The School District of Philadelphia’s Assistant Superintendent for the Opportunity Network sets the vision, direction, and strategic plan for alternative settings designed for students who are at risk of, or already, disconnected from school.  Consistent with the District’s bold Action Plan 3.0, the Assistant Superintendent – Opportunity Network will identify, refine and design creative pathways to ensure opportunity youth graduate from high school. The Assistant Superintendent – Opportunity Network is responsible for the implementation and progress monitoring of all alternative programs and also oversees support for both District-run and contract-provided services. The Assistant Superintendent – Opportunity Network leads routine, comprehensive reviews of services to at-risk and opportunity youth to inform strategy development. Additionally, the Assistant Superintendent – Opportunity Network will manage a network of citywide providers of behavioral health supports to ensure the District is providing comprehensive supports to opportunity youth. The Assistant Superintendent – Opportunity Network leads the classroom-by-classroom, program-by-program, school-by-school effort to reform instruction and significantly improve student achievement in alternative education settings. Included in this work is both the direct oversight of District-run accelerated and multiple pathways sites, and the on-going monitoring of and annual decision-making around the District’s contracts with alternative education services providers.

Quality school leadership contributes significantly to student achievement. In addition to the overall vision-setting and strategic planning for the Opportunity Network, the Assistant Superintendent primarily focuses on supporting principals’ growth as instructional leaders through direct management and coaching of school leaders in District-run programs. The Assistant Superintendent promotes high-quality instructional practices; provides instructional leadership direction; and coaches, mentors and supports principals to grow their leadership skills. The Assistant Superintendent is responsible for helping to recruit, select and assign principals for the Opportunity Network; supporting differentiated professional growth and resource sharing within the network; and building the leadership capacity of the District.  Additionally, the ability to collect, analyze and use multiple sources of data to guide continuous improvement of network schools is an important function of this job.

The unique student population included in this network of schools, so-called discipline students, over-age and under-credited students, and students already detached from school, is best served by a city-wide system. To this end, the Opportunity Network will continue the rich collaboration with Philadelphia city agencies and non-profits convened under Project U-Turn and the Council on College and Career Success. The Opportunity Network will further coordinate good-practice sharing among city providers who serve opportunity youth.

Essential Functions
Alternative Education Oversight

• Sets the vision and strategic plan for the District’s alternative education settings; oversees a flexible system of District-managed and contract-provided programs to ensure the system provides high quality instructional opportunities for its target populations
• Invests and engages internal and external stakeholders in alternative education planning and delivery
• Coordinates a comprehensive, evidence-based review of current services for at-risk and opportunity youth; manages regular program reviews
• Manages all alternative education provider contracts; coordinates and negotiates all aspects of contract and provider services; monitors compliance of providers with contracts; makes annual decisions regarding contract renewals
• Oversees the provision of non-instructional programs and services to students who have been placed in alternative disciplinary and transitional settings, including prison settings, alternative schools, and alternative behavioral learning environments
• Ensures all services provided are in compliance with federal, state and local governing mandates; serves as the primary liaison on legal requirements
• Manages the Alternative Education Office staff
• Serves as the District’s expert on alternative education

Instructional Leadership and Talent Management

• Promotes the District’s high-performing school practices and ensures the consistent implementation of the practices across all schools
• Guides and develops principals to provide learning environments that enable every student to achieve
• Formulates, plans and implements coaching and professional growth practices with assigned principals; observes principal practices, provides feedback and works as the primary coach and supervisor to increase assigned principals’ instructional leadership capacities
• Supports principals to assess the core competencies that teachers need to implement curriculum, deliver instruction and improve their teaching practices
• Creates professional learning communities to provide peer feedback, promote innovative thinking and collaborative learning among assigned principals; models effective teamwork and collaboration
• Coordinates and ensures the successful integration of evidence-based strategies to support the growth and success of all District schools and to scale good ideas
• Helps to recruit, select and assign principals to appropriate schools
• Functions as a qualified observer of teachers and principals
• Develops effective working relationships with principals and school stakeholders

Systems-Level Leadership

• Provides leadership as a member of a collaborative team to ensure that curriculum and instruction initiatives are aligned with District priorities
• Ensures the deployment of resources and intervention approaches to appropriately, efficiently and effectively address challenges
• Ensures the implementation of strategies to meet the District’s performance targets and continuous improvement plans.
• Responds to constituents’ concerns and serves as the liaison to schools, central offices and community groups on matters related to instruction and school leadership
• Ensures that all functions and activities are executed in compliance with District policies and professional standards and local, state and federal laws.
• Communicates clearly with principals, parents and the community about District priorities, school performance and student achievement
• Uses executive judgment to solve problems and manage crises

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
Demonstrated knowledge of:

• Urban education and driving improvement in student achievement.
• Using quantitative and qualitative information in an instructional setting to drive decision-making and evaluation.
• Using systems level information to review, create and monitor school improvement programs and strategies
• Strong strategic planning, executive leadership and organizational skills.

Demonstrated ability to:

• Coach and manage others to drive student achievement gains.
• Work collaboratively to build consensus while also delivering exceptional results.
• Inspire, manage and collaborate with a wide variety of stakeholders at all levels.
• Collaborate and build relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Be flexible, resilient and adaptable to changing priorities.
• Commit to high performance standards and maintain an unwavering belief that all students can excel.
• Communicate effectively, both orally and in writing.

Minimum Requirements

• Master’s degree from an accredited college or university in education, educational administration or a related field.

                                                                                    AND

• Seven years of full-time, paid, educational experience, at least three of which have been in a turnaround school-based administrative or supervisory capacity
  

                                                                                     OR

• any combination of prior experience deemed appropriate by The Office of Talent.

Certificates/Licenses

• Valid Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Superintendent’s Letter of Eligibility.

Selection Process
Interviews may be conducted to determine how well a candidate meets the established criteria.  Note that not all qualified candidates may be selected for an interview. The selected candidate must have no anecdotal record on file and have not been subject to any disciplinary action within the past eighteen (18) months, and have an excellent record of attendance and punctuality during the last three (3) years (defined as no more than eighteen (18) occasions of lateness or absence for personal illness in the last three years (3) years with the exception of one extended long-term absence).

Disclaimer
The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this classification. They are not to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required of personnel so classified.