Skip to main content

This job has expired

Chief Schools Officer

Employer
Chicago Public Schools - CPS
Location
Chicago, IL, US
Salary
Competitive

Job Details

Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is the third largest school district in the United States, serving over 360,000 students in 600+ schools and employing nearly 36,000 people, most of them teachers. CPS has ambitious goals to ensure that every student, in every school and every neighborhood, has access to a world-class learning experience that prepares each for success in college, career and civic life. In order to fulfill this mission, we make three commitments to our students, their families and all Chicagoans: academic progress, financial stability and integrity. Five core principles are embedded within these commitments - high-quality, rigorous instruction, talented and empowered educators, safety and support, financial stability and collective impact.

The Chief Schools Officer leads the Office of Network Support and is responsible for principal quality and school performance, primarily through the direct management of CPS' 17 regional Network Chiefs and the Independent Schools Network. The Network Chiefs directly supervise Principals, who are responsible for ensuring high-quality teach ing and learning in every classroom and for student achievement in their schools. The Independent Schools Network is comprised of 90+ semi-autonomous schools; the Principals in these schools are also evaluated through the Office of Network Support.

Reporting to the Chief Education Officer, the Chief Schools Officer will be held accountable for the following responsibilities:

Visionary leadership

  • Develop and effectively execute a strategic plan that clearly aligns with the District's five-year vision, supports a seamless PreK-12 learning community and allows for transparent accountability against CPS' student outcome goals;

  • Actively recruit, hire, support and develop Network Chiefs and an internal team of 30+ staff; and

  • C ultivate a culture of high expectations with shared strategic goals around measurable and continuous improvement in principal quality as well as around student academic achievement in all schools.



Effective system & talent management

  • Create, manage and sustain systems that enable Network Chiefs to identify, recruit, support and develop a strong pool of highly-skilled Principal candidates for schools as well as a strong pool of Network support team members; this work includes:

    • Monitoring performance: Data and performance management systems that enable weekly, real-time coaching conversations with Network Chiefs, centered on continuous improvement of Principal and school quality and on the impact of Network support;

    • Developing leaders: Transparent, fair and effective tools for assessing Principal and Network team leadership capacity, developing leadership and succession plans and providing differentiated supports that result in improved performance;

    • Setting a learning agenda: A learning scope and sequence for Network Chiefs that is built on regular assessment of chief and team capacity and that results in measurable improvement of the coaching and management provided to Principals in schools;

    • Allocating resources: Systems that allow Network Chiefs to make data-informed decisions about Principal needs and to allocate resources accordingly, including the allocation of instructional supports and content experts to specific groups of Principals, based on need;

    • Informing stakeholders: A communication system for ensuring Network Chiefs, their teams and the Principals receive actionable information in a timely and efficient way, and that peer leaders in CPS, external stakeholders and leadership team members are well-informed of Office initiatives, successes and struggles.

  • Manage team administration and operations, including making sure that all team members are held accountable for meeting and exceeding expectations and that the office remains a good steward of public resources.



Cross-team collaboration

Develop and maintain strong relationships with other senior leadership team members, including all Academic Chiefs, as well as leaders on the Equity, Talent and Operations teams:

  • Work toward convergence with the full team to ensure that the needs of Network teams and Principals are met by other Central Office functions;

  • Work with the Talent team to develop internal talent benches and external talent recruitment strategies for Chief and Deputy Network Chief roles; and

  • Liaise with Support Centers; monitor schools' operational performance and compliance, resolve open issues, etc. and ensure principal time is focused on instructional leadership.



Other responsibilities

  • Develop systems to effectively provide ad-hoc operational support to Principals and Network (e.g. escalated inquiries, emergencies, etc.);

  • Demonstrate a moral imperative to work in the best interest of children;

  • Demonstrate applied instructional expertise, sound judgment, integrity, honesty and credibility;

  • Demonstrate courage in making difficult, yet necessary, decisions; and

  • Additional ad hoc projects and oversight as assigned.



Type of education required

  • Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university Education or a related field; Master's degree in Education preferred



Type of certification preferred

  • Valid General Administrative certificate issued by the Illinois State Board of Education (or out-of-state equivalent) preferred



Experience

  • Minimum of five (5) years experience within a complex educational organization required;

  • Minimum of three (3) years school leadership experience preferred; particularly principal experience with urban youth and/or coaching, teaching and mentoring educators; and

  • Demonstrated experience developing the capacity of principal supervisors and/or principals.



Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

  • Establishes and executes against an ambitious vision and coaches others to do the same, both within and across teams;

  • Strategizes at a high level and executes that strategy on the ground;

  • Analyzes data, defines opportunities and outlines valid conclusions and action steps;

  • Sets actionable, measurable instructional and experiential goals and manages an experienced team to meet and exceed high expectations;

  • Demonstrates the capacity for adaptive leadership, including the ability to manage effectively and collaboratively through change;

  • Communicates regularly and clearly; leverages strong interpersonal and organizational skills;

  • Understands operations, management and organizational design; uses this knowledge to assist Network Chiefs in continuously improving student outcomes;

  • Builds collaborative relationships with a wide variety of stakeholder groups, including external partners, to ensure the entire system operates to meet school and principal needs;

  • Thrives in a changing environment and demonstrates a lifelong commitment to learning, humility and flexibility; and

  • Possess a track record of success as demonstrated by superior academic and professional achievement.



Residency Requirement

As a condition of employment with the Chicago Public Schools (CPS), employees are required to live within the geographic boundaries of the City of Chicago within six months of his or her CPS hire date and maintain residency throughout their employment with the district.

Company

Chicago Public Schools is truly a district on the rise. The last five years have been an unprecedented success for CPS, and during that time, our district has emerged as a beacon of what is achievable for large urban school districts across the country. Our mission is to provide a high-quality public education for every child, in every neighborhood, that prepares each for success in college, career, and civic life.

Company info
Telephone
773-553-1000
Location
42 W Madison St
Chicago
IL
60602
US

Get job alerts

Create a job alert and receive personalized job recommendations straight to your inbox.

Create alert