications strategy.
• Facilitate effective collaboration within and across teams when areas of overlap arise between leaders and teams.
• Oversee the organization’s annual planning process and ensure alignment and coherence with all org-wide plans and planning processes (annual planning, staffing, budgets, individual goals).
• Lead the effort to develop key performance indicators to regularly monitor and communicate progress against strategic goals and ensure leaders and stakeholders have the necessary data to make decisions and adjust course when necessary.
• Work collaboratively with regional leadership team members and network leaders to identify opportunities to improve alignment and increase cross-functional collaboration across the region.

Manage School and Regional Team Relationships

• Coordinate between and facilitate systems and structures for planning and communication between each region’s academic team and the School Leader Manager to maximize the likelihood that what gets designed and trained gets implemented with fidelity and is monitored actively.
• Partner with the Talent Team to ensure strong organizational culture, collaboration, and functioning across the regional team, in service of driving academic results.
• Coordinate with the Chief of Staff on various cross-team and organizational topics, as needed.
• Oversee the development and execution of critical initiatives and special projects that require senior-level leadership and are not directly linked to a specific functional area.
• Ensure efforts and strategies of collective teams are driving quantitative impact.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree
• A master’s degree in education or a related field from an accredited college or university is highly preferred
• 3 years of teaching experience with a record of results of leading students to significant academic growth.
• 5-10 years of experience as a school leader leading schools serving a similar student population to KIPP Indy; experience leading school improvement preferred.
• 3-5 years of experience managing others, particularly in school transformation settings.
• Demonstrated success leading teams to accelerate progress for students in transformation settings

Additional Information

The salary for this position is $125,000
Salary is commensurate with experience and includes a highly competitive benefits package. Opportunities for performance-based bonuses are also available.

KIPP Indy is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.