United Charter High Schools, a newly formed education corporation serving over 3,000 students across campuses in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens, seeks an equity-minded and inclusive Chief Academic Officer (CAO) to drive the academic vision and strategy of this new entity.

United Charter High Schools (UCHS) is the largest and most successful public charter high school network in NYC. Originally founded as New Visions Charter High Schools by the non-profit New Visions for Public Schools, it was established to provide quality educational opportunities for students in underserved communities. Renamed UCHS as of July 2024, the network consists of 7 charter high schools that held a collective graduation rate of 96% in 2022 and 2023 while serving more than 3,000 students across the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens. They are some of New York State’s highest performing charter high schools, consistently meeting, and in many cases exceeding, NYSED’s Performance Benchmarks for Student Performance - outperforming NYS on the 4-year Cohort Regents’ exams and the 4-year graduation rate for all students and special populations. They also include the only NYC High School to receive the prestigious National Blue Ribbon Award in 2022.

The Chief Academic Officer (CAO) will join a team that is making a profound impact on the lives of students in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens. The CAO will be the driving force behind the pursuit of academic excellence required to deliver the world-class education UCHS seeks to provide students during this time of reinvention. The CAO will report directly to the Chief Executive Officer and oversee the academic performance, instructional leadership, and school culture across UCHS’s seven high schools.

This is an exciting opportunity to create and execute a vision for academic excellence across the organization and to partner with the CEO and school-based leadership team to build a transformational school model with the potential to impact thousands of high school students across NYC. This is an ideal opportunity for an innovative, student-centered leader who wants to build upon current success to ensure UCHS continues to live out its mission during a time of transition.

The ideal candidate will have demonstrated successful school leadership experience. They will have demonstrated alignment with the United Charter High Schools mission to empower young people by challenging them academically and providing them with the support they need to excel.

Drive academic excellence across schools

• Execute the academic vision comprising UCHS’ key design elements and build out a network academic team to operationalize this vision and drive school academic growth and success.
• Ensure that all UCHS schools deliver the academic preparation and requisite support for all students to be prepared to succeed in college and career.
• Understand accountability metrics and annual reporting required of charter schools and oversee the submission of all accountability reports.
• Oversee program design, implementation, and achievement of all specialized learning groups, including students with IEPs, emergent bilingual and multilingual students.
• Provide leadership and accountability for the school’s academic services, as well as the academic performance of the school’s students.

Hire and develop leadership team

• Hire and develop two new Directors onto the leadership team.
• Develop equitable structures for annual school planning, including accountability measures.
• Support seven school principals through either direct or dotted-line supervision.
• Create a professional community that focuses on instruction and assessment as the primary vehicles for improving student achievement and school culture.

Ensure equitable culture

• Build a school culture that drives high expectations for courtesy, respect, compassion, and an intellectually engaged environment for both students and adults.
• Ensure a safe, supportive, and productive environment for students, staff, and families.
• Model effective adult development practices in staff meetings, professional development sessions, and team meetings.
• Ensure compliance with city, state, and federal regulations related to Individualized Education Plans and English Language Learners.

Engage network-wide community

• Foster collaboration among school leaders to ensure network-wide alignment.
• Develop and offer learning and community-building opportunities for network-wide collaboration for assistant principals, teachers, counselors, and staff.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited four-year institution.
• Master’s degree in education or a related field or comparable management-level experience preferred.
• A minimum of ten years of professional experience and a minimum of five years as a successful principal, with at least two years supervising school leaders with strong results or at least three to five years of experience managing charter networks and/or districts to procure, refine, adopt, and progress monitor all aspects of curriculum, instruction, and academic systems.
• A proven track record of improving student achievement using data to drive student achievement results.
• Proven experience coaching senior leaders and school leaders in an educational setting.
• Experience partnering with the United Federation of Teachers.
• Demonstrated leadership capabilities, including management and team-building skills.
• Experience implementing pedagogical strategies and developing rigorous curriculum practices, including challenge-based learning, data-driven decision-making, student feedback protocols, classroom routines and structures, adolescent literacy strategies, and differentiated instruction.
• Experience with College and Career Preparatory curriculum and effective college access practices.
• Demonstrated commitment to UCHS’ vision and mission.
• Commitment to democratic governance and collaborative, data-based decision-making.
• Rigorous approach to problem-solving: collecting all relevant information, consulting diverse perspectives, and creating feedback systems.
• Experience and zeal for working in an entrepreneurial environment.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
• Passion for developing a strong school community that supports the development and achievement of all students, particularly those underserved and at risk in other school settings.

Benefits

This position offers a competitive salary range of $150,000 - $180,000 and robust benefits, including medical, dental, and retirement. More details can be provided upon request. For additional questions about this position or to speak with someone about your interest, please contact Brett Kunsch at bkunsch@edgilityconsulting.com.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

We are an equal opportunity employer. It is our policy that all employees and applicants for employment will be treated in all respects on the basis of their merit and qualifications and without regards to their race, color, national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, religion, gender, military status, marital status, ancestry, or any other reason prohibited by law. We believe that our teams should reflect the diverse communities we serve and that our culture and internal structures should be inclusive and equitable for all employees. We also recognize that perspectives from communities that have been historically marginalized are critical to the work we do. Hence, we strongly encourage applications from individuals living in the communities that we serve or who are members of historically marginalized communities. We provide a comprehensive and competitive compensation and benefits package in addition to the opportunity to make a significant impact on education reform and in the lives of urban youth.