Position Summary and Responsibilities
Iowa Connections Academy (IACA) seeks a dynamic, visionary leader and change agent to serve as its next School Leader/Principal. This position ensures all students receive a personalized learning plan by implementing a distance education instructional program with fidelity. The School Leader/Principal is responsible for establishing an organizational culture: putting the interests of students and families first; recruiting, retaining and developing faculty and staff; building and growing relationships with key external stakeholders including regulators; and implementing the vision where every child receives a personalized and customized education, and academic achievement is at the forefront.
Working from your home, with occasional trips to the Anita, Iowa office, the School Leader/Principal will manage staff as they consult regularly with Learning Coaches and students, ensuring that each child successfully completes their instructional program. The School Leader/Principal is responsible for overseeing overall school operations working with parents, students, support staff, and certified teachers who teach a virtual home-based student instructional program. The School Leader/Principal will spend most of their time working with the Education Service Provider, Pearson Virtual Schools, and external stakeholders on policy, budget, academic outcomes, reporting, and supervision. The School Leader/Principal reports to the Director of Schools.
Key Responsibilities
- Deliver the academic success and outcomes of the school, based on a list of annual school goals which may include the school’s goals, Connection Academy goals and the State Report Card;
- Oversee the implementation of the Pearson-provided school curriculum and school operation protocols;
- Manage a high performing leadership team and staff while creating a student-centered, positive and academic outcome focused school culture;
- Ensure that staff exhibit and maintain a high level of professionalism, instructional support, and family engagement while implementing the school’s vision and mission;
- Work with school staff and Pearson Virtual Schools (PVS) to create, implement, manage, and monitor the School Improvement Plan and progress towards annual goals;
- Ensure all state reporting is completed correctly and on time;
- Oversee the delivery of Special Education and English Language Learning services to ensure that the school is in compliance with state and federal laws;
- Responsible for establishing, monitoring, implementing the school’s budget; including working closely with PVS on staffing, budgeting, grants, and contracts in accordance with Iowa laws and regulations, as well as federal laws and regulations;
- Oversee the implementation and coordination of state standardized testing process and ensure high student participation rates meet state and federal guidelines;
- Supervise and evaluate all school staff as required by the state;
- Ensure all state reporting is completed correctly and on time;
- Maintain positive relationship with the authorizer, Iowa Department of Education, while staying current on the state’s policies, procedures, and legislation, including Special Education and English Language Learning procedures;
- Exhibit high quality, timely communication with all school staff, students, and families;
- Work closely with appropriate Legal Counsel as needed;
- Handle any student, parent or teacher issues escalated from other stakeholders;
- Act as the “face of the school” at school events and with the Iowa Department of Education, this could include testimony; and
- Perform all other duties as assigned.
Capabilities
- Customer Centric – Acts with a strong customer mindset (both internal and external) and is a visible advocate for the customer. Builds strong relationships with school staff, students and families and uses those to improve their experience and outcomes.
- Delivering Financial Results – A strong track record of delivering against budgets and commitments.
- Communications - A great communicator who engages teams and stakeholders with thoughtful delivery and messages that resonate. Confident Public Speaker. Produces high-quality written communications.
- Building a strong team - Creates strong morale and inclusive spirit within team. Proactively addresses team performance and communication challenges and blends new people into teams when needed. Has a track record of hiring and quickly and effectively onboarding great talent. Demonstrated success developing and promoting diverse talent.
- Works well in a matrix - Models collaboration, solves problems efficiently and constructively with peers, builds trust and support. Agile and flexible in day-to-day operations and duties. Demonstrated ability to work well in fast-paced environment
- Takes personal responsibility – Can be relied on to complete tasks timely and well, demonstrates “ownership” regardless of the outcome, proactive in exploring and exploiting new opportunities. Shows a commitment to goal-directed management and accountability
Requirements
- Active or in process Iowa Administrator License with Evaluator license or endorsement
- 3+ Administrator or management experience required; virtual experience preferred
- Experience in creating and managing school budgets
- Master’s Degree from an accredited college/university in Educational Leadership or a related field
- Must be able to use a personal electronic device and email address for 2-step authentication when logging into systems
- Ability to travel within and out of state as needed for school business
- Ability to effectively work and manage remotely
- Technologically proficient (especially with Microsoft Office products and Google Suite
- Please note 2-step authentication is required to set-up to login to all systems if given a job offer.
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