About KIPP New Jersey

KIPP New Jersey is part of the nationally recognized “Knowledge Is Power Program” network of free, open-enrollment, college-preparatory public schools dedicated to preparing students for success in college and in life. In 2002, KIPP New Jersey first opened its doors in Newark’s South Ward as a single class of 80 fifth graders and has since grown to educate students in grades K-12 across schools in Newark, Camden, and Paterson. More than 90% of KIPP New Jersey students currently qualify for free or reduced meals.

The Managing Director of K-8 Schools, KIPP Newark will be responsible for leading and managing excellent K-8 KIPP schools in Newark that are academically high-performing and culturally affirming for students, families and staff. This leader will be deeply embedded in and connected to the communities they serve. The Managing Director will be responsible for ensuring that KIPP Newark K-8 schools are delivering an excellent college-preparatory educational experience to their students, marked by high academic performance and a learning environment in which kids feel so safe, known, and loved that they run to school everyday. Additionally, the Managing Director will be responsible for executing with fidelity the strategic plan priorities related to academic, talent, and equity initiatives across the schools.

What You'll Do:

The Managing Director of K-8 Schools KIPP Newark will be a key member of the leadership team of, and report to the CAO, of a charter management organization (CMO) that manages the KIPP schools in Newark and Camden, New Jersey, and in Miami, Florida.  The CMO provides support in the areas of curriculum and instruction, leadership development, operations, real estate, finance, fundraising, human resources, and other back office functions. The principal roles of the Managing Director are (1) to manage the Heads of Schools, School Leaders and other regional staff (e.g. MD of Teaching & Learning), and (2) to productively partner with CMO teams (e.g. Operations, Special Education, etc.) to build a high-performing region.

Key Responsibilities

The Managing Director's responsibilities will be focused on the following:  

• School Performance
  • Academics and Instruction
    • The Managing Director will serve as the region’s K-8 instructional leader, directly managing  Heads of Schools who in turn manage our School Leaders. The MDoS will also manage up to two School Leaders him/herself, in order to remain close to the work of managing schools. S/he will inform the development of organization-wide academic priorities and initiatives, and execute on them with fidelity.  Specifically, s/he will:
    • Using the CMO’s strategic priorities, develop regional goals and academic goals with School Leaders which will be approved by the CAO and CEO to ensure alignment with the organization-wide strategic plan and academic priorities
    • Provide management and support to the Head of Schools and individual School Leader(s), including executing professional development and making hiring and firing decisions 
    • Monitor key indicators of school health and ensure the schools are providing an excellent learning experience for their kids consistent with the organization-wide strategic plan and priorities
    • Provide input to the CAO in curriculum and assessment development and ensure implementation with fidelity
    • Provide input on org-wide instructional systems (e.g. data protocols, lesson plan internalization) and implement with fidelity
    • Provide input to the Managing Director of Special Education in the development of the strategy for support of students with special needs and execute strategy with fidelity
  • Organizational Culture:
    • Develop strong organizational culture for the entire K-8 region, creating cohesion, accountability, and purpose for the entire region, including the leadership team, but not limited to them.
    • Create alignment and collaboration between and among schools, school leaders, and other regional and school-based leadership.
  • School Culture:
    • Collaborate on the development of an organization-wide student culture system and execute with fidelity across schools
    • Support the Head of Schools and School Leaders in the resolution of student and family grievances when necessary
• Talent Development
  • Manage and lead a high performing, cohesive leadership team to ensure academic excellence in our schools and execute strategic plan programmatic priorities
  • Develop or ensure the development of emerging leaders to foster regional growth and successful succession transitions through the development of HOSs
  • In partnership with the Talent Team, recruit and develop future School Leaders and Heads of Schools
  • Provide input on organization-wide talent acquisition, leadership development and retention strategies and and execute across schools with fidelity
  • Provide input on organization-wide Race, Equity, & Inclusion (REI) strategy and execute with fideli
  • Management
    • The MDoS will manage the following staff:
    • Heads of Schools (who manages three to five School Leaders)
    • One or two School Leaders
    • Director of Student Experience (2 - 3 per region)
    • The T&L function for the grade span, via a Managing Director of Teaching & Learning or direct management of Achievement Directors
    • The MDoS will have dotted line management responsibility for the following staff:
    • The Director of Special Education
• System Leadership 
  • Serve as the primary point person and decision-holder for regional events like Heartbeat Day, Summer PD, One TEAM, One Sound, etc. with input from other MDs and departments  
  • Collaborate with the Managing Director of High Schools on cross-regional planning and resource allocation, holding decision rights on K-12 initiatives with input from other MDs and departments 
  • Provide input to the Managing Director of KIPP Forward in college matriculation & enrollment goals and strategies
  • Ensure regional constituents are kept fully informed of key developments and both national KIPP initiatives and KIPP CMO initiatives. Leverage opportunities to engage in national dialogue, as well as opportunities to design network process and protocol
  • In collaboration with regional operations leadership (COO, CFO, MDO, etc,) contribute to financial and operational Health
    • Provide input on various aspects of the region’s budget and own decision making on school facing budget needs (e.g. staffing) in accordance with a CMO-approved staffing plan
    • Provide input on accountability systems to ensure KIPP Newark K-8 School’s progress toward shared goals
    • Provide input on the long‐term financial plan and collaborate with the MD and the Finance and Development teams 
    • Provide input on potential board members and meet with them as needed
    • Prepare board presentations on student outcomes and other key metrics and present to the local boards as needed
    • Provide input to the COO, CFO and MDO on setting growth goals and execute against those growth goals with fidelity in the area of leadership development 
    • Provide input to the COO, CFO and MDO on real estate and facilities planning and acquisition

Key Outcomes/Metrics

The Managing Director’s primary priorities will be the short-term and long-term performance of the schools, as well as the development of talent throughout the region. Some more details on how we approach these priorities:

Successful school performance will be measured by:

• Student achievement on standardized tests and internal academic assessments (NJSLA, NJGPA, SAT, i-Ready, DIBELS) 
• Measures of student and staff culture including surveys, attrition data, and walkthroughs

Successful talent development will be measured by:

• Ensuring that we are cultivating, developing and retaining our strongest Teachers, Assistant Principals, Principals in Residence and School Leaders
• Prioritizing on-time school openings, preparation of leaders for succession, and successful outcomes of new leaders 
• Meeting annual employee retention goals

Must haves:

• Experience in charter schools, preferably as a manager of school leaders(Principal)  and as a school leader (Principal)
• 5+ years managing or coaching high-performing school leaders (Principals)  in a results-driven environment
• 8+ years of work experience
• Bachelor’s degree

KIPP New Jersey offers a market-competitive salary ranging from $210,000-$250,000. Salary ranges at KIPP are set based upon the role level and function using benchmarks in the education and non-profit sector and allow for growth within the role. Individual compensation within this range will be set based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to relevant professional experience and qualifications; education, skills and training; and market conditions.

In addition to a competitive salary, KIPP NJ  offers a generous benefits package including, but not limited to, the following:  

• Robust benefits that include medical, dental, and vision 
• Participation in the New Jersey Teachers Pension and Annuity Fund, provided appropriate teacher certification and role classification
• Optional participation in the KIPP NJ 403b retirement plan, including matching contributions
• A school-issued laptop
• Transportation benefits for TEAMmates commuting into Newark from the New York City area
• Generous Time-Off including 3.5-4 school vacation weeks (depending on the year), allocated sick and personal days, and an extended summer break 
• Up to 12 weeks 100% parental leave for primary caregivers
• Employer paid life insurance
• Extensive optional ancillary benefits including, short term and long term disability and accident and hospital indemnity

Our organization is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, sex, gender, age, religion, national origin, citizen status, marital status, physical or mental disability, military or veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. Our organization will make a reasonable accommodation to known physical or mental limitations of a qualified applicant or employee with a disability unless the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the operation of the organization. No questions on this application are asked for any unlawful purpose.

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