Job description: Job Description: Director of Lower Elementary (LE) Supervises: Lower Elementary Teachers, Assistants, and others as assigned by ED Contracted: 12 months Purpose: The Director of LE is an integral part of a strong administrative and educational team devoted to collaborative decision-making and to the long-term success of Sterling Montessori. The Director assists the Executive Director fulfill the educational mission of the school and in particular, helps to assure the integrity and quality of the scope and sequence of the educational program from Children’s House through Middle School as specified in the AMS Montessori School Guidelines. General Duties and Responsibilities to Teacher/Students/Parents: Articulate and support the integrity of Montessori Education at the lower elementary level. Take personal and professional responsibility for creating, sustaining and nurturing an exemplary Montessori environment. This includes participating in relevant professional development opportunities. Plan, schedule, organize and promote parent education opportunities to help parents of the Sterling Montessori community gain a better understanding and appreciation of what is happening in their child’s classroom and why it is beneficial to their child’s development. Impart general school information regarding the employee and parent handbook to staff and families as necessary. Meet with parents that have concerns/questions about their child’s work and learning environments. Provide regular communication and Parent Education with all staff and parents at the LE level. This includes but is not limited to the Friday email, monthly newsletters, emails, phone calls or additions for teachers to add to their weekly newsletters. Conduct parent meetings when requested either by the school, teacher or by the parent. These meetings must help build a strong partnership between the school and home. Build strong trusting relationships with all member of the administrative and director teams. Bridge instructional and social emotional gaps between the general education setting out to all all other areas of the building and school (i.e. cross grade level alignment and teams, Exceptional Children department, 504 programming, Multi-lingual supports, Multi-Tiered Systems of Support programming, specialist team, etc). Related to Faculty and Students: Responsible for answering any face-to face, phone and email communications concerning the LE Program. Conduct tours to prospective parents in partnership with the Executive Director. In collaboration with the Admissions manager maintain class lists and rosters. Duties and Responsibilities to Administrative Team/Board/PFSA: The Director of LE collaborates with the Executive Director and educational leadership team in the areas of curriculum, pedagogy and professional development of academic personnel. Assist in the accreditation process. In collaboration with the Human Resource Manager and Director of Operations, verify that all LE employees and substitutes have completed their criminal background check and have a verification letter issued by DHHS. Ensure that staff have all necessary trainings (include but not limited to: harassment, child abuse, school crisis, etc). Represent the LE level to the PFSA and LHU Board as needed Keep the Executive Director up to date on all concerns and progress in regards to staff annual goals. Support test coordinator and Director of Student Affairs with all matters related to data collection and student assessment. Assists in the creation of the school schedule and calendar, particularly all events at the LE level. Approve and monitor classroom budgets – this may include but is not limited to managing requests for purchase and reimbursements. Maintain an on-going inventory of all classroom materials and supplies. Act as a core member of the MTSS Program where collaboration between classroom teachers, Director of EC Program, Director of Upper Elementary, Director of Middle School, Director of Student Affairs and Executive Director. Maintain certification and willingness to administer CPR and First Aid matters including but not limited to allergy needs, minor bumps and bruises and lice checks. Maintain an annual and operational budget for the Elementary program. Participate in the daily functions of regulating the carpool process during arrival and dismissal times. Support administrative team by discussing, preparing for and implementing fire and crisis drills. Update crisis manual and in coordination with all directors and facility manager plan for all required emergency drills Collaborate with Administrative staff to review and update Student, Parent and Employee Handbooks annually Requirements: 5+ years of teaching experience BA Degree (Master’s preferred) NC Administrative License (comparable or in the process of obtaining within 12 months from date of hire) Ability to compare and/or judge the readily observable, functional, structural, and composite characteristics of data, people, and things. Ability to read a variety of correspondence, reports, forms, articles, proposals, contracts, etc. Ability to prepare correspondence, reports, forms, evaluations, and policies using a prescribed format. Ability to apply principles of logical or scientific thinking to define problems, collect data, establish facts and draw valid conclusions; to interpret an extensive variety of technical instructions and deal with several abstract and concrete variables. Ability to deal with people beyond giving and receiving instructions. Must be able to build a dynamic engaged team of adult learners (20+ individuals, supervising over 200+ students at the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade level) and must be adaptable to perform under stress and when confronted with emergency situations. Ability to evaluate student progress and review up to date student data in making strong instructional decisions and offering grade level direction for the team. Familiarity and experience (3+ years) managing school wide EC and MTSS programming. Has the capacity to conceptualize the broad goals of the school and plans accordingly to ensure that procedures and schedules are implemented well. Ensures that the lower school program is compatible with the legal, financial, and organizational structure of the entire program and school program. Ability to define the responsibilities and accountability measures of staff members and develop plans of interpreting observational data to support and encourage an individual and teams collective growth. A commitment to and experience with establishing, implementing, and evaluating daily routines and standard operating procedures for the day-to-day operation of the lower elementary program. Capacity to maintain inter-school communications with other departments (Upper Elementary, Adolescent, Children’s House, Specialists, Exceptional Children, and Operational Team) and ability to maintain healthy, strong, trusting and engaged relationships with students, staff, and parents across the entire school and program. Willingness and capacity to hire, orient, train and assist new staff members and new students to their learning environment. Capacity to manage, direct, and maintain records related to materials, supplies and equipment needed to carry out necessary day to day school routines. Ability to involve the lower elementary teaching team in determining instructional supply priorities. Preferred but not required: 3+ years of Administrative experience or 3+ years of experience supervising adult learners in a school context 3+ years of experience as a public Montessori school leader