Principal or Vice Principal Assistant Principal
Job Description
Wissahickon Charter School is looking for an Assistant Principal for our Fernhill Campus. The Assistant Principal at Wissahickon Charter School (WCS) is a member of the school’s leadership team and is responsible for supervising, coaching and evaluating all apprentice and assistant teachers in addition to up to five lead teachers. S/he/they help enable faculty to best address the wide range of learning styles, needs and interests of WCS students. To this end, the Assistant Principal regularly collaborates with the Principal, Director of Learning Support, and Director of School Culture to plan and execute cohesive, targeted professional development that moves the school towards accomplishing its academic and behavioral goals. The Assistant Principal is also the first-line administrator working with the Director of School Culture, Dean of Culture, and Behavioral Support Team when a child presents escalating behavioral issues, as well as the primary contact for the Wissahickon Parent committee. As a member of the leadership team, the Assistant Principal plays a key role in establishing and sustaining a positive school culture for students and adults. The ideal candidate will have a record of successfully supporting and developing students and teachers, and will possess a deep-seated belief that all children can learn. This position reports to the Principal. Serving as the Assistant Principal at WCS is an outstanding opportunity to improve the academic and social-emotional outcomes of children from across the city of Philadelphia.
Key Responsibilities
Curriculum, Instruction, Assessment
- Work closely with the Principal and leadership team to ensure a seamless K-8 educational program
- Support the implementation of clear, cohesive curricula and classroom management techniques, and stay abreast of researched best practices in education
- Analyze internal and external student performance data to identify struggling students, curriculum shortfalls and teacher quality issues, and make logical adjustments as needed
Supervision, Coaching, Professional Development
- Support, coach and evaluate all Apprentices, Assistants, and other teachers as assigned to ensure effective instruction
- Provide timely individualized verbal and written feedback
- Gather feedback from staff regarding their professional development needs and create and implement regular staff, team, and school-wide professional development
- Be involved in the hiring and assignment of all instructional staff, and manage personnel in a manner consistent with the school’s values and goals
General School Leadership
- Establish and maintain an approachable and transparent culture of leadership
- Proactively build school culture in collaboration with the Principal, Director of School Culture and entire leadership team
- Oversee day-to-day administration of the school alongside other members of the on-site leadership team, and communicate and respond appropriately in emergency situations
- Assist in the process of recruiting and on-boarding new families and staff to WCS
- Lead regular meetings with the school faculty to address school matters
- Build relationships with families to support student growth and inform educational decisions and support teachers in engaging parents and communicating with families
Qualifications
Required
- Four or more years of classroom teaching experience, with at least 2 years in an urban school setting
- At least two years of leadership and/or coaching experience in a school setting
- Bachelor’s degree
- Student-centered mindset with an ability to set a high standard of excellence and hold all community members accountable
- Superior grasp of effective behavioral strategies
- Deep knowledge of curriculum and instruction, including and one or more of the following: Pennsylvania Standards, EL, Bridges, Open Up math
- Demonstrated success in raising academic performance and improving school culture, using data to measure progress and manage accountability
- Collaborative management style, with the ability to build, lead and foster collaboration among a high-performing leadership team and faculty
- Strong oral and written communication skills, and the ability to communicate effectively across a diverse range of stakeholders and constituents
- A commitment to honest and open dialogue about race, equity and bias in our school systems and relationships
- Commitment to the mission of Wissahickon Charter School and the belief that all children can learn
Preferred
- Master’s degree in education or related field
- Pennsylvania Principal Certification strongly preferred
- Experience teaching at the middle school level
- Strong process, people, and project management skills with a proven ability to train, supervise and coach instructional staff
- Ability to prioritize and implement program goals and effectively manage school processes and systems
