Focus Academy Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Job Purpose/Summary

At Communities In Schools of Nevada (CISN), a Program Director (PD) (Focus Area: High School ISS & Academy) is a functional program leader, directing a major program area within Integrated Student Supports (ISS) and managing the staff in that program, which may include Program Managers (PM) and/or site-based staff. The Program Director, High School ISS & Academy sets direction and holds accountability for their program, maintaining a high quality of programming, engaging relationships with schools, partners, and other stakeholders, driving staff performance, and ensuring outcomes. The Program Director, High School ISS & Academy will make data-driven decisions to drive organizational improvement and manage resources; they collaborate with and report to senior management of their affiliate to achieve affiliate-wide goals.

Duties and Responsibilities

Focus: High School ISS

• Responsible to direct focus area oversight/tasks for the affiliate – High School

• Accountable for affiliate-wide outcomes (school and student), to include but not limited to school retention, partnership, training and student support outcomes

• Train, support, and develop all level staff

• Develop best practices, research, and support as it aligns with the High School focus

• Specialize in partners in alignment with the identified focus area, bringing in new partners, teaming up schools with partners, and working with any affiliate partner leads to identify gaps and opportunities

• Own principal/school relationships; train principals on CIS model, Site Coordinator Roles, data standards and check-ins and other areas of principal education as needed identify and cultivate new schools, develop or deepen programming opportunities at each school site, and ensure retention of schools

• Analyze and respond to applicable data inquiries or required reporting

• Additional focus area related duties as assigned

• Oversee Program Managers in developing and owning principal/school relationships for that level; train principals, identify and cultivate new schools, develop or deepen programming opportunities at each site, retain schools

• Analyze and respond to level data

• Oversee graduation expenses with each Program Manager to meet school and student needs.

• Collaborate with Specialize programming teams for Alumni work along with college and career readiness curriculum across all CIS SNV program High Schools.

Focus: Academy

• Responsible to direct focus area oversight for the affiliate - Academy

• Responsible for direct oversight of Academy outcomes, graduation rate, and college and career readiness outcomes

• Implement and refine Academy curriculum, making programming decisions, including grade levels served, available supports and curriculum variations based on school needs and partnership opportunities

• Direct workforce readiness programming and partnerships and career-connected learning in alignment with school district and partner standards and priorities for college and career readiness and workforce development.

• Ensure alignment with graduation, career readiness, and student support goals. Where appropriate, set goal types, standards, or data collection methods in alignment with the state team and affiliate leadership

• Responsible for hiring affiliate Academy program managers and site coordinators

• Train and support Academy SCs and assist with training School district Academy teachers ensuring alignment with the CIS of Nevada Academy model and curriculum.

• Analyze and respond to Academy data

• Serve on state-wide All Affiliates Team - Academy

• Oversee Academy budgets, which typically include field trips and special events as well as graduation costs; plan for and monitor spending

• Additional dual focus area related duties as assigned

Manages staff to achieve outcomes

• Hire, train, support, develop, and hold accountable a program team and individual program staff

• Engage appropriately and effectively in all Human Resources (HR) aligned processes for direct reports including, but not limited to, hiring, payroll process, leave policies, employee relations, or other duties

• Manage Program Managers and other manager-level employees; develop the skill and knowledge of Program Managers to build effectiveness and efficiency of their staff, driving student outcomes

• Manage Site Coordinators (SC) or other comprehensive site staff; if managing site-based staff, the Program Director is responsible for completing all expectations of direct supervision of site staff, which are outlined in the Program Manager job description – see below:

o Manage Site Coordinators or other comprehensive site staff. It is the responsibility of the PM to ensure site-based goals are met through coaching and supervising their direct reports. Site-based staff management expectations include, but are not limited to:

 Hold high standards of service – both implementation and reporting

 Provide ongoing coaching, feedback, and training

 Directly observe at the site – observing, supervising, and coaching the direct report

 Deeply analyze student-level and school-wide data to identify growth, gaps, trends, and opportunities

 Provide hands-on assistance and coverage as needed, including covering gaps or leave and assisting at in-person events, field trips, and other special events

 Ensure special initiatives, partnerships, events, or other strategies at their sites are implemented to high quality

 Establish and maintain strong relationships with school leadership; work with school leadership to analyze school and student outcomes and discuss staff performance, at minimum quarterly. Work with affiliate leadership to retain schools annually.

• Holds accountability for direct reports meeting their performance goals

Ensures programmatic fidelity and quality

• Hold accountability for school and student outcomes across their PM and/or SC direct reports

• Ensure alignment to and fidelity of practice of the Integrated Student Supports (ISS) model, utilizing best practices, national and state-wide research, and data to drive program quality

• Ensure quality of programming and outcomes at all school sites in their cohort

• Analyze cohort-wide data monthly, quarterly, and yearly; use data to direct priorities, training, collaboration, and strategy to improve outcomes

• Implement partnership and strategic initiative work within their cohort, working with other affiliate and state leaders to ensure all components are caried out with timeliness and to a high-quality

• Oversee budgets for their cohort; planning for and monitoring spending, analyzing spending against outcomes, and assessing resource needs

• Strategize and work with Program Managers to own Principal relationships for all schools in their cohort. This includes, but is not limited to, annual training, relationship maintenance, quarterly and yearly partnership and data reviews, and new school recruitment.

Builds team culture and morale

• Build a cohesive team of Program Managers and site-based staff

• Communicate regularly and clearly with team members, driving both team culture and task and deadline completion through consistent communication

• Manage all employee relations issues with the SCs and/or PMs within their cohort; collaborates with HR and affiliate leadership if necessary. The PD is the end of the line, owning employee relations processes, implementing best practices, and finding a resolution and/or managing persistent concerns

Function leadership

• Program Directors lead one or more function within their program. These include, but are not limited to: Level ownership, Academy, Full Service Community Schools, Training, Partnerships, Special Initiatives, or others. Affiliate leadership determines functional needs annually and PDs may be reassigned to new functions as needed. Functional responsibilities will be outlined in a written agreement and updated as needed (this agreement will not alter the at-will nature of employment and will be discussed with the Director prior to making the change).

o In lieu of a function, a Program Director may take on additional management responsibilities of PMs and/or SCs, generally taking a larger cohort by 2-3 direct reports

• Functional leadership responsibilities include:

o Set strategy and direction for the assigned program area

o Ensure alignment to larger ISS and affiliate goals

o Complete all function responsibilities

o Manage function budgets and resources

o Hold accountability for all function outcomes

CISN Team Member

• Serve as a member of the affiliate administrative leadership team

• Collaborate within the affiliate, with the state team, and/or across affiliates to enhance learning, engage best practices, and ensure alignment

• Engage in team building, meetings, communication, and culture

• Suggest improvement strategies, elevate concerns, and work to improve the affiliate

• Engage in and seek out ongoing training and development to continuously grow

• Represent the organization internally and externally in alignment with the mission and CORE values

• Complete other duties as assigned

Qualifications and Competencies

Qualifications include:

• Bachelor’s degree preferred, master’s degree or higher a plus. A combination of degrees and experience, equaling or greater than 9 total years of relevant education and experience, can be considered.

• 4-6+ years experience working with youth or social services programs required

• 1-3+ years management experience required

• License in education, social work, or another relevant field preferred

• Proven track record managing program outcomes

• High level of interpersonal and communication skills (written and oral communication) a must

• Knowledge of data collection and proficiency tracking progress

• Sensitivity to needs of youth and varied populations

Competencies include:

• Excellent writing, communication, presentation and interpersonal skills

• Ability to set goals, meet deadlines, and evaluate results

• Ability to coach and motivate direct reports, manage relationships with various professionals in multiple locations with varied needs and expectations.

• Ability to support the strategic development of Affiliate programming

• Ability to independently strategize, set goals, and follow through on functional programming

• Excellent collaboration and teamwork skills

Work Environment & Physical Demands

• Work environment is indoors and climate controlled. May be exposed to outdoor weather conditions.

• Moderate noise levels as found in a business office and classroom setting.

• Use of own automobile.

• Must be able to pass a criminal background check, possible fingerprinting, and drug screen.

• Travel required to and from school sites.