Excel Academy Charter Schools Careers

Description

Organization Overview  

Excel Academy was founded in 2003 with the mission to provide a high-quality, free, and public education to students in East Boston and Chelsea Massachusetts, communities that are predominantly low-income and Latinx and historically have faced significant social and educational barriers. Our success in Massachusetts is proof that the opportunity gap can be closed and we opened a new school in Rhode Island in 2022.  At Excel Academy Charter Schools, we believe that when a student has the support and tools to pursue a productive post-secondary pathway aligned to their personal identity and values, it can fundamentally change their life trajectory.    

At Excel Academy we learn from our students, families, and staff and make improvements. We have increasingly adapted to provide a holistic education that values our community as collaborators in the learning process, social-emotional support, equity for diverse learners, and fosters identity development. We prioritize an approach that is both rigorous and inclusive. Our team of passionate, intelligent, driven, and loving staff are at the core of the work we do.   

Growth Happens Here.  

About the Role

The Dean is responsible for upholding a high bar of quality, both academically and culturally, for the program as well as ensuring that all students within the program make significant growth toward their IEP goals and, where possible, toward the academic, social, and executive functioning skills required for broader inclusion in the Excel program.

Your Impact   

 Manage Self-Contained Academic Program  

• Ensure a high quality academic program in the self-contained classrooms, including: oversee implementation of the curriculum; determine progress monitoring schedule; allocate time and human resources to meet student needs; and determine usage of technology to support student learning.
• Train, manage, and coach the program’s teachers, including providing weekly plan feedback, conducting regular observations, tracking student performance data, and evaluating teachers in line with Excel’s evaluation cycle.
• Identify the related services (reading specialist, occupational therapist, etc.) needs of students within the program and coordinate with network leadership to source and schedule these needs; serve as manager for service providers exclusively serving self-contained program.

Lead a Positive and Academically-Oriented Student Culture  

• Oversee and support teachers in leading student culture initiatives.
• Design systems, structures, daily routines, and curriculum that share the values of Excel’s mainstream behavior system and promote positive student culture in the self-contained classroom, during transitions, and in inclusion; and support teachers to implement these structures with efficacy.
• Create behavior plans for students with complex behavior needs and monitor implementation and efficacy of behavior plans.
• Create and execute “re-set” systems to minimize students’ time out of the classroom.
• In conjunction with the Dean of Students, create referral procedures for students in the program and address high level behavior infractions.
• Design space set-up to support positive student culture.

 Build and Maintain Strong Relationships  

• Build and maintain strong relationships with students in the self-contained program and their families.
• Lead staff to build and maintain strong relationships with students and families.
• Ensure systems are in place to maintain frequent communication between staff and families that supports students’ investment in school and long-term success.
• Support relationship-building between students and general education teachers.

Special Education Administrative Responsibilities  

• Chair IEP teams for students in the program; ensure appropriate implementation of IEPs and revise and/or amend existing IEPs as applicable.
• Manage all paperwork (e.g. triennial evaluations, IEPs, 504s, Teacher Input Questionnaires, IEP Progress Reports, subject-area checklists for MCAS, etc.) associated with Special Education cases, ensuring deadlines are met and information is accurately recorded.
• Oversee teachers in creating MCAS-Alt portfolios for students as needed.

Serve as a productive member of the Excel Community  

• Uphold Excel Staff norms.
• Uphold school-wide expectations and systems (as appropriate for the self-contained and general-education settings).
• Provide coverage when needed.
• Meaningfully participate in Friday meetings, school PD and family conferences.

Do whatever it takes to make sure mission of the school is fulfilled  

Qualifications  

• A Bachelor’s degree and certification in special education are required; a Master’s degree in special education is preferred;
• A minimum of two years’ special education teaching experience in an urban public school or charter school setting is required;
• Experience coaching or managing teachers is preferred, but not required;
• A commitment to working with underserved, urban youth;
• An unwavering commitment to and belief in the mission of Excel Academy Charter Schools, including Excel’s values and educational model;
• The ability to focus and thrive in a fast paced, entrepreneurial environment;
• The ability to work effectively in a team environment and the willingness and desire to support others in doing their best work; 
• An entrepreneurial spirit that reflects an openness to change, a willingness to problem-solve, and an interest in developing new ideas & programs; and
• Can speak to their personal investment and commitment to antiracist education and diversity, equity, and inclusion in our school community and beyond. 

Preference will be given to applicants who share points of intersection with our students, such as speaking Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, or a language commonly spoken by our students and families at an advanced level, being first generation college graduates, or having grown up low-income.  

• You share a commitment to and belief in all students and the mission of Excel Academy Charter Schools, including Excel’s values and educational model;  
• You are committed to addressing racial and economic inequity in education;  
• You work effectively in a team environment and have a willingness and desire to support others in doing their best work; and  
• You are open to change, are willing to problem-solve, and seek feedback for your own professional growth and improvement.  

Excel Academy Charter Schools do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, creed, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, age, ancestry, athletic performance, special need, proficiency in the English language or a foreign language or prior academic achievement.

Applications will be reviewed as they are received and candidates are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.