ACADEMIC DIRECTOR

Yspaniola is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to promoting child and youth development. Our goal is to provide holistic programs which provide young people with a strong foundation of support for building the skills and knowledge they need to become well-rounded and informed citizens, inspired to achieve their full academic and professional potential. Through this process, we cultivate leaders and engaged members of society who contribute to building healthy communities.

We are looking for a skilled Academic Director to help Yspaniola develop a new education project in Santo Domingo, and to support our passionate team of education staff at our community center in Batey Libertad, Valverde Province. The Academic Director will be responsible for year-long, high-quality academic programming, as well as training and professional development for our teaching staff.

Our Academic Director will be passionate about the importance of high-quality education for academic success and have an unwavering belief that all students can achieve at high levels. They will be a champion for equal opportunities for students from all backgrounds, and will have extensive experience teaching students to read and write in Spanish and leading teams of teachers to achieve excellent outcomes.

Role details:

• Full time (40 hours per week)
• Duration: Permanent role
• Location: The successful candidate will be based in Santo Domingo and will be required to travel to Batey Libertad on a regular basis for periods of one to two weeks at a time.
• Reports to: Executive Director, works closely with all senior management

Responsibilities:

Curriculum Development & Implementation and Teacher Development (60%)

Ensure classes are in line with Yspaniola’s curriculum and students are on track to meet age appropriate learning goals by:

• Supporting teachers’ lesson planning process and providing weekly feedback to all teachers on their lessons.

• Use teacher observation, student assessment data, and feedback from staff, the community, and the board of Directors to continually evaluate and improve the curriculum and teacher support system

• Identify areas of improvement for teaching staff and conduct regular one-on-one supervisory and goal setting meetings with each teacher.

  • Provide professional development opportunities and coaching to instructional staff using co-teaching and other methods to ensure that teaching is intentional, engaging, and rigorous, and that teachers are creating a structured and responsive classroom culture with constructive responses to student misbehavior.
  • Oversee library programming
  • Work closely with other management staff to ensure the smooth integration of academic instruction with extra-curricular programming.
  • Support the integration of 12-month International Education Fellows into the teaching teams and support other senior staff in the supervision of their work.

• Work with the Executive Director to develop and evolve educational programming in response to evaluation results and feedback from students, staff, the community, and the board of directors.

Monitoring and Evaluation (30%)

• Set goals for student learning outcomes and ensure that all teachers have a solid understanding of these.
• Oversee student assessments and ensure consistency of implementation.
• Manage systems to ensure the communication of individual academic progress to students and families.

General Management, Finances and Administration (10%)

• Work with local teachers to organize events that engage parents and community members.
• Present a quarterly academic report to senior management and support the organization’s fundraising efforts when necessary by meeting donors and providing data.
• Manage the academic activities budget.
• Support recruitment processes for academic staff and volunteer roles.
• Cultivate a positive, respectful working environment that prioritizes student success and excellent staff motivation.

Qualifications & Skills

• Minimum of Bachelor’s degree in Education, Master’s or equivalent preferred
• A minimum of three years of formal teaching experience, experience in primary education or early literacy preferred
• Spanish fluency, written and oral (native speaker preferred)
• English fluency, written and oral (high level of proficiency) a plus
• Experience supporting and coaching teachers, ideally in an international setting
• Ability to demonstrate experience leading students to achieve high academic growth
• Experience using data to evaluate student growth and reflect on curricular and instructional impact
• Ability to display and analyze statistical data and produce written reports
• Steadfast commitment to academic achievement for all children; commitment to supporting positive student behavior and social-emotional wellbeing
• Experience working with children with behavioral and/or learning disabilities preferred
• Experience developing curriculum and leading targeted professional development workshops
• Belief in Yspaniola’s vision and values; passion for community and asset-based approaches to education and development
• In-depth understanding of obstacles and challenges facing low-income, marginalized communities
• Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills and the ability to collaborate effectively as part of an international team with different areas of expertise
• Demonstrable ability to work across cultural and linguistic backgrounds
• Ability to exercise judgment, initiative, and maintain strict confidentiality
• A problem solving approach to complex issues
• A high level of flexibility to work in a busy and constantly evolving environment
• Willingness and ability to travel throughout the Dominican Republic on a regular basis, on a flexible work schedule which may include some evenings and weekends
• Speaker of French and/or Haitian Creole a plus