Washington State School Operations Leader Fellowship at SchoolOps

Are you a systems-oriented teacher who has always thought you might be able to improve the behind-the-scenes work that makes your school run? Are you killing it in a get-stuff-done role with a business, and want to explore bringing this skillset to a school community? Are you a school staff member working in an office, cafeteria, transportation, facilities, finance, or other operations role, who is ready to be developed and make the leap into leadership? Is your future in building the operational backbone of excellent schools?

If so, the Washington State School Operations Leader Fellowship is for you.

The Opportunity

Fellows will be a part of a one-year cohort that:

1. Is matched with a high-performing school with an experienced Operations Leader, under whom they will apprentice for 1 year.
2. Will receive high quality professional learning and coaching to build their expertise in school operations, help them achieve ambitious goals at their placement school, and reflect on their in-school experiences.

After the one year Fellowship, the Fellows will:

1. Be prepared for a Leader-level Operations role.
2. Have access to continued professional learning and coaching, which will help them thrive in their first year as a School Operations Leader.

About SchoolOps

SchoolOps is a nation-wide organization based in Washington State that is committed to ensuring that every school has access to high quality professional learning and support for its operations teams. SchoolOps has worked across multiple states to bring together communities of operations learners and provide them with national best practices, a resource library of tools and templates, and guided discussions to solve problems together. We believe that excellent operations are a core driver of student success, and that investing in operations teams builds strong foundations for sustainable schools. The SchoolOps Team is excited to host the Washington State Operations Leader Fellowship.

Location

Each Fellow will be matched with a school in Washington state, so applicants must be willing to relocate to Washington State if they do not already live here. We especially encourage applicants who are willing to be located in any region of Washington State.

Responsibilities

Fellows will work at their school site daily, as well as attending monthly professional development and coaching sessions. Daily responsibilities will vary by placement site, but generally, Fellows will partner with their hosting Operations Leader to learn about and execute on school operations systems as well as process improvements to those systems. Each Fellow will also complete at least one Capstone Project (an opportunity to own and advance critical work within one complex operations workstream). Fellows will be working within the following operations domains:

●       Team and Vendor Management

●       Finance and Budget

●       Food Service and Nutrition

●       Recruitment, Enrollment, and Registration of Students

●       Staff Recruitment

●       Facilities Management

●       Procurement and Inventory

●       Student Information Systems

●       Event Planning and Execution

●       Family and Community Communications

●       Transportation and Bus Management

●       School-Day Logistics (arrival, dismissal, lunch transitions, etc.)

●       Human Resources

●       Information Technology

●       Attendance

●       School Scheduling

●       Substitute Teachers and Staff Coverage Planning

●       Standardized Testing Management

●       Fundraising and Grants

●       Student Health and Nursing

Timeline:

●       June 15, 2024: Deadline

●       Early August, 2024: Start Date

Requirements

Skills and Experience:

Prior experience in education or operations is not required. We are seeking candidates with a knack for getting stuff done, and high operational potential, which includes the following skills and habits:

●       Systems-oriented thinker.

●       Has a deep understanding of the importance of anti-racist and inclusion-centered practices in education.

●       Excited to give and receive feedback very frequently, and capable of quickly implementing feedback.

●       Capable of calmly assessing strengths and gaps within processes and creating plans to bring additional structure to them.

●       Highly organized, writes everything down, never forgets an appointment, follow-up action item, or deadline.

●       Capable of prioritizing and executing on their most critical workstreams when there is more work than can be accomplished by identified deadlines.

●       A strong commitment to owning your own professional development. This includes engaging in all SchoolOps professional development activities and working independently and with a manager to build your operations and leadership skillset.

Benefits

Compensation

Compensation will be $60,000 - $70,000 during the Fellowship year. Completion of this Fellowship does not guarantee a Director of Operations role, but is preparation for this and similar roles, with typical salary ranges from roughly $85,000 - $115,000.

Fellows will have access to a very competitive benefits package during their Fellowship. All Fellows will be covered by Washington’s State Employees Benefits Board (SEBB) as well as the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS). Please see the links for more details.

SchoolOps is an equal opportunity employer that deeply values all of the differences that make our people unique. These differences help us create an organization that celebrates diversity and strives to create equitable and inclusive spaces where everyone is encouraged to bring their authentic self. In turn, we are committed to leveraging the perspectives of our people to best support and serve our partners.

SchoolOps selects personnel on the basis of ability without regard to age, race, ethnicity, color, disability, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, or veteran status.