School Network Staff Chief Executive Officer
Job Description
About The Position
At New Foundations, the Chief Executive Officer’s primary role is to be an extraordinary organizational leader in service of our mission and Vision for Impact.
Our Mission: The mission of the New Foundations Charter School is to provide students with the academic, social, and emotional foundations and skills necessary to become high-achieving, socially competent stewards of their communities.
Our Vision for Impact: In 2019, New Foundations embarked on an ambitious five year strategic plan. The Strategic Plan’s “Vision for Impact” is that by June 2025, New Foundations will provide daily opportunities for all students to engage in rigorous academic preparation, integrated and well-rounded character development, and inclusive and expansive specials and extracurricular activities that prepare them for individualized post-secondary success.
The CEO will lead the New Foundations Charter School, its teachers, staff, students, parents, and community in identifying, setting, and meeting the highest standards of excellence, and in implementing the programs and strategies necessary to achieve those high standards so that each student will realize his/her full potential.
The CEO reports directly to the Board of Trustees and is responsible for the direct supervision and evaluation of all members of the leadership team, as well as the indirect supervision and evaluation of all other members of the staff.
About Our School
Founded by Sheryl Perzel and Paul Stadelberger, New Foundations Charter School opened in 2000. Our core principle was simple: be student-centered and growth focused. This ethos remains and at New Foundations we maintain that in order for our children to thrive as leading members of society, they must grow academically, socially, and emotionally today.
Twenty years later, New Foundations is a prominent public charter school serving grades K-12 in Northeast Philadelphia and a leader in academic excellence, social emotional awareness, and community engagement. In a constantly changing world, we continue our work to evolve and improve. We are ambitious about New Foundations’ future. We’re a great school, but we still have work to do to be better and to redefine what it means to be a great school.
Our Students
As an open enrollment public charter school, we seek to prepare each student for the college, career and service opportunity of their choice. New Foundations Charter School currently educates 1,500 students across a K-8 & High School campus in Northeast Philadelphia.
New Foundations has a highly diverse and representative student/family population: 57% White, 22% Black, 13% Latino, 5% Asian and 3% Mixed Races & Other; 40% Free Lunch, 30% Reduced-Price Lunch, 30% Paid Lunch. The political and ideological diversity of our student and family body is representative of the United States as a whole.
Our Buildings
The K-8 and High School buildings are located within walking distance of each other in the Holmesburg neighborhood of Philadelphia. Both buildings include recent renovations and are well-maintained to provide a positive learning environment for students and staff.
Building highlights include bright and spacious classrooms, technology-enabled classrooms, science labs, gymnasiums with full size basketball courts, cafeterias and learning commons. The buildings are near major roadways with on-site parking for staff and within walking distance from the SEPTA Regional Rail Suburban station with trains to Center City.
Our Community
New Foundations opened in 2000 and has had a strong, positive presence in its Northeast neighborhood of Philadelphia throughout the past 20 years. New Foundations is highly-regarded on various academic performance measures compared with other Philadelphia charter and district schools and we have an admissions wait-list of over 10,000 students.
Qualifications
All staff at New Foundations Charter School are expected to:
- Embrace our mission and embody our vision for New Foundations’ future;
- Model our core values of being student-focused, serving our community and consistently engaging in solutions-oriented and caring conversations;
- Welcome the opportunity to be constantly challenged to grow, learn and improve;
- Demonstrate role model mentality in all interactions and activities;
- Have a track record of success and achievement within an environment of limited resources.
The Chief Executive Officer at New Foundations Charter School is expected to:
- Possess a Master’s degree, its equivalent, or a higher degree with a record of academic achievement;
- Possess valid Pennsylvania certification as a building administrator or certificate of eligibility
- Possess a minimum of ten years of prior experience in K-12 education, at least two of which were in a leadership role.
Responsibilities
The core responsibilities of the New Foundations’ Chief Executive Officer span the following eleven (11) domains as detailed below.
- Leadership of the School
- Accountability for Results
- Leadership and Membership of Teams
- Planning and Planned Change
- Improving Organizational and Student Performance
- Effective and Integrated Governance
- Decision Making
- Personal and Professional Relations
- Budget and Finance
- Legal and Administrative Obligations
- Progress Toward and Completion of Annual and Long Term Goals
1. Leadership of the School
- Acts ethically and professionally at all times
- Serves on the Board of Trustees as a non-voting member to advise the board regarding the operation of the school in ways to achieve its vision, mission, purposes, and objectives
- Acts as the Chief Education Officer of the school to obtain optimum performance of personnel and higher student achievement
- Establishes and implements a leadership agenda that guides the attention and focus of all stakeholders on the issues and efforts that produce better performance
- Leads the efforts to create a positive and productive climate and a culture that both values and produces high achievement
- Recommends organizational designs that shape success at all levels of school operation
- Recommends to the board all courses of study, supporting materials and supplies, programs, personnel, policies, upgraded and new facilities, and the expenditures necessary to support those recommendations
- Works with staff, students, parents, and community to establish and maintain an effective culture and safe climate that supports the improved organizational performance and higher student achievement
- Maintains a positive relationship with public officials, law enforcement officers, business and community leaders, universities and colleges, and school district personnel, and invites participation in the development and implementation of school plans.
2. Accountability for Results
- Sets high expectations and standards for the academic and social development of all students and the performance of adults
- Demands content and instruction that ensures student achievement of academic standards as outlined in the charter agreement
- Uses multiple sources of data collection to analyze barriers to achievement and to identify and apply instructional improvement strategies
- Prepares staff members to measure and assess progress in implemented plans
- Actively engages the community to create shared responsibility for student and school success
- Assumes responsibility for the administration of the existing programs and services and for the expansion and maintenance of student enrollment
3. Leadership and Membership of Teams
- Leads or delegates the leadership of all teams within the school and establishes and maintains a program of training necessary to prepare all members of the staff, students, and selected members of the community to work effectively on teams to promote and ensure higher levels of performance and achievement
- Serves as the chair of the Leadership Team and as a member of all school level teams
- Provides for the monitoring and evaluation of team leaders and team performances
- Serves as an ex officio member of all board committees, including Personnel, Finance, Curriculum, Discipline and Safety, Audit, and Policy, as well as any others formed by the board
- Serves as a representative of the school on any local, state, and regional councils, boards, and bodies so approved by the board
4. Planning and Planned Change
- Develops and implements plans to achieve goals established in the charter application and by the CEO in conjunction with the board
- Monitors and assesses the development, implementation, evaluation, and modification of a program of education designed to meet the needs of students, including those identified as special education, basic skill, gifted and talented, and English Learners, and to sustain higher achievement
- Establishes and maintains organizational structure and personnel planning practices that obtain improved performance results o Initiates, strengthens, and maintains positive relationships in the best interests of the school in working with the community and with all other appropriate organizations
- Establishes a system of maintaining and reporting performance data that supports the planning and problem solving needs of the school o Monitors and assesses schedule and assignment processes to insure the effective and efficient use of time to protect the social and emotional
5. Improving Organizational and Student Performance
- Develops, implements, and monitors programs to recruit staff and students
- Designs, implements, and oversees a program of effective supervision and evaluation of all personnel in the school
- Supervises and evaluates all members of the leadership team and is responsible for the effective performance of all personnel
- Evaluates the staff responsible for the development, adoption, evaluation, and modification of an effective program of student evaluation, including the administration of mandated testing and any other programs adopted by the board
- Leads and monitors the staff in the development, adoption, evaluation, and modification of an effective program of student behavior and discipline that promotes safety, social well being, and higher achievement
- Leads personnel in the collection, maintenance, analysis, and appropriate use of data to initiate planned improvement strategies
- Reviews and approves all recommendations for professional development and training for their relevance and contributions to improved employee performance and improved student behavior and achievement
- Modifies the organization design to better accomplish performance goals
6. Effective and Integrated Governance
- Cooperates with the board president or designee and committee chairpersons in the preparation of agenda and materials for board meetings
- Coordinates the efforts of school committees to prepare items for board consideration
- Shares appropriate information with the board within an appropriate time period to support board deliberations and decision making
- Oversees and coordinates all efforts by the staff to follow-up board decisions and requests
- Reports all pertinent performance information to the board for its use in discussions and decision making
- Participates in the self assessment and professional development of the board.
7. Decision Making
- Establishes processes by which the leadership team will make recommendations for CEO approval and, if needed, approval by the board of trustees
- Establishes a clear and positive customer focus on students and parents and makes decisions that maintain open and positive interactions
- Makes rational judgments and decisions that are based on individual and organizational needs
- Makes decisions that maintain an effective and efficient organization
- Prepares the organization and staff members at all levels to make appropriate and effective decisions
- Models decision making techniques that include acquisition of appropriate information, appropriate problem analysis, and the development of credible options that are explored before selecting the option most likely to succeed
- Prepares everyone in the organization to be a leader and effective decision maker and prepares individuals to become formal position leaders
8. Personal and Professional Relations
- Establishes and maintains effective two-way communications with stakeholders regarding perceptions, expectations, and results
- Models a personal belief system that is based in honesty, trustworthiness, unselfishness, and lifelong learning.
9. Budget and Finance
- Develops and implements the budget in conjunction with stakeholders to protect the public’s investment in the school and to meet the educational needs of all students
- Ties multi-year performance improvement and pupil achievement improvement to annual budget preparation and specific line items
- Meets all calendar deadlines required by the local board, Philadelphia School District, and the state related to the development, adoption, and implementation of a budget
- Oversees the management of budget and financial accounting processes
- Oversees the annual realignment of programs, expenses, personnel, and structures to ensure the most effective and efficient use of resources
- Fulfills all duties of the position of Advisor of the 8001 Torresdale Corporation Board of Trustees and coordinates that board’s efforts to pay for the school facilities with the planning efforts of the school’s board of trustees
10. Legal and Administrative Obligations
- Accepts fiduciary responsibility for all program related funding and expenditures
- Interprets and supervises the application of all laws, regulations, policies, and procedures pertinent to the operation of the school
- Utilizes knowledge of laws, regulations, policies, and procedures pertinent to the operation of the school to creatively solve problems and support the attainment of the vision, goals, and other targets
11. Progress Toward and Completion of Annual and Long Term Goals
- Progress toward and the completion of annual goals is reported quarterly
- Progress toward and the completion of long term goals is reported semiannually
- Supports and facilitates the work of each member of the leadership team toward the completion of their individual and team goals
How to Apply
To Apply To join our team, please visit our website to submit an online application. Please note that only applications received through this link will be considered.
www.newfoundations.org/careeeres
If you have any questions regarding this opportunity or your application, please reach out to Director of Human Resources, Natalie Kalish at nkalish@newfoundations.org.
