Managing Director of Exceptional Education & Electives

Position Overview: Two of the most cited reasons that parents choose to send their students to STEM Prep are 1) the unwavering high academic bar we hold for all students, and 2) our culture of care. We are seeking a dynamic, experienced Managing Director of Exceptional Education & Electives to spearhead the fulfillment of our mission for some of our most vulnerable students. At STEM Prep, roughly 10% of the student population has an IEP or 504 plan, and 13% of our ELL population is dually classified. This position will also support our elective programming. The Managing Director will work with teachers and school leaders to implement our collective vision of high-quality instruction through coaching, collaboration, professional development, data analysis, and assessment design and implementation. The Managing Director of Exceptional Education & Electives is responsible for visioning and executing an academic model to ensure the success of each of these students across the network.

• Three years of teaching experience with Exceptional Education(EE) students
• Three years of school leadership experience or equivalent
• Experience with academic planning for both Exceptional Education and core content
• Familiarity with TN state, local, and federal regulations for special needs students
• Ability to hold adults accountable while building and maintaining relationships
• Eagerness to resolve conflicts, not avoid them.
• Demonstrated commitment to Anti Racism, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and a student-first mindset
• Bachelor’s degree in education or related field
• Feels confident, compelled, and proactive in creating, monitoring, and evaluating action plans

• Outstanding performance as a lead teacher, supporting student outcomes that exceed district and state performance
• Proven track record of family and community collaborations that drive strong student outcomes and results
• Demonstrated results in coaching adult learners and practitioners to meet individual and collective performance targets, resulting in student outcomes that exceed district and state performance
• Experience designing, facilitating, and evaluating adult learning and professional development that drives school improvement and cultivates a culture of learning, growth, and joy
• Evidence of designing and executing a strong vision for a department.
• A valid Tennessee teaching license in Special Education
• Experience working with dually classified students

• Strategy and Implementation
• In partnership with the Chief of Schools and network leaders, develop and lead the network’s model and strategy for exceptional education across the curriculum.
• Design network-wide formative and summative assessment systems to ensure all students are achieving mastery and growth goals as outlined in their IEPs and 504 plans.
• Develop and manage curricula adaptation and augmentation to ensure students have equitable access to rigorous grade-level content and master both discipline and skill objectives.
• In alignment with our DEI priorities and aim of becoming an anti-racist institution, lead critical assessment of curricula and standards at all levels.
• Oversee compliance with district, state, and federal regulations including Section 504 and IDEA.
• Establish and maintain a collaborative working relationship with the LEA (MNPS).
• Collaborate with network leaders across content areas in the design, development, and execution of robust leader and teacher professional development in service of ambitious goals for our students.
• Align literacy and language development strategies and systems to ensure all students achieve a 24 or above on the ACT.
• Observe and model exemplary EE instruction across our schools to support our leaders in prioritizing the next steps for coaches in alignment with our high bar.
• Observe and model exemplary Elective class instruction across our schools to support our leaders in prioritizing the next steps for coaches in alignment with our high bar.
• Create systems to support leaders and teachers in data-driven instruction, including managing and monitoring a data dashboard system in support of school and network leaders.
• Other duties as assigned.

• Collaborate with network leaders across content areas in the design, development, and execution of robust leader and teacher academic and cultural professional development in service of ambitious goals for our students
• Coach and collaborate with the EE and Elective school leaders on their holistic practice as instructional coaches
• Develop Learning Labs that act as a standard for instructional practices.
• Act as a coach for the Learning Lab teacher and mentor Academic Deans in the coaching of instructional practices
• Design, oversee, and provide feedback on all PD related to developing the academic culture in EE and Elective teachers and leaders
• Provides logistical and planning support for Teacher Orientation

• Manage curriculum adaptation to ensure students have equitable access to rigorous grade-level content and master both discipline and language knowledge and skill objectives
• Augment existing curricula to ensure culturally sustaining texts, resources, and content that reflect and lift the rich cultural backgrounds of our students and families
• Collaborate with Content Directors to adapt the Intellectual Preparation Protocol to support the needs of diverse learners including English Learners and Students with Disabilities
• Assessment Design network-wide formative and summative assessment systems to ensure all students are achieving mastery and growth goals, exceeding the performance of peers nationally and locally
• Collaborate with Network Academic Team and school leaders on the execution of testing and data collection/analysis
• Support the execution of all high-stakes testing

• Analyzes all EE and Elective Course summative assessment data to improve instruction and achievement
• Reviews student work and other formative assessments.
• Manage a data dashboard/system for school and network leaders to monitor trends (grade, teacher, at both schools) and student-level data.
• Creating systems to ensure leaders and teachers are using data to drive literacy instruction
• Other duties as assigned