Executive Director, Early College & Career Education 

Job Number:

240000C5 

Posting Date

: Feb 26, 2024, 2:18:24 PM

Primary Location

: West Side-2651 W Washington Blvd (Dodge-Garfield Park)

CPS Non-Union Job Grade: S11

Estimated Annual Salary Range

: 115,000.00 - 153,000.00

Position Type: Non-Union Position

Overtime Status

: Exempt

Final salary offers are dependent upon candidate qualifications.

JOB DESCRIPTION ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chicago Public Schools (CPS) is one of the largest school districts in the United States, serving over 320,000 students in 600+ schools and employing approximately 40,000 people, most of them teachers. CPS has set 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. Six core values are embedded within these commitments – student-centered, whole child, equity, academic excellence, community partnership, and continuous learning.

The Office of Early College and Career Education (ECCE) is a department that is nested within the Office of College and Career Success (OCCS). ECCE strives to improve the quality of career education in Career and Technical Education (CTE) by providing intentional support to teachers and standardizing career education curricula. The department also aims to increase students' exposure to dual enrollment opportunities in Early College credit attainment as well as to expand postsecondary enrollment and completion. In addition, ECCE strives to enhance access to STEM as well as high-quality Work-Based Learning opportunities for middle and high school students to support youth employment and economic mobility.

Job Summary: 

The Executive Director of Early College and Career Education, reports directly to the Deputy Chief of the Office of College and Career Success and will lead a team of Directors to support the Office and department’s vision. As a member of the OCCS Senior Leadership Team, the Executive Director provides strategic direction to both Central Office and school-based staff to ensure that all students receive high-quality curriculum, opportunities, and robust supports. Additionally, the Executive Director uses data to make informed decisions and shape strategies as well as communicates a clear vision and plan for staff development, accountability, and operational excellence to ensure equitable support and services for all students.

The Executive Director will be held accountable for the following responsibilities:

• Lead, manage, and develop a large, multi-team department of 70+ employees with a budget of approximately $19M in FY23.
• Supervise and develop a team of directors in four key areas: Early College, Chicago Roadmap, Work-Based Learning, Career and Technical Educational.
• Develop, expand, and nurture partnerships with government, labor, industry, philanthropic, and higher education partners to ensure dramatic expansion of early college attainment, work-based learning, and high-quality industry certification attainment.
• Guide the implementation and expansion of the Chicago Roadmap, a five-year collaboration between CPS, City Colleges of Chicago (CCC), university and philanthropic partners to increase college enrollment and degree attainment and improve employment outcomes.
• Articulate, implement, and promote a comprehensive strategic vision for career-connected education at CPS including the development of career readiness programming for all students in Middle school through 12 grade
• Partner with the Executive Director of Student Counseling & Postsecondary Advising to ensure that, in keeping with CPS’ Learn.Plan.Succeed. initiative, all future CPS seniors graduate with a concrete postsecondary vision and the knowledge, experience, and resources needed to effectively pursue that vision
• Align ECCE programming (e.g. CTE, dual credit, Early College STEM) with labor market needs and opportunities
• Converge with multiple internal and external stakeholders to increase postsecondary credential attainment and improve employment outcomes among CPS graduates
• Other projects and duties as assigned 

In order to be successful and achieve the above responsibilities, the Executive Director must possess the following qualifications: 

Education Required: 

• Master’s degree in education, educational administration, or a related field from an accredited college or university is required. 
• Doctorate preferred.

Experience Required: 

• Minimum of eight (8) years of relevant professional experience in education with a focus on curriculum, instruction, school leadership, equity, and postsecondary success.
• Minimum of (3) years of experience in Career Technical Education, Early College Dual Credit/Dual Enrollment, and/or Work-Based Learning at the school level. 
• Minimum of four (4) years of experience developing and managing large-scale educational improvement projects/programs impacting multiple levels of stakeholders, and/or multiple school communities
• Minimum of four (4) years of experience in a management position responsible for leading and developing a team of direct reports, providing professional coaching, and managing individuals in developing and achieving a strategic plan
• School administrator experience is strongly preferred 

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Ability to articulate a vision, set high standards, and effectively guide teams
• Commitment to the CPS Mission, Blueprint, and Instructional Core Vision
• Strong interpersonal skills, including the ability to build collaborative relationships with a variety of constituent groups, such as external or internal partners at all levels of the organization
• Ability to define and solve problems, analyze large, complex datasets, and outline valid conclusions/action steps necessary to reconcile complex issues.
• Strong understanding of the complexity and variety of challenges facing urban students; capable of effectively coordinating resources to address those challenges
• Knowledge of operations, budget/finance, management, and organizational development 
• Effective strategic planning capabilities, including the ability to establish long-term vision and goals, and align/manage activities toward goal fulfillment
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills, including listening, speaking, and leading/facilitating presentations
• Ability to coach directors and managers toward excellence, build capacity of content area teams
• Strong leadership and team building skills, e.g. ability to develop high-performing teams united around a clear vision for serving schools and achieving student success
• Demonstrate high levels of leadership expertise, integrity, honesty, credibility, and the courage to make difficult yet necessary decisions
• Knowledge of district policies and procedures

Conditions of Employment

As a condition of employment with the Chicago Public Schools (CPS), employees are required to:

• Establish/Maintain Chicago Residency - Employees are required to live within the geographic boundaries of the City of Chicago within six months of their CPS hire date and maintain residency throughout their employment with the district. The Chicago residency requirement does not apply to temporary/part-time positions, however, all CPS employees must be residents of Illinois.
• Be Fully Vaccinated Against COVID-19 - Unless approved for a medical or religious exemption, all employees are required to be up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccinations, including boosters, and to submit proof of vaccination to the district within 30 days of hire. “Up-to-date” on vaccination is defined as being at least two weeks past all primary vaccine doses and any applicable boosters.