I don’t normally post job openings, partly because there would be so many and partly because Mandarin immersion teachers are so hard to find that it’s kind of evil to poach a teacher. That said, principal positions don’t come open very often, so it seems a slightly different thing and appropriate for someone looking to move up. The school has both a Mandarin and a Spanish track. 

HudsonWay Immersion School

HudsonWay Immersion School (HWIS) has the reputation as the “best Mandarin and Spanish immersion program in NYC and NJ” due to its unique full immersion model, early start in preschool, teacher training and immersion leadership.   Reflecting that reputation, the school’s mission is to develop students as flexible thinkers, culturally aware and linguistically capable in at least two languages.

HWIS, serving children ages 2 to Grade 5, is the oldest independent Mandarin and Spanish immersion program in the NY/NJ area with two campuses – one on the upper west side of Manhattan, and one in NJ.  The school is poised to more than double enrollment growth with recently-obtained funding to expand and relocate the NY school in September 2019, and with the recent NJ move to a newly renovated Catholic school in NJ this past September 2018.  The school has also announced plans to grow in grades through grade 8 by 2021.

The new educational director/head of school will report to and partner with a board consisting of three owner investors.  Two of the owner investors are the original founders having started this school for their own children 13 years ago.  The third investor joined HWIS in late 2018 to support the NY expansion. Initially the role would focus on the education and operations of the school, expansion to middle school grades 6-8, development of after school clubs and building the parent community. The roles of finance, legal, HR, marketing and admissions would be outside the scope of the role.  It is believed that in 2-4 years the role would expand to include these functional areas and evolve from Educational Director to Head of School.

Educational Director/Head of School

The Educational Director (ED) is a leader who is a strong collaborative builder of people, possesses pedagogical high standards, and is passionate about the benefits of immersion education.  The ED will oversee two locations:  Stirling, NJ and NY, NY.  Reporting to the ED will be a team of assistant directors with both significant and newly acquired immersion experience.  The position will be subject to a bi-annual review by the school founders.

The successful candidate will possess many of the following experiences and skills:

• MA in Education related field (Administration, Curriculum & Instruction, Linguistics, etc.)
• Prior administrative experience in a leadership role in an independent school
• Prior teaching or administrative experience with an immersion school
• K-8 and early childhood experience
• Excellent community-outreach and relationship building skills
• Extensive knowledge of curriculum development; new research and technology enhancements
• Ability to create and sustain positive, ambitious school culture among staff and students

• Ability to develop teachers- mentor, provide feedback and constructive criticism, corrective action, coaching and discipline if necessary.

• Experience in assessment and achievement data analysis
• Leading school in acquiring accreditation

• Bilingual/fluent in one of the languages of instruction – Mandarin or Spanish

• Ability to partner with HR, Accounting, Admissions, Facilities, etc. in upholding and enforcing School policies and procedures
• Excellent communication skills– clear, direct communication with tact and professionalism
• Highly organized and attentive-to-detail, ability to manage administrative paperwork

Responsibilities:

Personnel and Programs

• Inspires a culture of mission-driven excellence and inclusion
• Implements and enhances a language immersion education program that promotes an international perspective for responsible citizenry at both a local and international level
• Manages and supervises all full and part-time staff
• Helps formulate performance management and culture of accountability
• Ensures that school’s curriculum and programs are evolving to meet student needs
• Ensures that school appearance and day to day management of operations is smooth
• Coordinate and oversee staff development and training that is aligned with New York and New Jersey State Standards, and the school’s curriculum
• Conducts regular staff meetings
• Designs and implements professional development workshops for all employees
• Oversees school data reporting systems and data analysis to inform instructional practice
• Effectively recruits and retains student population
• Effectively recruits and retains teacher population
• Provides input in developing the school’s long-term strategic plan
• Oversee the development of other programs such as after school, extended care, summer camp and Mommy & Me
• Works with high schools to develop feeder programs in support of ex-missions
• Works with licensing regulatory bodies

Parents/Community

• Ensures that the school builds enrollment and retains students
• Maintains an open-door policy for parents
• Participates in Family conferences when appropriate
• Articulates the school’s mission and vision to parents and the community
• Works with the parent association

Financial

• Oversees the implementation of the school’s annual budget
• Tracks and assigns all purchases
• Assures proper reporting of financials to Owners

Policies and Procedures

• Provides regular updates to founders/investor on:
  • Policies and procedures
  • Curriculum plan and achievement
  • Parent satisfaction
  • HR plan
  • Budget updates

Supervisory

• All instructional teachers; a diverse cultural and lingual employee base
• Administrative – finance, custodial, HR, admissions (this may evolve in year 2)
• Parent volunteers

Benefits:

• Competitive salary
• Benefits package to include vacation, health, 401K etc.

There will be an initial contract for a two-year period as Educational Director, followed by a two-year period as Head of School.  This is a Full-time 12-month position.  To start as soon as agreed upon, possibly prior to the end of the 2018/2019 academic year.

To Apply

Applicants may submit a cover letter, resume (with salary requirements) and a personal statement to: hr@hwis.org

HWIS is an equal opportunity employer and values diversity in the workplace. We actively encourage all qualified applicants regardless of race, color, religion, gender, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or sexual orientation to apply.

We regret that we will not be able to respond to every submission.  Only applicants of interest will be contacted.

Thank you for your interest in working for HWIS.