KIPP, the Knowledge Is Power Program, is a national network of free, open enrollment, college preparatory public schools dedicated to preparing students in underserved communities for success in college and life. There are 285 KIPP schools across the nation and the District of Columbia, serving more than 175,000 students and alumni with more than 15,000 educators. 

Founded in 2008 with 50 students in 5th grade, KIPP Columbus currently educates  2,000 students in grades Kindergarten through twelfth.  With a mission to, together with families and the community, create joyful, academically excellent schools that prepare students with the skills and confidence to pursue the paths they choose -- college, career, and beyond --  KIPP has maintained excellence in its growth, and will improve upon that standard – proving what is possible in public education.

KIPP Columbus continues to rank as one of the top schools for academic growth of any school in the state of Ohio, and is a top performing urban school in the state for academic growth. In our first three graduating classes (in spring 2020, 2021, and 2022) 100% of students were accepted to college and/or military service  with nearly $40 million in merit scholarships from colleges and universities awarded.

In addition to academic excellence, KIPP Columbus also partners with nearly 100 community organizations to provide extracurricular activities, programming, health and wellness services, meals, and more to KIPP students, families, and the broader community. KIPP is also a member of the Ohio High School Athletic Association, offering more than 10 varsity sports. 

The KIPP Columbus learning campus will continue to advance student learning, expand partnerships, enable superior programming, and serve as a teaching and leadership lab for schools nationwide, reimagining education through a deeper lens of antiracism, excellence, and joy as we expand to educate nearly 4,000 students on our learning campus in the coming years. 

Interested in learning more about our school?  Please check out our website: https://www.kippcolumbus.org/

The Opportunity

KIPP Columbus recognizes the critical importance of finding, developing, and supporting the best possible teammates to ensure KIPPsters can be their best. To this end, KIPP Columbus is deeply committed to developing a robust talent strategy that promotes equity, excellence, and engagement throughout its team. The Director of Recruitment has the unique opportunity to lead this work, setting the direction for key recruitment functions that support KIPP Columbus’ continued growth and impact. 

The Director of Recruitment will directly oversee talent acquisition and onboarding at KIPP Columbus. This role ensures that KIPP Columbus’ values and mission are reflected in every part of this work and that top talent is cultivated and fostered. The ideal candidate will have a strong orientation to systems and processes that maximize efficiencies and maintain a steadfast commitment to  KIPPsters and the mission as KIPP Columbus grows.

Key responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:

Establish an Equitable, Inclusive, and Values-Driven Talent Strategy

• Lead the recruitment strategy for the campus that drives KIPP Columbus’ priorities and goals; advancing a talent-focused culture across the organization
• Build close, effective relationships with KIPP Columbus’ leaders to assess talent needs across the region and ensure alignment of talent processes and resources with program needs
• Oversee recruitment data collection, analysis, and action planning for the region that results in increased performance
• Play a key role in leading organizational culture initiatives that ensure a high-performing and inclusive organization overall, including putting systems and processes in place that value and leverage skill and expertise across the organization
• Sequence priorities over the short and long term, developing an implementation plan for achieving recruitment goals and driving communication of strategy across the organization
• Keep KIPP Columbus values central to the work, with diversity, equity, cultural competence, and inclusion as key components of the talent strategy

Oversee and Manage Leader and Teacher Recruitment and Selection

• Directly lead all leadership recruitment and selection for the region, overseeing and managing the execution of all teacher and fellow recruitment and selection
• Develop innovative strategies for researching and cultivating diverse and high-quality candidates
• Ensure compelling marketing and outreach efforts to diverse pools of candidates that position KIPP Columbus as an employer of choice for top candidates 
• Manage and develop the Manager of Recruitment to ensure that recruitment, selection, and onboarding processes are reflective of KIPP Columbus’s vision and values; resulting in top tier talent acquisition and retention

• A passion for and understanding of the mission of KIPP Columbus
• Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university
• Minimum of 5 years experience with recruitment required, including the direct management of others
• Experience driving and supporting recruitment teams to meet key performance indicator goals
• Built effective talent systems with the ability to scale standard practices in recruitment
• Experience proactively creating talent pipelines of diverse talent and candidate pools
• Commitment to building relationships and trust with leaders, teachers, students, parents of Columbus to understand the ever-evolving local, state, and national landscape impacting the ability to attract and retain talent that reflects local communities
• Demonstrated ability to use data, metrics, and compelling storytelling to communicate mission, values, and unique employee value proposition variety of stakeholders and audiences
• Willingness, and commitment, to go above and beyond to prove the possible with students
• Ability to multi-task and work within an ambiguous, fast-moving environment, while driving toward clarity and solutions
• Model the values of KIPP Columbus (Imagine, Navigate, Seek, Persevere, Integrity, Responsibility, and Empathy) 

Compensation and Benefits

KIPP Columbus has a comprehensive benefit plan including medical and dental insurance, as well as group term life insurance, retirement plan, and paid time off.   

Statement of Non-Disclosure

KIPP Columbus is committed to a policy of equal treatment for all individuals applying to the school for consideration of any position (admission, employment, etc.). KIPP Columbus does not discriminate based on disability, gender, nationality, race or ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic contained in the definition of hate crimes set forth in Section 4112.02 of the Ohio Revised Code.