Chief Schools Officer

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Summary Position Overview:

The Chief Schools Officer (CSO) is responsible for managing and leading the work we do to achieve student results at the highest level of excellence and with a steadfast commitment to practices that cultivate transformative change. The Chief Schools Officer (CSO) is the steward of our primary institutional goal, ensuring all students - regardless of their background or prior educational experiences - graduate college-ready, are steadfast and persistent problem-solvers, active leaders in their communities, and highly engaged and empathetic citizens of the world. The Chief Schools Officer will serve as the driver of academic success and school culture through the management of school principals and the Academic Team. She/he/they develops the capacity of Kairos Academies school principals and Network Academic Team Members to create and implement an equitable and effective school design grounded in an evidence-based academic strategy.

This role is boots-on-the-ground with significant training and support of school and network leaders, organized to build organizational strength and promote educator longevity. This executive leadership position will carry the responsibility of ensuring that every student at Kairos Academies attends an equity-driven, community-centric school that achieves academic ambitions. The position reports to the Chief Executive Officer and will directly supervise one middle school principal and one high school principal, and a growing team of network school support leaders.

SY23-24 Driver Goals

These are the core, annual outcomes your work is responsible for and ultimately seeking to accomplish.

● 90% Basic /60% Proficient /30% Advanced performance on Missouri state assessment

● 70% of Students meet NWEA Growth Targets

● 50% of CSI Students meet two years of growth

● 85% of Staff believe Kairos is a Great Place to Work

● 85% of Families/Students satisfied on EOY Survey

● 95% ADA

● 85% Persistence

ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES

The Chief Schools Officer will work closely with the senior leadership team, school staff, and others across the organization to streamline systems, update policies, and enforce standard operating procedures that ensure academic outcomes. Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Academic Vision & Strategy

● Sets and communicates the vision, with the help of key stakeholders, for academic excellence aligned to college readiness.

● Defines the academic strategic plan by leading the academic planning process, including naming network-wide academic goals and priorities, identifying key performance indicators, and creating a system for monitoring and evaluating performance against the goals.

● Supports schools' team in building short- and long-term strategies to achieve Kairos Academies' academic vision and provides faculty and leaders the right tools, coaching, and support to drive school outcomes.

● Ensures that the network schools' team, school leaders, and teachers can meet the goals and priorities by developing and/or providing the enabling tools, structures, and systems necessary to drive continuous improvement aligned with our academic vision.

● Evaluates and ensures that our curriculum enables us to meet the academic bar of excellence and meet the obligations of state guidelines which may include piloting, selecting, and overseeing the purchasing of the curriculum.

● Uses various methods to consistently review student performance and teacher effectiveness data, supports school leaders to do the same, and responds swiftly to support or re-adjust.

Kairos Schools Team Leadership

● Participates in Kairos Academies leadership team efforts that set and oversee the strategy for all Kairos Academies programming.

● Works with Kairos Academies' leadership to develop a vision and comprehensive long-term plan for the design of the schools.

● Recommends to the Kairos Academies CEO system-wide goals, monitors, analyzes data, and reports to the CEO on the progress toward achieving the goals.

● Oversees and integrates the work of Kairos Academies Special Education and Response to Instruction and Intervention departments into all academic priorities and drives improvement.

● Builds and manages a high-functioning, cohesive, effective team of individuals who provide various essential academic support services to all schools.

● Provides leadership, development, feedback, and support to ensure that each team member is on track to meet his/her goals; evaluates performance.

Training and Development

● Plans and executes the delivery of professional development for teachers and leaders, including designing schedules, content, and lesson plans and ensuring high-quality delivery of professional development aligned with our academic vision.

● Assists CEO with the planning and executing academic committee meetings/board meetings to ensure alignment with academic vision and priorities.

● In alignment with Kairos Academies’ academic vision, builds and supports a system for improving teacher and leader content knowledge and pedagogy through a variety of structures, including but not limited to content teams, co-observations, video study, etc.

● Partners with the CEO and HR/Talent team to attract, develop, and retain school leaders and emerging school leaders.

Compliance

● Ensures network-wide state and federal academic compliance.

● Supports school leaders through compliance issues as needed.

This Job ISN'T For You If You Won't…

● go above & beyond to do what’s best for kids (an innate work ethic is required)

● figure things out yourself (don't wait for others to teach you, make yourself better)

● adapt to frequent change (rapidly iterate; every level of every team improves every cycle)

● happily give and take constructive feedback

Who We Are

Now is the opportune moment (the Kairos) to reimagine education for the 21st century. Our schools have been recognized by Forbes, Bellwether Education, NBC Today, Education Week, and others as among the most innovative and highest performing in the nation. That's why we replace lectures with engaging projects and dictatorial "behavior managers" with 1-1 executive functioning mentors who help students learn how to manage their own schedule and work habits. Kairos students practice navigating real-world choices (such as when, where, how, and with whom to work) within a safe, supportive school environment. Kairos develops students not just into freethinkers, ready to thrive in a modern economy, but self-governing citizens, ready to lead both themselves and their communities.

Technology Skills

Competence in Microsoft Office applications and ability to use a variety of computer applications and platforms. Ability to use basic office equipment. Knowledge and experience in using a computer-based student Information Management system.