Founding Child Care Center Director

Sakina Early Learning Academy is a proposed Islamic early childhood center being explored for the Champaign-Urbana area, with an anticipated focus on children ages 1–5. Our vision is simple but ambitious: to create an exceptional developmental early childhood program—one we would enthusiastically choose for our own children.

We believe families shouldn’t have to choose between outstanding early childhood education and a meaningful Islamic environment. Our vision for Sakina is to bring both together.

The program we’re developing would emphasize strong teacher-child relationships, language-rich classrooms, purposeful play and exploration, social-emotional development, independence, curiosity and individualized attention to each child’s growth.

We envision Islamic values and character being woven naturally throughout the day, with akhlaq and adab—kindness, gratitude, honesty, compassion, responsibility and respect—forming an important part of the environment.

Sakina would welcome children, families and educators of all backgrounds.

About the Role

The Founding Center Director will be Sakina’s educational and operational leader and its senior leader on site every day.

This is not a position where you’ll inherit an established staff, curriculum and culture. You’ll have the opportunity to help build them.

During the development and pre-opening process, you’ll work closely with ownership to prepare for licensing, shape the educational program, recruit the founding team and establish the systems and culture that would guide the center once operational.

If the center moves forward through licensing and development, you’ll ultimately run its day-to-day operations.

Ownership will remain closely involved in Sakina’s direction and development but will not be on site daily. This position therefore carries real authority, independence and responsibility.

This is also a hands-on leadership role. The Director should expect to spend approximately 20 hours per week working directly in classrooms during the busiest portions of the day, particularly during the center’s first year.

Current planning anticipates operating hours of approximately 7:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, subject to final licensing, site and operational decisions.

What You’ll Lead

Educational Quality

• Lead Sakina’s curriculum, educational approach and developmental assessment practices.
• Set high standards for teacher-child interactions and classroom quality.
• Ensure children experience purposeful, developmentally appropriate learning through play, exploration, conversation and meaningful relationships.
• Observe classrooms regularly and provide teachers with specific, constructive coaching.
• Continually evaluate whether our practices genuinely benefit children—not simply whether we’re checking required boxes.

Teaching Team

• Recruit, interview and hire Sakina’s founding teachers and support staff.
• Train, mentor, observe and develop educators.
• Build dependable staffing schedules and classroom coverage.
• Set clear expectations for classroom quality, professionalism and interactions with children.
• Create a culture where excellent teachers feel respected, supported, challenged and accountable.

Islamic Environment & Character

The Director will work with ownership and teachers to ensure Sakina’s Islamic identity is warm, authentic and developmentally appropriate.

This includes:

• Integrating akhlaq and adab and values such as kindness, gratitude, honesty, compassion, patience and respect into everyday classroom life.
• Supporting age-appropriate Islamic stories, basic duas, short surahs and occasions such as Ramadan and Eid.
• Ensuring Islamic learning remains engaging and nurturing rather than excessively academic or rote.
• Helping teachers recognize that character is developed throughout the entire day—in how adults speak to children, how children learn to treat one another and how conflicts are handled.

You do not need to be an Islamic scholar. We are looking for an educational leader who can thoughtfully support the environment we envision for Sakina.

Operations & Licensing

• Lead Illinois child care licensing preparation and ongoing regulatory compliance.
• Maintain appropriate ratios, group sizes, staff qualifications, training and required records.
• Prepare the center and team for licensing and other applicable inspections.
• Establish dependable systems for daily center operations, staffing, safety and emergencies.
• Solve problems independently and take genuine ownership of Sakina’s day-to-day operation.

Families & Community

• Build strong, trusting relationships with families and the broader community.
• Help develop thoughtful family orientation and onboarding practices for the future center.
• Communicate effectively with parents about children’s experiences and development.
• Help families understand Sakina’s developmental and Islamic educational philosophy.
• Help create a welcoming community among children, families and staff.

What We’re Looking For

Candidates must meet applicable Illinois child care center director qualification requirements.

Strong candidates will likely bring:

• Significant professional experience in early childhood education.
• Leadership experience as a Child Care Director, Assistant Director, Preschool Director or comparable early childhood leader.
• Strong knowledge of child development and developmentally appropriate practice.
• Experience supervising, coaching and developing educators.
• Working knowledge of child care center operations, staffing, licensing and regulatory compliance.
• Excellent judgment, organization, communication and problem-solving skills.
• The confidence to lead independently and the desire to help build a new program.
• The ability and willingness to lead Sakina’s developmentally appropriate Islamic character and values programming.

Experience We’d Especially Value

You do not need to check every box below to be a strong candidate.

We’d be particularly interested in candidates with:

• 8 years of progressive early childhood experience, including leadership experience.
• A bachelor’s or master’s degree in Early Childhood Education, Child Development, Education or a related field.
• Illinois Director Credential or other relevant Illinois early childhood credentials.
• Experience with Illinois child care licensing requirements.
• Experience opening a new center or substantially improving an existing program.
• Strong curriculum-development, teacher-coaching or instructional-leadership experience.
• Experience in a high-quality private early-learning environment.
• Experience in an Islamic or other faith-based early-learning environment is especially valued but not required.
• Arabic and/or Qur’anic literacy is welcomed but not required.

Who We’re Hoping to Find

We’re looking for someone who has developed strong opinions about what exceptional early childhood education looks like—and wants the opportunity to help build it from the beginning.

You should be able to recognize excellent teaching, coach educators thoughtfully, solve operational problems independently, build trust with families and maintain high standards without losing sight of children’s everyday experiences.

Most importantly, we’re looking for someone who will treat Sakina as their center to lead, not simply a building where they work.

Compensation & Benefits

Salary: $58,000–$75,000 per year, based on experience and qualifications.

The position will also include an opportunity to earn an annual performance bonus based on factors such as educational quality, family experience, staff development and operational performance.

Planned benefits include:

• Employer contribution toward employee health insurance
• 401(k) with a 3% employer match
• 15 days of paid time off
• Paid holidays
• Professional-development support

Final benefit details will be confirmed with candidates during the hiring process.

If Sakina is successful, our long-term vision may include additional locations. As the organization grows, an exceptional Founding Director would have the opportunity to grow into broader leadership responsibilities.

Timing & Pre-Opening

Sakina Early Learning Academy is currently in the planning and pre-licensing stage. We are exploring a potential 2027 opening, subject to securing an appropriate site, licensing and other project requirements.

We anticipate the Founding Director beginning paid full-time work approximately 6–8 weeks before any anticipated opening to lead licensing preparation, teacher recruitment, staff training, classroom setup, policies and procedures, and other pre-opening work.

Earlier paid part-time involvement may also be available for the right candidate.

Because Sakina is still in development, the exact opening and employment timeline will depend on completion of site, licensing and other project requirements. We’ll discuss timing openly with finalists.

How to Apply

Please submit your résumé along with a brief response to the following question:

If you had the opportunity to help build an exceptional early childhood center from the beginning, what is one thing you would insist we do exceptionally well—and why?

No formal cover letter is necessary.

We’d rather hear how you think.

Sakina Early Learning Academy is a proposed center currently in development and is not yet licensed or operating. This posting is for employment recruitment and is not an offer of childcare services or enrollment.

Sakina Learning Group LLC is an equal opportunity employer.

Pay: $58,000.00 - $75,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• 401(k) matching
• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• Professional development assistance

Work Location: In person

Salary : $58,000 - $75,000