Senior Director of Curriculum & Design Management (HUM K-12)

About Ascend

Ascend is Brooklyn’s premier K–12 public charter network, committed to graduating high-achieving students who have access to boundless choice in their futures—not only through college acceptance, but through meaningful preparation for career readiness and thriving adult lives.

Across our schools, we pair rigorous academics with strong systems, supportive adult culture, and a deep belief in students’ brilliance and potential. Our work is grounded in the understanding that preparing students for long-term success requires excellence in instruction, intentional culture-building, and disciplined execution at every level of the organization.

At Ascend, adults are held to high standards because our students deserve nothing less. How we teach, lead, collaborate, and make decisions every day directly shapes the opportunities our students will have tomorrow.

Join us in shaping learning environments where curiosity is nurtured, excellence is the norm, and every student is prepared for a lifetime of boundless choice.

About the Role

Ascend Public Charter Schools seeks a Senior Director of Curriculum Design and Management for K-12 Humanities to serve as the chief architect of the network’s Humanities curriculum across English Language Arts and History. Reporting to the Managing Director of Curriculum Design and Management for K-12 Humanities, this leader is responsible for the intellectual coherence, rigor, and vertical alignment of curriculum and assessment from Kindergarten through 12th grade.

Ascend’s academic model is grounded in inquiry, intellectual depth, cumulative knowledge-building, and equitable access to advanced coursework. Our Humanities program develops students as readers, writers, historians, and critical thinkers capable of engaging deeply with complex texts and ideas.

The Senior Director ensures that curriculum sequences build intentionally toward Regents mastery and Advanced Placement readiness while maintaining developmental appropriateness and discipline-specific integrity at every grade level.

Key Responsibilities

K–12 Curriculum Architecture

• Design and refine vertically aligned K–12 Humanities curriculum across ELA and History.
• Ensure cumulative knowledge-building from foundational literacy through AP-level coursework.
• Oversee backward mapping from Regents and AP standards into earlier grade instructional units.
• Safeguard discipline-specific rigor in text complexity, writing expectations, historical analysis, and argumentation.
• Ensure curriculum reflects diverse voices and perspectives aligned to Ascend’s DEIA commitments.

Assessment & Academic Coherence

• Design and oversee common Humanities assessments aligned to curriculum expectations and NYS standards.
• Establish clear benchmarks for reading comprehension, analytical writing, discourse, and historical reasoning.
• Ensure assessments accurately reflect the intellectual demands of Regents and AP coursework.
• Maintain coherence between elementary, middle, and high school curricular expectations.

Curriculum Implementation Support

• Partner with the Senior Director of Teaching & Development to ensure alignment between curriculum design and instructional systems.
• Provide clarity of instructional intent and academic priorities to T&D leaders.
• Monitor curriculum implementation trends and identify areas for refinement.
• Lead cross-grade collaboration to ensure alignment across grade bands.

Continuous Improvement & Innovation

• Analyze student performance data to inform curriculum refinement.
• Lead periodic curriculum audits to ensure vertical coherence and rigor.
• Evaluate external curricular resources and integrate strategically where appropriate.
• Anticipate evolving standards and adjust curriculum accordingly.

Leadership & Team Development

• Manage and develop grade-band or subject-specific curriculum leaders (Associate Directors or Managers).
• Build internal expertise in Humanities curriculum design.
• Contribute to network-wide academic planning and cross-disciplinary coherence efforts.

Qualifications

Required Experience

• 8–12 years of professional experience in K–12 education.
• 4–6 years of experience in curriculum design or academic leadership, preferably with K–12 or multi-grade scope.
• Demonstrated expertise in ELA and/or History curriculum development.
• Proven record of designing or leading curriculum that improved student outcomes, including Regents or AP performance.
• Experience working in standards-aligned environments with centralized curriculum models.

Preferred Experience

• Experience in a high-performing charter network or centralized academic environment.
• Demonstrated experience designing vertically aligned literacy sequences.
• Experience aligning curriculum to inquiry-based instructional frameworks.
• Advanced degree in Education, English, History, Curriculum & Instruction, or related field preferred.

Leadership Profile

The successful candidate will demonstrate:

• Deep intellectual fluency in Humanities disciplines.
• Strong understanding of K–12 literacy development.
• Precision in curriculum sequencing and assessment design.
• Systems thinking across grade bands.
• High expectations for academic rigor.
• Commitment to equitable access to intellectually challenging coursework.

Compensation

The salary for this position begins at $115,000. Salaries are determined using an equitable compensation scale that accounts for years of experience and levels of attained education.

Location & Work Arrangement

• Based at an Ascend school campus in Brooklyn, NY

• In-person role aligned to school-based instructional expectations

In-person work includes daily intervention sessions, collaboration meetings, professional development sessions, and other responsibilities as determined by school leadership.

This full-time, exempt position offers a comprehensive benefits package including:

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 403(b) retirement plan with employer matching
• Generous paid time off and additional employee benefits