Unique Vision
Lafayette Preparatory Academy (LPA), an innovative charter school forming in St. Louis City, Missouri, seeks enthusiastic applicants qualified to fill the role of its first Head of School. LPA will serve a vibrant population of economically and racially diverse students and offer them an exceptional public education currently unavailable in downtown St. Louis or its nearby neighborhoods. LPA will raise the bar in public education and will set the pace for academic excellence, thereby building upon the revitalization occurring in St. Louis City and providing an important part of the solution to urban flight.
LPA’s academic mission is to prepare students for academic and collegiate success and equip them to enter the world as active, responsible, and involved citizens and leaders. To accomplish this mission, the educational program will include a relentless focus on literacy; the use of data to drive and differentiate instruction; a passion to build critical and creative thinking skills through an inquiry-based teaching style; and multi-faceted cultural and service learning programs. Not only will LPA students reflect the community, together they will become harbingers of positive change.
Unique Position
The Head of School will be engaged on July 1, 2012 with an attractive compensation and benefits package. The Head will be responsible for developing a curriculum, hiring faculty and staff, and promoting the school to residents of its targeted areas. LPA’s leadership model allows the Head of School to focus on instructional leadership. Candidates must possess the ability to effectively lead the school community, as well as demonstrate a deep understanding of instructional excellence.
Lafayette Preparatory Academy will operate as an elementary charter school opening in the fall of 2013. During its inaugural year, LPA will serve students in kindergarten through second grade. The school will add an additional grade level in each of the following three years to reach the intended size of K-5. Each grade will have two sections of no more than 23-25 students each. The school will start with a target enrollment of 144 children and eventually expand to approximately 294 children in the fall of 2016.
Upon the school’s opening, LPA’s Head of School will oversee all strategic, programmatic, financial, and administrative operations with a particular emphasis in the following:
Instructional
• Develop and maintain a school environment laser-focused on student achievement
• Observe teacher instructional practices regularly and mentor teachers personally
• Manage process for analyzing data
• Lead regular instructional professional development
• Establish and maintain a safe, positive, and orderly learning environment
Organizational
• Attract and retain high-performing instructional and non-instructional staff
• Effectively and honestly evaluate staff and teacher performance
• Develop an exciting and collaborative team culture
• Work with the Director of Operations to ensure organizational efficiency
Community
• Build positive and helpful partnerships with parents/guardians and other stakeholders
• Actively seek support from various community groups and leaders
• Lead all student recruitment efforts
Skills and Qualifications
Potential candidates must possess a Bachelor’s degree with a Master’s Degree preferred. Candidates must possess a record of four or more years of teaching experience with a highly impressive record of student progress. At least two years of elementary school leadership with a record of positively impacting school-wide instructional practices is also required.
Other qualifications include:
Instructional
• Record of driving high student achievement
• Ability to place students’ interests first and do whatever it takes to see them succeed
• Demonstrated experience with design of elementary curriculum
• Ability to evaluate, train, and develop teachers
• Ability to lead regular instructional professional development
• Determination to establish and maintain a safe, positive, and orderly learning environment
Organizational
• Elementary school leadership experience
• Experience in school environments with low-income and/or economic and racial diversity
• Devotion to the vision and goals set by the Board through a clearly articulated and actionable plan
• Develop and maintain a motivational environment for staff
• Flexibility to adjust and adapt to changing circumstances
• Entrepreneurial spirit, strong problem-solving skills, and decisive attitude
Community
• Ability to effectively communicate with, and lead, parents and neighbors in addition to faculty, staff, and students
• Ability to effectively and winsomely articulate school goals
• Ability to develop strong, trust, and respectful relationships with all stakeholders
Personal
• Propensity to set challenging personal and school-wide goals and take the proper initiative to achieve said goals
• Appreciation for, and commitment to, racial and cultural diversity
• Strong presence with a willingness to make difficult decisions
• Strong interpersonal skills with an ability to build a positive learning and working atmosphere
Application Process
Interested candidates should submit a cover letter, resume and three professional references. Any firm salary requirements should be included. Please send documents via email to christine@lafayetteprep.org.
