Assistant Principal - Making Waves Academy

**We are currently hiring for the 2025-2026 school year**

Title: Assistant Principal
Division: Making Waves Academy
Reports to: Principal (with indirect oversight by the MWA CEO)
Status: Full-time, Exempt, CalSTRS Retirement Eligible (Year-Round)
Supervises: Cluster faculty, interventionists, lead teachers, and content leads.  Additional supervision for cluster-related administrators.
Salary Range: $120,000-$130,000 plus $12,000 Temporary Cost of Living Allowance & MWA Benefits

Position Summary

The role of the Assistant Principal is to provide leadership for a grade-level cluster for Making Waves Academy (MWA), a 5^th-12^th grade, high-performing, public charter school.  This new role leads a grade-level (developmentally-aligned) cluster – the “senior high” cluster (10^th-12^th grades), the “junior high” cluster (7^th-9^th grades), or the “elementary cluster” (5^th-6^th grades).  The Assistant Principal meets with the Principal and two other Assistant Principals regularly to:

1. Calibrate on daily and weekly areas of focus (student well-being, safety areas of focus for campus walk-throughs, instructional areas of focus for classroom walk-throughs, and staff culture and morale), and
2. Discuss strategic initiatives, and develop “test and learn” opportunities for applicable innovations.   

1. Student safety and well-being
2. Rigorous and relevant instruction
3. School culture
4. Faculty and staff supervision and development
5. Parent and school community engagement. 

• LEARN – A focus on early intervention and remediation of academic skills in math, reading, and writing and social-emotional decision-making development in the lower grades (5^th-6^th); a continued focus on social-emotional development, academic skill development, and preparation for high school-level rigor and decision-making in the middle grades (7^th-9^th), and continued social-emotional development, academic skill development, and post-secondary pathway exploration along with college access exposure in the upper grades (10^th-12^th grades).
• GRADUATE – We have had great success with helping students meet the important milestone of earning their high school diplomas.  With our graduation requirements aligned with the California college and university admissions requirements for “a-g” course completion, we expect as close to 100% of our students to graduate, earn their high school diplomas, be college-eligible, and “pre-career” ready.
• GIVE BACK – We expect students to “recycle their success” (taken from the Making Waves Affirmation) and give back in a myriad of ways – from volunteering within the community to participating in programs and volunteering in the larger Richmond community and beyond.

Primary Responsibilities:

Leadership & Oversight

• Provide leadership to the school community, modeling the mission, vision, and values of the school in areas such as direction, order, pace, communication, and community member engagement.  Provide oversight and set the vision for student and adult learning.
• Provide direction and leadership to the faculty, staff, and admin you are responsible for in your cluster. Supervise, evaluate, hire, and terminate members of this team in collaboration with our Human Resources Department and Talent Team.
• Meet regularly with key leaders across the school to assess and discuss progress towards WASC/LCAP goals and quarterly goals (using the 15Five OKR tool).  Share data and analysis with CEO, MWA Board, and other community members as appropriate.  Work closely with, seek input from, and provide updates to various governance and community member entities – e.g. MWA Board, School Site Council (SSC), and the charter authorizer board.

School-wide Systems and Practices

• Utilize systems to identify and track progress on school-wide WASC/LCAP goals using key performance indicators and metrics, analyze and act on the data provided, gather and utilize information from MWA internal and external community members to assess the overall health of your cluster and the school, and assess whether or not or to what extent actions, strategies, and outcomes are in alignment with the MWA mission, vision, and values.
• In collaboration with the Principal and other Assistant Principals, develop instructional monitoring and oversight systems that provide clear direction and support to faculty and staff.  Develop and make sure professional development plans, practices, and implementation are in alignment with MWA’s WASC/LCAP goals.  Make sure that the Professional Development Plan for faculty is clear, “guaranteed and viable”, and connects to formal and informal classroom observations, lesson and unit plan development, formative and summative assessment development, and annual performance evaluation.  Regularly and formally review, discuss, and analyze data with the Principal, other Assistant Principals, and other site-based leadership whose work supports differentiated support and instruction.  With MWA instructional leaders, assess progress against the Professional Development Plan and WASC/LCAP goals throughout the school year.  Share formative data, observations, and analysis regarding the execution of the plan, including successes and challenges, with the Principal and CEO.
• In alignment with MWA practices, procedures, and Board policies, make sure all MWA staff meet regularly with their supervisors to discuss their responsibilities, their progress towards goals, and their medium and long-term professional goals. Make sure that formal feedback cycles occur throughout the year, that clear and measurable performance goals are set, and that a written formal review for all MWA employees in your cluster occurs by the end of the school year.  Ensure that all MWA staff are monitoring the safety and well-being of students and adults in the community, adhering to Mandated Reporter requirements, and communicating any concerns, with respect to safety and well-being of MWA staff and students, to the Principal or HR.
• In conjunction with the MWA Central Office finance team, provide leadership and oversight in the budget development process, manage resources against the MWA Board-approved budget, and make sure fiscal policies are being followed.
• Take the lead in modeling, supporting, and facilitating training that supports a culture of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging for all members of the community (e.g. racial/ethnic, socio-economic, gender, sexual orientation).

Communication/Community Member Engagement

• Develop and maintain a spirit of productive and responsive working relationships with various MWA community member groups including parents/guardians, students, faculty, staff, board members, visitors, and other administrators. 
• Monitor school culture and be proactive in collecting pulse checks and administering surveys to assess how students, parents, and staff are doing, what is working, and what could be improved.  Through your leadership, develop and maintain a positive culture of student achievement, efficacy, cultural competency, professionalism, data-informed decision-making and analysis, and appropriate use and application of technology. 

Additional Responsibilities and Expectations

Mission Alignment

• Demonstrate knowledge of, and support, Making Waves Academy’s mission, core values, standards, competencies, and code of conduct outlined in the Employee Handbook.
• Participate in the school community – attending school competitions, performances, assemblies, and extracurricular activities.

Other

• Make sure that you follow and adhere to school systems that account for there always being a designated administrator in charge in your absence.
• Be prepared to support as an administrator in attendance for interscholastic competitions and school events.
• Perform additional duties as assigned.

Work Environment

This job operates in a professional office environment. This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as laptop computers, photocopiers, portable two-way radio transceivers, and smartphones.

Physical Demands

While performing the duties of this job, the employee may be required to frequently walk across the middle and upper school campus, participate in campus supervision duty each week, lift files, open filing cabinets and bend or stand on a stool as necessary, and sit for long periods of time.

Travel

Some travel is required for MWA-related events, such as workshops or conferences.

Qualifications

Experience

• 3-5 years of school leadership and administrative experience leading and supervising adults.
• 2 years or more working with and developing budgets.
• 5-7 years or more of direct teaching experience in a K-12 school setting, particularly in schools serving underserved communities.
• 7 years or more work experience in a K-12 school environment (particularly charter schools).
• Experience working with students and families from historically underserved communities.
• Knowledge, experience, and alignment of efficacy approach to teaching and learning.
• Curriculum knowledge base and experience with Common Core standards.

Education

• Advanced Degree required (MA, MBA, Ed.D, or Ph.D.)
• Admin Credential highly preferred
• Applications from those without an Admin credential and those enrolled in a CTC-approved program will also be considered.

Licenses or Certificates Needed

• Employment eligibility will include fingerprints, tuberculosis, and/or other employment clearance

Preferred

• Spanish language proficiency preferred but not required

Reasonable Accommodation
Consistent with its obligations under the law, MWA will provide reasonable accommodation to any employee with a disability who requires accommodation to perform the essential functions of his or her job.

Equal Employment Opportunity Is Our Policy

Making Waves Academy is an equal opportunity employer. It is the policy of the School to afford equal employment and advancement opportunities to all qualified individuals without regard to their perceived or identified: race (including traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture and hairstyle, including but not limited to braids, locks, and twists); color; gender, (including gender identity, gender expression, and transgender identity, whether or not the employee is transitioning or has transitioned); sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, and medical conditions related to such); religious creed (including religious dress and grooming practices); marital/registered domestic partner status; age (forty (40) and over); national origin or ancestry (including native language spoken and possession of a driver’s license issued to persons unable to prove their presence in the U.S. is authorized by federal law); physical or mental disability (including HIV and AIDS); medical condition (including cancer and genetic characteristics); taking of a leave of absence pursuant to the Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”), Pregnancy Disability Leave (“PDL”) law, Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), California Family Rights Act (“CFRA”), the Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”), or laws related to domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking laws; genetic information; sexual orientation; military and veteran status; or any other consideration made unlawful by federal, state, or local laws.

This policy extends to all job applicants and employees and to all aspects of the employment relationship, including the hiring of new employees and the training, transfer, promotion, discipline, termination, compensation and benefits of existing employees. For a full copy of our non-discrimination policy, visit: https://bit.ly/mwapublicnotices

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